You might think you know your house like the back of your hand. You know where the creaks in the floorboards are, you know the perfect stove burner for your soup, and so on. What do you know about your sewer line? The more you know about it, the more money you’ll save in the long run.
Sewer Lines Come in Four Types
Before 1972, most homes used Orangeburg pipes, which were a mix of asphalt and paper. These lines tended to decay, leak, or block within 30 years even though they were meant to last longer. If your home still uses them, see to it that it doesn’t.
Other homes have cast iron or copper sewer lines. More sturdy than Orangeburg pipes, but they’re also more susceptible to corrosion on top of regular wear and tear. Today, most modern homes have PVC pipes that last a long time indeed, but they’ll only do that if you take care of them.
Your Sewer Line Is Wider Than Your Regular Pipes
Most building codes require sewer lines to be three inches in diameter. In reality, most lines average four inches wide. That’s twice the width of your house drains, but that doesn’t give you free rein to just dump anything in there. Non-flushable items, like wipes and paper towels, easily form clogs. Grease hardens, sticks to the paper, and forms devastating fatbergs, which damage your sewer line.
Trees Are a Sewer Line’s Arch Nemesis
The biggest cause of blockages, however, isn’t manmade. Your trees are far more likely to cause problems than you are, especially if you take good care of your lines and update them. Tree roots can grow right into your lines, and the damage they cause is quite extensive if left unchecked.
Small root invasions need a rooter to cut the root and a resin liner to get your line back up to speed. If a large incursion causes your line to collapse, on the other hand, then you’ll need a full line replacement.
Sewer Lines Need Annual Inspections
People don’t often give their lines a proper inspection from an expert plumber, but if you don’t do so, small problems will grow into large disasters. You’ll be left with sewage backing up through your drains into your house, which can make you and your loved ones sick.
Now that you know all of this, you’ll probably appreciate proper sewer line maintenance. Regular maintenance may cost you a little money, but it’ll be a lot cheaper than having your whole yard dug up when disaster strikes. When you need sewer line services in Antioch, CA, contact Almighty Plumbing.
