A homeowner in Queens had been experiencing sporadic sewer line backups in their basement. The backups started every three months and progressively worsened, they now required a plumber to clear the line every other week. The backups were shocking to the homeowners as they had the entire sewer line replaced only seven years prior. The backups now worsened to the point that the homeowners could no longer use their bathrooms and needed an emergency repair. After having a video camera inspection of the sewer line, it was determined that the “spur connection” had been damaged, which was preventing sewage from flowing into the city sewer. The spur connection is the point where the homeowner’s sewer line connects to the city sewer line.
Harris Water was on site within one day, after all required permits had been obtained and began marking out the roadway for a “spur repair”.
Mark-out for spur repair |
The excavation process had now begun and was going to be several hours before they reached the spur connection which was located ten feet below street level. The on-site crew began installing shoring boards for safety as they reached the five foot mark. At this point they continued to dig and drop the shoring boards until they reached the city sewer connection. Now the crew began hand digging to clear off the connection and see what had caused the sewer backups.
Installing shoring boards |
Investigating the sewer problem |
It was quickly determined that the homeowners sewer line had shifted and dropped from the spur. This was causing their sewage to flow into the soil below street level, this was the exact reason for the sewage backups. It was the plumbers professional opinion that the previous sewer installation was not properly supported which caused the pipes to sink and ultimately disconnect from the spur.
One new five foot section of cast iron pipe was now installed and re-connected back to the city sewer. The new pipe was properly supported to avoid a reoccurring issue in the future. A DEP inspector arrived on site by 2pm and passed the sewer repair inspection report.
The problem is resolved |
It is important to have a trustworthy and experienced sewer contractor install a sewer line. It is common that a homeowner will base their decision solely on price, in many cases they may be left with a secondary issue a few years later.
