What to Do After a Sewage Backup? A Professional Guide

Sewage backup is a serious threat to both your property and your life if left unchecked, thus it is necessary that you remain vigilant for such a scenario.

If it happens, you should be prepared to do the necessary things to mitigate the damage as much as possible.

1. Self-Protection

• When a sewage backup has built up, the first thing you need to do is to get away from the sewage and try to reduce your exposure to it. If you have pets, elderly or children around during such an event, then it is necessary to get them as far as possible from the sewage first. Sewage has a lot of harmful germs, bacteria and viruses that can cause serious illnesses.
• If the sewage results in a lot of standing water or if the water flow has chance to come into contact from an electrical wire, then turn off the main power to prevent any electrical hazard and damage to electric goods.
• If the house has any furnace or air conditioner, then turn them off to prevent the sewage from entering the vents.
• If it is necessary to go in the vicinity of the sewage, then wear rubber gloves and wash your hands thoroughly after dealing with any affected material.
• Do not try to attempt to unclog the drains yourself because removal of sewage water first is necessary to locate the cause of the spill.

2. Call The Insurance Company

• When a sewage backup is recognized, call your insurance company to check whether the policy covers the clean-up and restoration of sewage backup. Make sure to take photographs of the damaged goods and the water spill to use as evidence for your insurance claim.

3. Call For Professional Help

• While you can clean-up a sewage backup yourself, it is always recommended that you call for professionals to fix the situation. Also, if the situation has resulted in any of the following scenarios, then it is important that you call for professional help and not try to solve the issue yourself.
• The sewage spill spreading to more than 1 room
• 24 hours have passed since the sewage backup
• The sewage is coming from a sewer or a septic tank
• If the sewage has come into contact with your air conditioners

4. Take Measures to Prevent Sewage Backup

• Sewage backup is an issue that most consider to be an act of God; however, there are steps that one can take to prevent such an incident from ever happening.
• Have a plumber install a backflow preventer valve in your main sewer line to prevent backups in the sewer drain systems
• Replace any old sewer pipes before they break from corrosion.
• Call a sewage cleanup company if you notice any sewer line clog, ignored sewer line clog are a major factor contributing towards a major sewage backup.
• Do not flush anything else other than human waste and toilet paper down your toilet.
• If you wish to plant a tree, then keep in mind the location of sewer lines before planting it. Also, trees with slow growing roots are recommended to prevent pipes from breaking from the roots.

A sewage backup is a stressful event, however it is important to keep calm and remember that it can be fixed. Take appropriate measures to fix the issue and not refrain from calling a sewage cleanup and restoration company for help when necessary.