Sewage Cleanup and Sanitation in Martinsville, VA

When a sewer line is obstructed, the sewage that is thick and dark can be dangerous to your health. This sewer water is extremely unclean, containing contaminants such as bacteria, viruses and pathogens. All of these contaminants can pose a serious health danger and cause many illnesses if humans or animals are exposed. If it happens that you suffer a sewage backup on the premises of your home or business, or a toilet backup in either location, fixing either one is of the highest priority. Having this dirty sewer water in your home is not safe and should be removed immediately. Also, knowing what is causing the sewer obstruction may aid in stopping this potentially hazardous situation. To help you in handling sewage backups in your home or business, here’s a list of things that may help:

Causes of Sewage Backup

• Considerable Rainfall – Excess rains can overpower your town or city’s storm sewer system. If this happens, the water can back up into the attached sewer lines placing your home or business in possible risk of water backflow. Swelling rivers and streams, hurricanes and other related events can cause flood and sewage waters to blend and present serious health related dangers. You should be immensely cautious when walking in this sort of water, and even stay vigilant after the water recedes and dries up. It’s viable for the organic matter to turn aerosolized and able to be inhaled, meaning there’s a chance you could breathe it into your lungs. To prevent contact or risk of inhaling these contaminants, appropriate PPE should be used at all times.
• Tree Roots – Trees can have strong roots that grow into water or sewer pipes and crush or impair them. Damage to pipes and a sewer backup can also be induced by tree roots that aren’t even on your premises. Be keenly aware of any tree roots that can reach your water and sewer pipes that lead to the main sewer line or septic system.
• Old/Aging Sewer Pipes – Older and aging sewage systems are susceptible to crumbling and cracking, causing sewer backups, sewer filled basements along with entire home flooding. The older your region or home may raise the chance of this type of damage occurring.
• Clogged and Blocked Drain Pipes – If your home or business’s main sewer line or drain pipes become blocked, sewage may back up inside the dwelling. A fine example is: if a single toilet causes a sewage blockage, the adjacent pipes connected to that toilet, or the main drain pipes of more toilets, will also become backed up.

• Old and/or Damaged Lines – Older sewage systems have a propensity to suffer damage and crack, leading to sewage backups and flooded dwellings full of sewage. If your home or region is older, the probability is greater that you’ll experience damaged sewer lines than newer ones.
• Copious Rainfall – Heavy and rapid downpours can overpower your local storm sewer lines promptly. If these public sewers can’t deal with excess waters, water can backup and flow into connected sewer lines. This can put your dwelling at risk of backflow difficulties. Area flood waters from events like rising rivers and creeks, hurricanes, or any rainy weather events can cause clean water to blend with sewage water and other chemicals and harmful toxins that cause serious health difficulties. Use extreme caution when moving on foot in this type of water, but also stay cautious once it dries. The dried organic waste can turn aerosolized and turn respirable. Correct PPE needs to be used at all times to prevent contact and risk inhaling tainted air.
• Blocked/Clogged Sewer Lines – A fouled pipe or sewer line can cause sewage to back up into your home or business. If only one toilet becomes fouled, the sewer water backup can spread on to the sewer pipes and disturb all attached toilets on that line.
• Tree Roots – Tree roots can be harmful to water and sewer pipes. The roots from huge trees can grow into and around the pipes and damage them tremendously. If the roots around your property are not the culprit, roots from closely located trees can cross property lines and ruin your sewer line, causing a sewage issue. Be extra aware of all tree roots close to your mainline sewer pipes and/or pipes leading to your septic tank.

PuroClean’s sewage cleanup and sanitation process in Martinsville, VA

Our methods for Category 3 water (also known as sewer and contaminated water backup) cleanup, adhering to the IICRC industry guidelines, consists of:

1. To protect the safety of all occupants and personnel by restricting jobsite access to restoration and cleanup personnel only to help stave off any health related occurrences.

2. Assessment of the jobsite and Health and Safety surveys.

3. Ensure all remediation personnel are supplied with the proper personal protection equipment (PPE). This includes but is not limited to:

• Full face respirator
• Full body suit protection
• Nitrile and cut resistant gloves
• Rubber boots with steel toes and shank

4. Put into place established engineering controls, critical barriers, to stop cross-contamination.

5. Preventing all potential hazards and safety risks if possible.

6. Clearing the work area of all bulk water, soil, and contaminates.

7. Eradication and disposal of all contaminated porous and semi-porous material that is not restorable – which can include but is not limited to:

• Carpet, rugs, pad, or underlayment
• Gypsum board (Drywall)
• Hardwood flooring
• Vinyl flooring and underlayment
• Padded and upholstered items

8. Cleaning procedures implemented, as well as the use of EPA registered biocides and antimicrobials

9. Actual cleaning of all remaining structures

10. We suggest using a third-party Certified Industrial Hygienist (CIH) to conduct clearance testing to ensure the building is returned to a sanitary pre-loss condition for health and safety.

11. All materials affected by excess waters are to be dried and returned to pre-loss dry condition

12. After completion of remediation – Cleaning of all equipment used

13. All demo materials removed from the building

Call PuroClean for Professional Sewage Cleanup in Martinsville, VA!

PuroClean technicians put to use state-of-the-art equipment and cleaning procedures to effectively restore and clean the damaged building materials and belongings from your home or business. If a sewage drain pipe backup from blockage occurs, call our technicians for sewage removal and cleaning services.

The sheer value of our sewer water removal and cleaning services, in addition to the speed in which we deliver the work, as well as our compassion demonstrated throughout the process helps make PuroClean your ideal damage remediation and restoration company. We strive to do everything that’s needed and within our power to fully remediate properties in all the towns and cities that make up our coverage areas.

*Not all PuroClean offices provide sewage cleanup and sanitation cleaning services.