Sewage Cleanup

A sewage backup is not a plumbing mess. The restoration industry calls it Category 3 water, or black water, and it is the most contaminated classification there is. It carries bacteria, viruses, and parasites, and it soaks into everything porous it touches.

Why this is not a mop and bucket job

Sewage wicks upward into drywall, sideways under baseboards, and down into carpet pad and subfloor. By the time the surface looks dry, contamination has spread past what you can see. Wet vacuuming it yourself aerosolizes the very pathogens you are trying to remove, and the smell that comes back a week later is the sign it was never actually gone.

Porous materials that have absorbed sewage cannot be saved by cleaning. They have to come out.

What we do

1. Stop and contain. Isolate the affected area so contamination does not track through the rest of the home.
2. Extract and remove. Pull the water, then remove the carpet, pad, drywall, and any porous material it reached.
3. Sanitize and dry. Disinfect every surface to hospital standards and dry the structure properly, so mold does not follow the sewage. Mold remediation if it already has.
4. Repair. Put the drywall, flooring, and finishes back. When we leave, the room is a room again.

About the cost

Be careful here, because it surprises people. Sewage backup is often not covered by a standard homeowner’s policy. It usually requires a specific water or sewer backup endorsement, and plenty of policies do not include one.

Check your policy for a sewer backup endorsement before you assume you are covered. If you have it, we document everything to your carrier’s standards and bill them directly. If you do not, we will tell you the real number up front and never start without your written approval. More on how coverage works.

For landlords and property managers

Backups in occupied units need speed and documentation in equal measure. We contain the unit, remediate, repair, and hand you a documented report. Call 520-508-1420.