No matter where you live, there’s always bound to be a problem with the plumbing. Sooner or later, a clogged drain, a leaky faucet or a noisy pipes do occur. However, some people tend to shrug these issues off as nothing, which if left too long, can result in expensive repairs.
Minor problems such as these are a sign of something worse. If left alone, your sewers may end up backing up, which is something no homeowner wants to deal with.
Continue reading to learn what happens when your sewer backs up.
What Is It?
A sewer backup is as catastrophic as it sounds. It’s when the sewage line becomes clogged and doesn’t drain out. When that happens, water will continue to rise until it starts to overflow. If your sewer backs up, your house will be flooded with contaminated water, which is a difficult mess to clean up. In addition, wastewater is very hazardous to your health. So much so that you’re probably going to need the help of a professional cleaning service. You’re also going to need a professional plumber to repair the damages.
What Causes It?
Now that you know what happens when a sewer line backs up, it’s time to learn about the leading causes. There are three causes of a backed up sewer, with the most common one being clogged pipes. Similar to how your drain pipes can become clogged, the sewer lines are no different. However, there is a massive difference between the two. If one sink or toilet is becoming an issue, then chances are it’s a simple clog.
But, if multiple sinks and toilets are clogged and give off a foul odor, then there’s most certainly a problem with the sewage line. You can easily prevent this by watching what you flush down the toilet and be mindful of what goes down your drains.
The next potential cause are tree roots. It may sound ridiculous, but roots of a tree can be a contributing factor of a sewage back up. most people associate sewer lines with containing nothing but sewage.
But the truth is that sewer lines have all the nutrients tree roots need such as oxygen and water. However, the roots of a tree tend to grow in areas of nutrients, it’s not common to find tree roots intertwined with underground septic lines.
The third and last cause is a broken sewer line, which mostly happens with older homes. You’ll need to call a professional plumber to help fix this.
As devastating as a sewage backup can be, it’s easily preventable. In truth, sewage backups mostly occur due to other people’s carelessness and not disposing of waste properly.
The best way to avoid sewers issues, is to only throw toilet paper in the toilet and watch what you put down your drains. In the unfortunate you do run into sewer problems, play it safe and call a professional immediately.