Sewer Maintenance

What to do if your sewer backs up:

Call the Water Utility at 653-4300 between 8:00 am and 4:30 pm Monday thru Friday. After hours, weekends and holidays call our emergency number at 653-4335.
The Kenosha Water Distribution Division’s crews will first check the public sewer main to determine if it is causing your sewer backup. If the public main is operating normally, indications are that your private building sewer is the cause of the sewer backup. The emergency crew will immediately attempt to notify the property owner or resident of that fact.
If a blockage in the private building sewer is the cause of the sewer backup, it is the responsibility of the property owner to clear the blockage.(The private building sewer extends from the interior plumbing of the building to where the pipe connects to the public sewer main, most frequently located at the center of the street.) There are various private firms listed under “Sewer cleaners” in the yellow pages who are equipped to remove the blockage from your private building sewer.
If it is determined that the sewer line has broken or collapsed, the property owner should contact an excavating contractor to make repairs.

How to prevent sewer backups:

Do not plant trees or shrubs over the private building sewer. The roots of trees, particularly Silver Maple and Willow trees will seek out the joints of the sanitary sewer and eventually clog the pipe.
Do not put large amounts of vegetable waste, such as pea pods and tomato skins, through the garbage disposal at one time. Even though these materials will go through the garbage disposal, they clog the private building sewer. This also applies to large amounts of grease and paint, which will build up in the building sewer over a period of time eventually causing a blockage. Keep lint traps in the sinks, which drain washing machines, in place. It is easier to clean out the lint traps than it is to clean out the building sewer.
If the building sewer serves a commercial establishment in which a grease trap is required, the grease trap should be cleaned periodically to prevent the solids from bypassing it and going into the building sewer.