Sewage cleanup after a backup
A toilet, a shower drain or the main line backed up. Protective gear and containment first. Anything porous it soaked gets removed.
Still running or dripping?
Call (310) 857-2520A person answers, day or night.
Already stopped?
Request a free visitAdd photos if you have them.
Sewage is category 3, the dirtiest of the three water categories, and the rules for it are stricter. Material it soaked into usually has to go, because it can’t be cleaned all the way through. Every hard surface it touched gets disinfected, and only then does drying start.
While you wait
- Keep kids and pets well clear of the wet rooms.
- Hold off on flushing, showers and laundry until the plumber has cleared the line, or more comes back up.
- Leave what it reached where it is. Mopping carries it onto clean floors.
- Take photos from the doorway first.
Who clears the line
A blocked or broken sewer line is a plumber’s job and billed separately. Once it’s clear, we clean up everything the backup reached. If you’re not sure which it was, tell us what you saw on the call. A backup in one toilet and a backup in the lowest drain in the house usually point to different places.
Your first hour
- Now
A person answers and stays on while you close the valve.
- 15 min
Sent a request, or missed us? We call you back.
- 45 min
A crew at your door, timed from the end of your call.
- Visit one
We walk you through the week before the first fan goes on.
How a sewage job runs
- Protective gear goes on at the door. The rooms it reached are closed off with plastic, to keep it out of the rooms it missed.
- The sewage and the water with it come out.
- Carpet, pad, the lower drywall and any insulation it soaked are removed. You agree to each before it goes, and nothing of yours is thrown away until you’ve agreed to it.
- Floors, framing and every hard surface it touched get scrubbed and disinfected.
- Drying starts, with a visit every day at the time we set.
- When the rooms are clean and read dry, the plastic comes down and the rooms are yours again.
Sewer backups and insurance
Many home policies treat a sewer backup apart from a burst pipe, and some cover it only through an added endorsement. Ask your insurer what yours says. Coverage is your insurer’s decision. In most cases we bill your insurer directly. You pay your deductible plus anything your policy excludes.
What changes the total on a sewage cleanup
- How far it spread, and whether it reached a hallway or a second room
- How much carpet, drywall and insulation it soaked
- Whether it got under a raised floor
- How many days drying takes
- Whether rugs, furniture or belongings need cleaning or moving
Visit one is free. If the water’s still moving when we arrive, we explain the extraction and agree it with you on the spot. You see every price before the work it covers. What goes back afterward has its own price, on repairs after drying.
Asked after a backup
Is a toilet overflow sewage?
It depends on what was in the bowl. An overflow with no waste in it is usually gray water. With waste in it, it’s treated as sewage. Tell us on the call and we come ready for the worse case.
Can we sleep at home during the cleanup?
Usually, in the rooms it didn’t reach. We tell you which rooms to keep out of until they’re cleaned, and the plastic comes down only when they are.
Do the walls have to be opened?
Usually, where sewage soaked the drywall. It’s a straight cut low on the wall, above the line it reached, and you agree to it before we cut.
How long does a sewage job take?
Usually longer than a clean leak, because drying starts only once the cleanup is done. On night one we tell you the day we expect the equipment to go.
From the first night to the last repair
Still dripping? Call now.
Already stopped? Request a free visit, with photos if you have them.