Backups through drains, tubs and toilets
Sewage Backup Cleanup in Bremen, GA
When a drain pushes dirty water back into a house, the job changes from drying to cleaning up after contaminated water. Households in Bremen, Waco, Tallapoosa and Temple can read the first steps here. Call (678) 839-7986 and name the fixtures that overflowed.
What it looks like
- Water welling up out of the floor drain, the tub or the toilet and refusing to drain
- Gurgling from drains when a washer empties or a toilet is flushed
- A sewage smell in the basement, the laundry room or near one drain
- Several fixtures on the lowest level backing up at the same time
- Dark, foul water pooled in a shower pan or laundry sink
Step out and get help if
- Sewage on the floor: keep children, pets and anyone with a weak immune system out, and phone your town's water and sewer office.
- Dirty water creeping toward an outlet, a power strip or the panel: stay clear of the room and call 911 from outside.
- A gas smell in the room, or a gas water heater in the backed-up water: leave and call 911 or the gas company.
- Dark water dripping from a ceiling below a bathroom, or one that droops: stay out of that room, and dial 911 if it splits.
Where the water in a backup comes from
A house drain leads to a lateral line under the yard, and that line joins the sewer main under the street. When the main is blocked, water that cannot move on goes back up through the lowest drain, tub or toilet. Houses on septic tanks have a tank and a drain field instead of a main.
That is why the lowest fixtures show it first, and why more than one house on a street can back up around the same time. The town's sewer office is the one that can check its own main.
What to know in these four towns
- Tallapoosa's Public Works page lists sewer mains, lift stations and manholes among the city's duties. The office answers at 770-574-2345 on weekdays from 8 to 5. Bremen's own phone list has no sewer heading, so start with City Hall, 770-537-2331. Waco and Temple numbers are on the town notes.
- Homes on septic are a different system. Haralson County's Environmental Health Department, at 133 Buchanan Bypass, 770-646-4301, handles on-site sewage and land use permits.
A backup is not a wait-and-see problem
Overflow that reaches carpet, a floor that stays wet, or a smell that lingers after the water drops all need a contractor soon. So does any backup that touched a play area or a room where food is kept.
Call (678) 839-7986 and name the fixtures that overflowed, how far the water spread and what it touched. Leave the mop in the closet until after the call.
Questions, answered
How do I grade a sewage backup from 1 to 10?
Sewage starts higher on the scale than clean water. A slow drain with no overflow is a 2. A little dirty water on a tile floor is a 6. Water that keeps coming, reaches carpet, or sits near wires or gas appliances is a 9 or 10. The top grades go to 911 or the utility. Any grade of 5 or more is a reason to call (678) 839-7986.
Can I clean up a backup myself?
When sewage caused the water or the mold, EPA says to bring in a professional with experience in contaminated water. UGA's mold circular lists sewage and contaminated water as cases where do-it-yourself cleanup does not apply.
Do wet drywall and carpet from a backup stay?
Pennsylvania's flood guide says wet drywall and plaster cannot be decontaminated and get discarded. NDSU says carpet soaked by contaminated flood water comes out and is thrown away. A contractor confirms what applies in your rooms.
Is a backup a health matter?
EPA's flood page says flood water can hold bacteria, chemicals and other hazards that affect health. Keep children and pets out of the room until a contractor has looked.
Who do I phone first about a backup?
Start with the town's water and sewer office, since a clog in the main can back up more than one house. Tallapoosa's Public Works handles sewer mains at 770-574-2345. Bremen's list has no sewer line, so use City Hall at 770-537-2331. The Waco notes and the Temple notes have those two numbers.
Is the cleanup the same in Waco, Tallapoosa and Temple?
The steps are, and the phone numbers are not. Houses on the Tallapoosa city system and houses on septic tanks outside town answer to different offices. Read the Tallapoosa notes or the Waco notes, then call (678) 839-7986 with the street.
Why a backup costs more thought than a spill
No prices are shown on this site. Contaminated water changes the work, because more material comes out instead of drying in place. Pennsylvania's guide and NDSU both put drywall and soaked carpet from contaminated water in the discard pile. The amount that comes out drives much of the size.
The cause is a separate repair. A blocked main, a failing tank or a broken lateral is plumbing work, and it may be billed apart from the cleanup.
Sewer repairs and the offices behind them
Clearing or repairing a sewer line, or replacing part of a septic system, can involve a town office or the county's Environmental Health Department. The paperwork page lists the town offices, and the county's environmental health number appears above.