How to Safely Clean and Disinfect After Sewer Damage

7/28/2022 (Permalink)

Sewer damage in Scarsdale, NY

Types Of Contaminated Water

A flooded toilet is always inconvenient, but it can also be dangerous. A toilet flood is usually caused by a clog or a block in the drain that isn't allowing things to flow out correctly. There are three types of contaminated water that you may encounter when you have a toilet backup, and the category of contamination will help you to know how dangerous it is for people in your home.

1. Clean Water
Clean water is water that floods into your home from a broken water line. This is not true sewer cleanup, because the water is not contaminated with any type of sewage. As long as it hasn't mixed with other contaminants, you can clean up this water with towels, a mop, or a shop vacuum.

2. Gray Water
Gray water has urine in it. A sewer backup can cause your toilet to overflow into your bathroom, and the bacteria present make this a more dangerous cleanup process. Make sure that pets and small children can't get to the overflow by closing doors. Open windows to ventilate the area, if possible, and wear personal protective equipment if you attempt to do any cleaning yourself. You should dispose of anything you use for cleaning afterwards.

3. Black Water
Black water is the most dangerous level of sewer cleanup that you're likely to encounter because of a toilet backup. This contains water with feces and anything that comes from beyond the toilet trap. If you must clean, wear gloves, a mask, goggles, and boots. Shovel debris into heavy plastic bags and dispose of them immediately. Use bleach to prevent the spread of infection. However, this type of sewer backup is especially toxic, and it is best to leave the cleanup to a professional.

While it is possible to do some of the cleanup yourself with some of the less severe categories, it's always best to contact a local sewage cleanup and restoration expert in Scarsdale, NY. You want to be very sure that your home is properly disinfected and that there won't be any future complications from sewer cleanup that wasn't thorough enough.