What Causes a Sewer Backup and Basement Flooding?

The most common cause of sewer backup is a blockage of the sanitary service piping between the home and the City's sewer main.

Blockages in sewers can be caused by problems with the sewer service line. Soil settlement, misaligned joints, root infiltration or pipe collapses are fairly common causes of blockages. Sewer blockages can also be caused by items such as cooking grease, rags, or pieces of solid debris that have been flushed down a household drain.

Misaligned Joint	Grease

If you have a sewer blockage, your floor drain will usually provide evidence a problem is occurring within your sewer system. The sewage discharge will generally rise within the piping system and discharge may appear around the floor drain. You can control the degree or amount of backup by not using your plumbing fixtures until you have the sewers checked by a plumber or a drain cleaning company.

Sewer blockages are the responsibility of the property owner, however sometimes the cause of the blockage can be on the public property side of your sewer service. If you or your plumber/drain cleaning contractor suspects the blockage may be on the public sewer service you can contact the City's Public Works Department at (780) 672-5513 during regular work hours. If you have a sewer blockage emergency after regular working hours the City Police can be contacted at (780) 672-4444 to dispatch an on call staff member to assess and/or address your emergency. Please be aware that if the blockage is caused by anything other than defects within the City's service line you may be charged part or all of the expense related to clearing the blockage, even if the blockage occurs beyond the property line.

In older areas where "clay tile" pipe was used for service piping, tree roots can enter the service pipe at joints and cause blockages. The roots can travel a long way depending on the type of trees. If you or your plumber suspect tree roots are entering the sewer service and causing sewer backup problems the City should be contacted - Public Works.

Root Infiltration	Root Infiltration

The City will investigate and if root infiltration is identified a plan to eliminate or control the root growth will be implemented. Note: The City is responsible for root infiltration on public property piping occurring from public property trees only. Should the investigation indicate root infiltration on private property the home owner or tenant will be invoiced for time spent conducting the investigation.

On rare occasions a blockage can occur in a city sanitary main. If the blockage is not detected in time, sewage from the main sewer can backup into homes through the floor drain. Usually this happens slowly and is very similar to a service blockage. If you or your plumber suspect a sewer main blockage please contact Public Works . The City will send an operator to check the main and advise you on what needs to be done.

If water is entering into your basement at a very rapid rate, (and you are not using water in your home, such as a shower or washing machine), call the City Public Works office and report the problem. The City will send a staff member to inspect the sewer main and advise you on what needs to be done.

Most Basement flooding is not related to the Sanitary Sewer system at all.

Poor landscaping practices sometimes allows soil to settle adjacent to the house and if not corrected can lead to rainwater flowing towards the house and running down the outside of the foundation wall. Particularly in older homes (15 years +), cracks may have developed in the foundation or floor slab which allows this water to enter the basement.

The cement floor and basement walls in older homes, (1970's or later), may have deteriorated to the point that they are no longer waterproof. A basement which has never had water problems may develop problems with water seepage or leaking. This will usually happen after a number of rain storms when the ground is saturated.

Improved lot drainage away from the house is the first step, and usually significantly improves the problem. Fixing a basement floor or wall which has severely corroded is a major project, usually requiring a foundation specialist. It is also very important to ensure eaves trough pipes are connected with the drain pipe at least one meter away from the house.

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