Sewage Damage Clean Up in Fayetteville, Jonesboro, & Griffin
Everything that is sent down your drains becomes sewage on the way out. This includes the obvious bathroom waste plus hygiene products, cleaning chemicals, food waste and other potentially dangerous compounds. Any leak of this dirty water, teaming with disease causing bacteria, can cause very serious illnesses for your family.
Since these materials combine and react in the plumbing system, all residential sewage leaks should be considered hazardous and an emergency. An experienced team is needed to handle a “black water” emergency because of the high toxicity levels. We at Champion Cleaning Systems will provide a quick response time and proper safety equipment.
If you’ve had a sewer leak in your Newnan home, be proactive; this is not an everyday DIY clean-up. You need to know:
A “do-it-yourself” approach to sewage and septic cleanup is NOT encouraged. The sewage backup restoration process involves a series of steps, to be taken in a specific order, and that need to be done right the first time.
The sewage will need to be pumped out of the affected area and everything that was touched by the sewage needs to be considered contaminated. Carpeting, rugs, clothing, textiles, upholstery, mattresses and any other items that have come into contact with sewage-based flooding should be thrown away and replaced.
Mold appears even faster following cases of sewage flooding or backup. Mold aggravates the problem exponentially, increasing the difficulty of proper remediation, and adding an additional level of health risks since mold spores inhaled in large concentrations may prove extremely hazardous to your health.
Every surface touched by sewage will need to be cleaned, disinfected, and sanitized. This procedure may need to be repeated several times to make sure that all contaminants have been removed.
FROM THE IICRC/THE CLEANTRUST:
Here are the key principles homeowners should know about sewage back-ups:
Sewage contains a variety of pathogenic – disease causing – fungi, bacteria, viruses and parasites. Anyone who works on sewage losses must have updated vaccinations, including one for Hepatitis B.
Sewage exposure is particularly dangerous for people with weakened immune systems, including anyone under two or over 60, those who are pregnant, ill, recovering from surgery, on prescription drugs or chemotherapy, or are AIDS victims.
It is not safe to stay in a building that’s flooded with sewage unless the contaminated area can be completely sealed off and placed under controlled air flow so that there will be no cross contamination of unaffected areas.
Highly absorbent sewage-saturated materials, such as carpet, pad, upholstery, bedding, wicker, paper or even fabrics that can’t be washed in hot water (130°F/54°C) for at least 10 minutes, must be contained and disposed of properly. This goes for sewage-saturated drywall, insulation and several other structural materials too. There’s simply too great a health risk involved if any of these materials are dried in place and cleaned only.
Only the most highly trained professionals should attempt sewage remediation work. Then, a “third party” indoor environmental professional can provide post-remediation verification or “clearance testing” to ensure that the home or building is safe to re-occupy.
Solid Flushes
The most common cause of sewage backup is a blockage of the lateral service pipe between the home and the city main. This is usually caused by solid objects, accidentally flushed down a household drain.
Structural Defects
Different structural defects can develop overtime and eventually cause a major damage to the system, leading to a serious overflow that will require a complete reconstruction of sewer lines.
Root infiltration
Tree roots are a major cause of backups. Tree roots can enter the service pipe at joints and travel a long way, causing blockages along the way.
Stinky sewage back-up and overflowing drains are a very common cause of damage to homes and businesses, especially those located in flat areas or near the bottom of slopes. Many policies now exclude coverage for the clean-up and repairs, but for a mere $20 a year you can buy a “Back-up of Sewer or Drain Endorsement” that gives you up to $10,000 in coverage. The catch? A $1,000 deductible. But hey, that’s still easy math.”
Exposure to sewage or its products may result in diseases such as: Gastroenteritis, Hepatitis, Occupational asthma, Weil’s disease, Allergic Alveolitis. In extreme cases exposure to sewage can cause fatal damage to the liver, kidneys and blood, and infection of the skin or eyes.
Raw sewage is mainly gray or black water. It often contains the organic waste and wastewater produced by household and industrial sources. It can contain everything from soap to solid waste, human excrement, industrial effluent, and debris.
Can It Make Me Sick?
This “water” is extremely dirty and contain pathogens such as bacteria, viruses and amoebas. (Pathogens are any microorganisms that can cause illness in humans.) While the bacteria that naturally live in the human gut are non-pathogenic inside the body, they can be pathogenic if they are ingested through physical or airborne contact with the nose, mouth, or open cut once they have left the body as waste.
Plus, raw sewage is an ideal medium for many other dangerous organisms that grow outside the body. For example, botulism, E-coli, salmonella, intestinal amoebas, and cholera can be carried in raw sewage.
Can Even the Smell Make me Sick?
Your nose knows something is wrong. But is it dangerous? Sewage generates carbon dioxide, methane, chlorine, nitrous oxide, sulfur dioxide and hydrogen sulfide. Specifically, hydrogen sulfide, or “sewer gas” occurs in nature in crude petroleum, volcanoes, and hot springs. But in your home, it is the result from the bacterial breakdown of organic waste matter. At low levels, it has a strong odor similar to rotten eggs and does not usually make you sick. However, at higher levels, hydrogen sulfide gas can definitely cause illness.
Who Should I Call?
Of course you need to address the physical plumbing structure that failed and allowed the leak, but you need to contact a full service restoration team to immediately deal with potential contamination.
Experts like Champion’s black water restoration crew can provide the latest in high tech tools to conduct a thorough inspection of the property, determine the extent of the damage and efficiently decontaminate your home. Champion technicians will use proper personal protective equipment (PPE), proper skin protection (Tyvek coveralls), hand protection (exam gloves and/or leather gloves), goggles, and respirators. Containment will be set up as needed to limit the risk of secondary damage to unaffected areas of the location. You won’t want someone tracking that “stuff” onto your carpet and through your house.
When choosing a contractor, look for IICRC certified technicians to complete tests to ensure proper drying and removal of all toxic materials. You will have the best chance of recovering your items with a full service contractor.
Water Damage Cleanup in Peachtree City
Rely on Champion Cleaning Systems for black water and sewer clean-up.Their industrial grade dehumidifiers, high-speed air movers, and documented drying process will return your wet mess into a safe, beautiful and comfortable home. The experienced team is on-call to respond 24 hours a day. To report an emergency, please contact us.
