Sewage cleanup is Category 3 water damage, and we treat it that way. In Spanish Fork homes it usually comes from a main line backup that pushes up through the basement floor drain or the lowest toilet or shower. Tree roots in older clay sewer laterals and grease buildup are the usual causes.
Keep people and pets out of the area. Don't run water or flush anything until the line is cleared. Then call us.
Our crew wears protective gear and sets up containment with plastic sheeting and negative air if the area is large. We pump out standing sewage, then remove every porous material the water touched. That means carpet, pad, drywall to at least 2 feet above the line, insulation, and usually baseboards and particleboard furniture. That is the industry approach to Category 3, and there is no safe way to clean sewage out of carpet pad.
After removal, we clean hard surfaces with a detergent, then apply a registered antimicrobial to concrete, framing and anything we keep. Then comes structural drying. We finish with odor removal if needed, since sewage smell can linger in framing.
Sewage cleanup claims are handled differently by carriers. Many policies need a separate sewer backup endorsement. We document the source and photograph everything so your adjuster has what they need, and we can walk you through what your policy says before work starts.
