Sewage backup during a storm: what to do and how to be safe.

11/18/2019 (Permalink)

A sewer backing up, or contaminated water backing out of your tub, sink or toilet can be an absolute nightmare for Nottingham homeowners. Sewer backups happen frequently during storms because the sewer system is overwhelmed causing it to "back-up" through your toilet or drains.

The truth is you can’t (and shouldn’t) do very much; sewage contaminated water is dangerous to your health and should be avoided at all costs. If you have water backing up out of toilet, sink or bathtub in your Nottingham home, then follow these steps and call SERVPRO of Perry Hall White Marsh

410-529-1664

Your Game Plan

• Stay out of the area/avoid cross contamination
• Determine the source
• Arrange repair and cleanup services with SERVPRO of Perry Hall/White Marsh or your local SERVPRO/Water restoration company
• Call your Insurance Company

Keep Children and Pets away from sewer-water affected areas

Keep children and pets away the moment the sewer water is discovered, until the clean-up crew and sanitation is complete. Sewage is considered Category 3 water,more commonly known as black water. Category 3 water or Black water is defined by the IICRC as “the worst classification and is grossly unsanitary. It could cause severe illness or death if ingested” Keep children and pets away at all times and if you yourself must go in the area, wash your hands thoroughly and avoid touching cuts, eyes, mouth or ears with your hands or any item that came in contact with the black water.

Risks of Sewage back up debris

Category 3 water/Raw sewage contains diseases such as Hepatitis, Salmonella, E.Coli and Parasites just to name a few, would you risk cleaning this yourself without proper training or the tools and chemicals to do it correctly? These diseases survive weeks even months if not properly killed. Doing it yourself, or hiring the wrong professional puts you, your family, pets and house guests at a great risk. Call SERVPRO of Perry Hall/White Marsh to schedule emergency Service to have the job taken care of like it never even happened.

Determine whether the waste is local (as in, from your own home) or from the sewer system also known as “backflow”

IF you are able to do some inspecting, then determine the source by the amount and the flow rate. Determine the source of the sewage backup – if entering the area seems like it would be dangerous to your health (no proper protective equipment) then just skip on down to arrange services. A local waste product would be from a blockage, tree roots affecting plumbing lines or broken or collapsed lines on your property, this waste would be from your own home but is still considered a category 3. Backflow is when the sewer system in your neighborhood or municipality is overwhelmed, and it reverses in your pipes, causing it to erupt from toilets, sinks and tubs. This can happen from heavy rain-flow overwhelming your municipality’s sewer system, causing it to backflow into your home.

Arrange Services with SERVPRO of Perry Hall White Marsh

Call an Emergency Restoration company such as SERVPRO of Perry Hall White Marsh as we are IICRC Certified and specialize in cleaning up hazardous waste. Most contractors and plumbers do not have the capability to clean up the site after the repairs have been made and may not be approved by your insurance company if you choose to claim the loss.

SERVPRO also has a 1-4-8 policy, which means

• 1 hour from notice of loss - (When you call), a SERVPRO professional will contact you to arrange services.
• 4 hours of calling - a SERVPRO professional will be onside to start mitigating services (or your earliest convenience).
• 8 business hour- a verbal briefing of the scope will be communicated to your adjuster by a SERVPRO Professional.

Why call SERVPRO? If any SERVPRO believes they are incapable of responding within this time frame, they will refer you to a different SERVPRO so you are not left waiting!

Call your insurance company

Ask your agent if this is a covered loss, and what your deductible will be.  This can be done before or after calling SERVPRO of Perry Hall White Marsh as we accept all insurance plans and you can also pay yourself – whether you are covered or not.

If you are not covered, not a problem, we will begin services after a deposit has been made and the rest will be due upon completion. Please call for deposit details!

Having a sewage back-up can stink up your day but no sewage backup is too small or too big for SERVPRO of Perry Hall/White Marsh.

Give us a call at 410-529-1664