First, you're not the only one this has happened to, and it's not because you did something terrible. Septic backups happen to careful homeowners all the time. The important thing now is to limit the mess, stay safe and get the cause found.
Call (980) 324-2095 and tell us what's happening. While you wait, here's what to do.
What to do right now
- Stop all water use. No flushing, showers, laundry or dishwasher. Ask everyone in the house to hold off. Every drop you send down has nowhere to go.
- Keep people and pets away. Sewage carries germs. Keep kids and pets out of the affected room and away from any wet spots in the yard.
- Don't use chemical drain cleaner. It rarely clears a septic backup and can harm the bacteria in the tank. It also makes things more dangerous for whoever works on the line next.
- Don't open the tank yourself. Septic tanks contain gases that can be dangerous, and lids can be heavy or unstable.
- Protect what you can. Move rugs, boxes and anything else off the floor near the backup. Wear gloves if you have to touch anything.
- Make a note of what you saw. Which fixture overflowed first? Are all drains slow or just one? Is there a wet spot outside? Did the alarm go off? This helps the technician find the cause faster.
What usually causes a septic backup
Most backups come from one of a few things:
- A full tank. If the tank hasn't been pumped in years, solids can block the outlet and back water up toward the house.
- A clog in the line. Wipes, grease or roots can block the pipe between the house and tank.
- A failed pump or float. Systems with a pump can back up quickly when it stops working. Often the alarm sounds first.
- A broken baffle. A collapsed inlet baffle can block flow into the tank.
- A saturated drain field. After heavy rain, the slow red clay around Kannapolis can get so wet that the field can't take more water. A struggling field makes this worse.
How a backup gets handled
- Talk it through on the phone. You'll be asked what you're seeing and helped to limit the damage.
- Find the tank and open it. The water level tells the technician a lot. A low tank with a backup in the house points to a clog between the house and tank. A high tank points to the outlet, the pump or the field.
- Clear the immediate problem. Often that means septic pumping or clearing a line, which gets your drains working again.
- Find the root cause. The technician checks the baffles, pump and field so the backup doesn't come right back.
- Written quote for any repair. If something needs fixing, you get a price in writing before it's done.
What it might cost
Many backups are solved with pumping alone, which is a routine job. If a repair is needed, minor fixes like baffles and pipes are usually modest, and pump or alarm replacement costs more. If the drain field has failed, that's a bigger job. See our septic prices page for what moves the price. Expect a written quote first.
What a good contractor won't do
A good contractor won't use a backup as a chance to scare you into a big job. If pumping solves it, that's what they'll tell you. If the cause is a broken part, they'll explain the septic repair that fixes it. Only if the field has truly failed should they talk about drain field replacement.
After the backup is cleared
- Clean affected floors with hot soapy water and a household disinfectant, and let them dry fully.
- Throw out porous items that soaked up sewage if they can't be cleaned.
- Ease back into water use. Spread laundry out over several days.
- Plan your next pumping so it doesn't happen again.
Questions people ask
Can I keep using the toilet if only one drain is backing up?
It's best not to. A backup in one spot often means the whole line or tank is close to full. Using more water can push sewage into other fixtures. Hold off until the cause is found.
Why did my septic back up after heavy rain?
Around Kannapolis, red clay soil drains slowly. After a lot of rain, the ground around the drain field can get so wet that it can't absorb more water. If your field is already struggling, that's often when a backup shows up.
Is a septic backup dangerous?
Sewage carries germs, so keep people and pets away and wear gloves if you have to clean anything. Don't open the tank yourself, since tanks can hold harmful gases. Let the septic crew handle the tank.
Will pumping the tank fix my backup?
If the tank is full, pumping often clears it right away. If the problem is a clog, a failed pump or a saturated field, pumping is only part of the answer. A good technician will find the actual cause.