Sewer Backup Cleanup in Franklin, TN

Why sewage changes the cleanup

Sewage carries bacteria and other organisms, and every material it touches is treated differently from clean water.

Clean water that has been on a floor for a day can be dried and kept. Sewage that has been on the same floor is handled as contaminated, and the material it has soaked may have to be removed even when it looks sound. The work order, the protective equipment and the disposal all follow from that difference.

The homeowner should not try to clean a sewage area with household products. The crew uses the disinfectant and the protective equipment that the situation requires, and records what was used.

Which materials are kept after sewage

The list is short, because sewage is hard to remove from porous material.

• Carpet and pad that stood in sewage are discarded.
• Unsealed paneling, paper-faced drywall and insulation in the wet zone are removed.
• Cabinets and trim with sewage in their pores are removed where they are porous; a sealed hard surface may be cleaned and kept.
• Hard, sealed surfaces such as concrete, tile and metal are cleaned, disinfected and dried, and kept where they pass the check.
• Stored items that were in the water are assessed one by one, and the homeowner decides what is kept.

Who to tell and what to record

The utility, the health department and the insurer each need a different part of the record.

The sewer utility that runs the line should be told of the backup, because a blockage in the main is the utility's to clear and its records matter for the next storm. A household with health questions about the cleanup can take them to a doctor. The insurer needs the photographs, the timeline, the readings and the list of removed items.

Photographs are taken before any cleaning starts, of the drain, the water, the fixtures and the marks on the walls. A short written timeline, with the times the backup was first seen and the times the fixtures were stopped, completes the record.

Preventing the next backup

A device or a clearing plan can stop the water before it reaches the room.

A backwater valve, fitted by a plumber on the drain line, closes when water tries to flow back into the house. Whether one suits the line is a question for the plumber and the building department, because the installation is a permit matter for the City of Franklin or Williamson County. Drains on low ground, including those on the creek-side streets, are the first to be considered.

Keeping the drain clear of grease, wipes and roots, and having the line inspected if backups recur, are ordinary steps a homeowner can take. None of them replaces a valve where the line is known to surcharge in a storm.

What the cleanup proves to the homeowner

The file shows that the room was cleaned, disinfected and dried in that order.

The final file includes the disinfecting record, the readings from each zone, the list of discarded materials and the photographs of the cleaned surfaces. The crew signs a completion note for the room, and the homeowner keeps it with the insurer's file.

A room that has had sewage in it should not be reoccupied until the completion note is signed and the readings show it is dry.

A household that has had a backup often wants to know whether the next storm will bring the same water. The answer depends on the line, the drain and the ground around them. The utility can say whether the line is known to surcharge, and a plumber can say whether a valve or a clearing plan suits the drain. Until those questions are answered, the basement fixtures on the affected line are kept out of use during heavy rain, and the household writes down when the rain began and when the drain began to back up.