Sewer Contractor

Not all plumbers are created equal. Hire a professional, licensed, sewer contractor for your sewer repair, replacement, and cleaning needs.

What is a Sewer Contractor?

A sewer contractor is a type of plumber who specializes in repairing or building sewer lines at commercial and residential properties. Sewer lines begin inside a building underneath sinks, toilets and bathtubs as drains and water pipes but continue to the outside of a home or business. A clog or problem in a sewer line might occur directly underneath a building or is located outside. When a plumbing contractor finds a problem in the sewer lines that are located outside, it requires some digging to reach the components to make repairs. Fortunately, there is new equipment that makes it easier to remove sewer clogs or repair components without digging up massive amounts of dirt.

How to Hire a Plumber

When a property owner needs to hire a plumber for a business, home or multifamily structure, it is imperative to hire a plumber who is licensed by their city or state. A plumber might specialize in making certain types of repairs, and if a property owner suspects that there is a problem with a building’s sewer lines, then it is vital to hire an expert who is knowledgeable about making repairs to these systems. Sewer repair also requires having certain types of equipment such as cameras, video cameras and dirt-digging machinery. There are plumbers who only have the equipment and tools necessary to make plumbing repairs to fixtures and pipes that are located inside a building rather than outside.

The Symptoms of Sewer Problems in a Building

There are usually signs of sewer problems in a building before the system stops working, but property managers may ignore the problems. When an individual empties a sink in the kitchen or bathtub, they may notice that the fixture drains slowly while the water makes gurgling sounds, and this indicates that the drains and pipes located underneath the fixtures are covered with debris such as grease, hair or food particles that make it difficult for water to flow. Unless the pipes and drains are cleaned thoroughly, the debris continues to build up until no water will flow. In many cases, a large or hard clog develops deep inside the sewer line that is located outside a building, making it difficult for a basic plumber to make a repair. This is why a property owner needs a sewer contractor rather than a basic plumber to fix the sewer line.

The Causes of Sewer Problems

There are several causes of sewer line problems in a building, including:

Flooding situations: ponds or rivers overflowing
Defective sewage system: a nonfunctional municipal sewer
Earthquake damage: lines cracking during earthquakes
Wear and tear: an old system degrading over many years
Poor maintenance: failing to maintain a building’s sewer system
Poor treatment: flushing or inserting inappropriate materials
Tree roots: the roots from trees can block a sewer line
Debris: sewers filled with bathroom tissue and grease
Chemicals: pouring corrosive chemicals into drainage systems
Temperature: debris and water freezing before expanding

How a Building’s Sewer Line Problems are Repaired

First, a sewer contractor must diagnose the problems in a building’s sewer lines to plan an appropriate repair. In the past, the only way for plumbers to view sewer lines was to dig a long trench across a lawn to see the entire system. However, there are now modern types of equipment that make trenchless sewer repair easier and faster. Instead of digging up mountains of dirt, a sewer contractor inserts a camera into the sewer line to perform an inspection by looking at a computer screen.