Key Maintenance - Tip #38

Warning Signs of a Clogged Sewer Line (sourced various websites)

The main sewer line is crucial for bringing water into and waste out of your home, which means you can’t afford for it to be clogged for very long.

Here are warning signs that your main sewer line is clogged.

Multiple Drains Backing Up

It’s common for a drain in your home to back up from time to time. But when you are experiencing multiple drains back up at once, it can be a sign of a much bigger issue.

If your drains are backing up in areas like the kitchen, shower, and toilets, you may have a clog in your main sewer line. Besides backing up with water, check the drain to see if it has a foul order. This can be a tell-tale sign that you have a clog in your main sewer line.

Discovering Sewage in a Floor Drain

Your main sewer line is likely clogged if you see sewage emerging from a floor drain. Depending on how bad your clog is, sewage can seep up from the floor drain when you aren’t using it. Before you visually see sewage, you may smell it! The reality is that when your main sewer line has a clog, there is nowhere for the sewage to go out from your home. This means that sewage will end up making its way to alternate “escapes” – the other drains in your home.

Toilet Flushes Causing Shower Back-Ups

Sometimes a main sewer line clog shows itself in a bathroom when you flush your toilet. Before you use a toilet in your bathroom, flush it once and check to see if it backs up in your shower. If a back-up happens, this can be a sign that your main sewer line is not working properly. Other ways that you can check this are by running your washing machine and looking to see if any of your sinks or toilets start to overflow.In any of these situations, if you see one of your drains backing up it’s time to call a professional.

Besides being a major inconvenience and causing odors, sewage back-ups can also ruin the interior surfaces of your home. Because there is the potential for costly damage to your house, you should act fast to get the help you need to fix the problem. You should consider hiring a licensed plumbing company to perform a main sewer line clean out to see if that fixes the problem.

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