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4 Facts Every Homeowner Should Know About Their Main Sewer Line

Carlos Bowman

Many homeowners know little to nothing about their main sewer lines, which is a problem because it is common to find that a homeowner leaves a broken pipe to go unnoticed for years until it becomes a major problem. By knowing some important facts about your main sewer line, you can better understand the common warning signs of a problem and when you should hire a sewer contractor. Here are four facts every homeowner should know:

  1. Leaking Pipes Cause Erosion: If there is a leaking pipe in your main sewer line, this can be a problem because the leak will begin to cause corrosion in the soil. This takes some time before it becomes apparent above ground, but once it does, it can be dangerous and expensive to fix. This is especially true if the leak causes corrosion in your driveway or walkway. 
  2. Pipe Age Makes a Difference: Most pipes throughout the country are over 75 years old. Because of this, once an emergency arises, the cost of labor needed on the sewer lines in your home can be increased because it is dangerous to work on older pipes for sewer contractors. This is why you may consider having your older pipes replaced before an emergency arises. You can have a sewer contractor check the records of the main sewing line for your home to determine the age, or you can have a plumber check the pipes as they enter the foundation of your home to fix any minor issues. 
  3. More Than One Backup a Year is a Major Problem: If you have experienced a backup in your home, you must have a plumber clean it out, but if it happens again within a year's time, you need to ask yourself why the pipes in your home are not flowing to the city sewage. This usually indicates that there is a major problem waiting to happen. You will want to hire a sewer contractor to use video inspection of the sewer line attached to your home so that they can diagnose and fix whatever problems there may be. 
  4. Trees on Your Property Cause Pipe Damage: Since tree roots can grow deep into the ground, it is possible that they can crush pipes in your main sewer line. This is dangerous because the pipes can burst, causing water damage and backup in your home. For this reason, if you have trees on your property, it is important that you have your sewer line inspected more often to be sure that the roots are not close to causing problems. 

By knowing these facts about the main sewer line to your home, you can better understand why it is so important to have it inspected and to never ignore any warning signs that there could be a problem.


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