Sewer Damage? What to Do

Sewage damage is a serious problem, especially when the sewage water leaks inside your Sandusky home. In a matter of minutes your home could be contaminated with raw sewage. Not only can cleanup be a nightmare, it can be a major health risk. Proper techniques are required to restore a building to a safe, useable place to live and work following sewage damage.

Dangers of Sewage Backup

Sewage contains biohazards that can quickly spread to humans through skin contact, ingestion or inhalation. If left unattended, bacteria will multiply, leaving you with a greater problem than you imagined. Exposure to sewage can result in various health problems including:

• Hepatitis
• Dermatitis
• Weil’s Disease
• Legionnaires Disease
• Gastroenteritis
• Asthma
• Fatal damage to kidneys, liver, and blood
• Infection of skin or eyes

Sewage damage can infringe on the health and safety of your family. Don’t wait to call our certified professionals to safely handle the sewage damage cleanup and ensure your home is safe for your family.

Classes of Water Damage

When dealing with water/sewage damage, it is important to understand the categories of water damage. This can help you adequately respond to damage and understand exactly the degree of contamination.

Category 1: Water originates from a sanitary source and does not pose substantial risk from dermal, ingestion, or inhalation exposure (i.e., tub or sink overflowing, falling rainwater, or broken toilet tanks that contain no contaminants). After a few days, unattended category 1 water can turn into category 2 water.

Category 2: Water contains significant contamination and has the potential to cause discomfort of sickness. This category can contain potentially unsafe levels of microorganisms or nutrients for microorganisms (i.e., discharge from dishwashers, overflows from washing machines, or overflow from the toilet containing urine but no feces). As with category 1, category 2 water can compound into category 3 water given a few days.

Category 3: Water is grossly contaminated and can contain pathogens, toxins, and other harmful agents. When dealing with this type of damage, consult with a professional immediately. Category 3 water damage includes sewage, toilet backflows originating beyond the toilet trap, and water from natural disasters.

Preventing Sewage Damage

If you’re determined not to let the unfortunate burden of sewage damage cleanup happen to you, take a look at these simple tips on maintaining a contamination-free home.

• Never put grease down garbage disposals, drains or toilets.
• Never flush disposable paper products down the toilet.
• Plant trees away from your sewage system as roots can invade and clog your pipes.
• Do not connect any areaway drains or sump pumps to the sewer line.
• Modify the plumbing line so that water is pumped to an upper level drain, eliminating the drains at the lower level.
• Perform regular maintenance cleaning to eliminate grease, debris, and roots in your service laterals.
• Install a backwater prevention valve.

Cleaning up from Sewage Damage

Cleaning up from sewage damage is unpleasant—obviously. However, it can’t be neglected. Follow these tips when forced to respond to a sewage leak.

Ensure safety. Before taking any restoration measures, check for exposed electrical wires, unstable structures, or other visible safety threats. If you have any concerns regarding the safety of your home, call a professional.

Document the damage. In order to speed up filing your claim, take pictures of the damage. This will help you in the process of receiving compensation.

Stay Away. Just one millimeter of raw sewage can contain up to 1 million microorganisms. You may be tempted to embark on a sewage disposal process by yourself, but the best step to take it to simply stay away from the affected area and hire a professional.

Call a professional. If you’ve experienced the inconvenient burden of sewage damage, consult a professional. Cleaning up can be hazardous, backbreaking work.

If your Sandusky home has been affected by sewage damage, let our certified, experienced technicians help. Since sewage overflow doesn’t operate on a convenient day-only schedule, we are available 24/7 to assist you with cleanup and restoration. We will properly remove and dispose of sewage and contaminated items and clean your home. Give us a call today!