Your sewer line serves every drain and plumbing-connected appliance in your home. It routes all your wastewater to the municipal sewer main. Intrusive tree roots, cracks, clogs, and other issues disrupt this process and could send wastewater rushing back into the building. Fortunately, there are several telltale signs that you need immediate sewer service. Here’s how to recognize the symptoms of impending sewer failure and avoid them.
Gurgling, Bubbling, or Hissing Sounds From Drains
If your drains or toilets make bubbling, gurgling, or hissing sounds, you may have a sewer line obstruction. These are the sounds of slow-moving water clearing a blockage somewhere in your wastewater pipes.
Tree root encroachment is among the most common causes of strange noises coming from drains. When aggressive weed and tree roots grow into sewer pipes, they create partial blockages. Liquids can often pass through, but slow-degrading materials get snagged on them. To avoid tree root encroachment, plant all trees at least 10 to 15 feet away from your sewer pipe and stay on top of yard maintenance. You should also schedule sewer line inspection service every 18 to 22 months to catch and correct encroachment early on.
Multiple Drain Issues at Once
When wastewater flow slows down in your sewer line, all your drains will act up at once. You might have multiple slow-moving drains, multiple drain clogs, or rank, funky odors coming from every drain in the house.
Stay on top of drain maintenance with annual drain cleaning service to keep your drains clean and functioning optimally. Buildups of grease, hair, soap scum, and sediment in drains can find their way into your sewer pipe. Drain cleaning breaks these buildups down and pushes them toward the municipal sewer system.
Sewer Gas Odors
If you catch a whiff of rotten eggs or rotten cabbage when standing in your basement, yard, or near your drains, you may have a cracked sewer pipe. Dirty and damaged P-traps can fill homes with sewer gas odors, too.
To avoid these odors, never place heavy equipment on top of the soil that covers your sewer line. Stump grinders and mulchers can compress the overlying soil and damage the piping beneath it. Regular drain and sewer line cleaning service will keep all your wastewater pipes clean, including P-traps.
Perpetually Wet Soil
If you have pooling water just above your sewer line, your sewer pipe could have offset sections, cracks, or severely corroded areas. Every time standing water dries, new wastewater replaces it. Perpetually wet or muddy terrain indicates the need for immediate sewer service.
With constant moisture and nutrients flowing from your sewer pipe, your landscape could look especially verdant as well. Regular sewer inspections allow plumbers to catch and address age-related pipe failure before leaks cause soil contamination.
An Influx of Pests
Leaky sewer lines attract ants, termites, cockroaches, and rodents. Many common household pests flock to damaged sewer pipes to capitalize on the available moisture and nutrients. If you have a sudden influx of pests or extremely stubborn pest problems, a damaged sewer line could be the culprit.
Foul odors, strange sounds, and multi-drain issues are all signs your sewer line needs immediate attention. Although sewer line inspection and cleaning services help plumbers diagnose and resolve the underlying problems, these same services are also excellent for prevention. If you live in Ormond Beach, FL or a surrounding area and need sewer line services, make your first call to Andy’s Plumbing.
