A water backup in your drain due to a clogged sewer line can cause water to pool in your sink, bathtub, or other drain appliances. When water pooling isn’t excessive, a clogged sewer line issue may seem to some people like a minor inconvenience. Unfortunately, the pooling is an indication of a problem that may grow, and the pooling often leads in time to flooding and severe plumbing damage. By taking note of water backup and strange sounds and smells coming from your drains, toilets, and sinks, you can become more quickly aware of a clogged sewer line issue and take immediate steps to unblock the line.
Noticing Water Backups in Drains
When you are running water in your bathroom sink and you discover that the water in your toilet rises or bubbles, it is an indication that your sewer line has a clog. Another sign of a water line obstruction problem is when your toilet or shower drain overflows when you do laundry in your washing machine. If you see any of these occurrences, it is a good idea to contact a licensed plumber to remove the sewer line obstruction before it causes additional problems in your plumbing.
Smelling Odors from Your Drains
An obstructed sewer line does not allow the free flow of water from sinks, bathtubs, and toilets to travel through your pipes. An indication that your sewer line has a clog is the foul smell of raw sewage that may permeate your home. It is necessary to remove the clog from your sewer line so that the sewage backup no longer collects in your plumbing, making the obstruction grow larger over time.
Hearing Gurgling Noises from Your Toilet
One of the most common reasons that gurgling sounds may come from your toilet is a sewer line clogged by tree roots. Loose connections between underground pipe sections and sewer lines featuring porous materials, such as clay, can create gaps in the line that tree and shrub roots infiltrate in their search for water. Another cause of a clogged sewer line that makes your toilet water gurgle is the presence of excessive toilet tissue, feminine hygiene products, and other items that were flushed down the toilet and later caused an obstruction in the sewer line.
Clearing Out a Clogged Sewer Line
Many individuals who have obstructed sewer lines in their homes contact professional plumbers to remove the clogs because the plumbers have sophisticated equipment geared to handling blocked plumbing. However, if you have the proper tools and want to try unblocking your line, you first need to locate your residence’s main sewer line. The line is a pipe featuring a threaded plastic nut, and it is typically seen underground or protruding from a wall. Because it can be messy to unclog a sewer line, remember to have one or more buckets ready that you can use to collect dirty water or debris.
Use a wrench to remove your sewer plug and work the plug openings in a counter-clockwise direction until the sewer plug is loose enough for you to remove it. Once you unscrew the nut, get your buckets ready to collect the water and waste that may flow. You should use a power drain snake to clear the pipeline clog. It is important to reference your owner’s manual and test the snake tool before attempting this procedure because you don’t want to put in a lot of time and effort for the fix, only to learn that the device is malfunctioning. You’ll then need to feed the snake tool’s cable through the plumbing gutter until it reaches the obstruction and can submerge no further. Once you reach this point, turn on the snake machine’s FORWARD button and start removing the sewer line clog. For safety reasons, make sure that you use both hands to properly balance the snake tool.
You should keep working on the clog until it breaks up and becomes free. If the machine stops at any point, this is an indication that the tool is stuck in the obstruction. You can keep removing the clog by pressing the snake’s REVERSE button for several seconds to enable the power drain snake to retreat from the obstruction, then pressing the FORWARD button and resuming the work on freeing the clog. Once you remove the obstruction, it is time for you to see if water can flow through the line. Take a pressurized hose and flush the line. If water backs up, it is an indication that the obstruction is still present, and you should continue using the snake tool to remove the clog. Once you are successful at clearing out the obstruction, you can press the snake tool’s REVERSE button to retract its cable from the sewer line.
Pooling water, strange odors, and gurgling noises from your toilet are all signs indicating that you may have a clogged sewer line. Dealing with the inconvenience and mess of these issues can be challenging, and you risk damage to your plumbing pipes if you ignore the problem and delay on getting the sewer line obstruction removed. A licensed plumber can quickly diagnose a clogged sewer line occurrence in your home and take swift action to break up and free the clog, or you can remove the clog yourself if you have the plumbing knowledge, tools, and time to get the job done.
A professional plumber can ensure that water in your home’s pipes runs freely so that you can avoid the smells, noises, and water pooling that a clogged sewer line can create. First Class HVAC has been providing expert plumbing maintenance and great customer service to the residents of Delaware, in cities including Seaford and Bridgeville, and Maryland, in cities including Ocean City and Salisbury, for over 40 years. Contact us today for the emergency plumbing fixes and 24/7 plumbing service that we offer.