Sewage Damage In Charlottesville: 5 Main Causes

A sewage spill or flood is one of the worst things that can happen inside your home. Not only is sewage incredibly destructive for your home and the possessions in it, it is only extremely toxic and poses serious health risks for you and your family. Here are five of the major causes from our sewage restoration professionals at Restoration 1 of Charlottesville so you know what to look for in preventing a sewage spill in your home. 

Sewage Damage In Charlottesville: 5 Main Causes

Invasive Roots

One very common cause of sewage backups is when tree roots enter into the sewer lines at joint points. If they enter in at those joints they will continue to grow and spread throughout the sewer line. This inevitably leads to sewer backup and damage. Sewer pipes can also be cracked and broken by growing tree roots which can lead to even more problems. If you don’t know where the sewage pipes around your home lay, you should find out to make sure that none of your tree roots are one a collision course for your sewer lines. 

Structural Defects

Structural defects that are severe enough to allow sewer damage usually happen over time rather than all at once. Therefore, it’s important to always be on guard and know that disasters like this can happen unexpectedly. Some of the common structural defects that happen to underground pipes are misalignment, holes, or cracks. This can lead to sewage overflow, and if it is significant enough, sewer damage in your home.

Solid Flushes

The threat of damage from solid flushes should not be taken lightly. Clogged sewer lines from flushing the wrong things can wear on your pipes and even cause a sewage leak or spill. Thus, make sure that you only flush the essentials down your toilet. Anything that doesn’t need to be flushed shouldn’t. Following this general rule of thumb will allow you to keep your sewer lines clear and avoid sewage damage as a consequence of solid flushes. 

City Sewer Backups

A backup in the city sewer can occur causing waste water to overflow into the low opening of the line. This is most likely to affect your basement if you have one. It may also come out through toilets and drains in your home. 

Contaminated Flood Water

Floodwater in Charlottesville is rarely made up of clean water. Instead, it often contains contaminants that can make the water hazardous to touch or ingest. In a worst case scenario, the contamination is made up of sewage. Because of this possibility, you should never allow yourself to come into contact with flood water until you know for certain that it is not contaminated, especially that it is not contaminated with sewage.  

We hope you never have to deal with a problem as nasty as sewage damage. Nonetheless, if you do, don’t waste any time before picking up the phone and giving us a call for help.