The sewer line is an essential part of how indoor plumbing in a home operates—even though most of the line is outside of the house. Without a sewer line, your house cannot remove liquid and solid waste from the kitchen and the bathrooms, and you can guess how terrible that can soon make your home life!
Fortunately, sewer lines are constructed to last for many decades. They will eventually begin to deteriorate, however, or they may have roots infiltrate them and create blocks and gaps. If your residential sewer line is in any kind of trouble, you’ll want to identify right away so you can call a professional plumber in Frederick, MD to fix the problem.
How to Detect Sewer Line Problems Early
The sewer line is buried in a trench on your property, so it isn’t always easy to notice problems with it when they’re small. I.e. before they cause a complete shutdown of the drainage in your house. If you train your eye (and nose) to pick up on the right warning signs, however, you can catch sewer line trouble early enough to get plumbers on the job.
- Bright green patches of grass: When you look over the lawn on your property, you may see patches of grass that are a much brighter green than the rest of the lawn. That may seem pretty—but it’s a warning that a larger amount of nutrients is feeding that stretch of grass, and this often means a leaking sewer line.
- Soggy spots on the lawn: If you notice soggy places on the lawn where there’s no reason for them to be there, and if these patches have a sewer odor to them, it’s another warning of a leaking sewer line.
- Drain clogging around the house: A single slow or clogged drain usually means something is obstructing the drainpipe. When drains all around the house are experiencing slow drainage or clogging at the same time, it’s a warning something farther down in the sewer system is at fault, such as a broken or blocked sewer line.
- Sewer odors and gurgling from drains: If you have multiple slow drains around the house, are they also emitting a sewer odor and the sound of gurgling? This means sewer gas is being forced the wrong direction up the drainpipe, probably because the sewer line is damaged.
- Water spots in the basement: A blocked sewer line will first start to backup in the lower parts of the house, and you may detect trouble first in the basement. Look for water spots and moisture around drains in the basement.
Call Professional Plumbers
It takes licensed plumbers with the best equipment to accurately diagnose sewer line trouble—as well as to fix whatever is wrong. Be cautious of amateur “plumbers” (any plumber who doesn’t have a license and proof of full insurance) when it comes to sewer line service. You shouldn’t hire an amateur for any plumbing job, but especially not for something as essential as fixing a damaged sewer line. You can trust to our trained and licensed experts to solve your sewer line troubles, fast and right.
Tuckers Air Conditioning, Heating & Plumbing serves Washington D.C., Montgomery & Frederick Counties. Schedule service with us today.