Stop Sewage Inflow and Insure Your Home with Backwater Valves
As a homeowner, you might have encountered the problem of sewage coming from a backup, particularly when there’s a massive storm. The sewage system gets flooded, and all the sewage comes back into the house—following the path of least resistance, right?
What you need is a great quality backflow valve that stops the sewage from coming in and prevents sewage backup from the city water mains. Without a backwater valve in place, your basement can get flooded and, by extension, destroyed within minutes. Think of a backwater valve as an insurance policy you’re using to protect your house.
Using mainline backflow protection, a backwater valve is installed where the sewer exits the building on the main-building drain. Given the technical nature of the job, you need a master plumber to get it done right. If the valve is engaged, this can spell trouble:
One, because it may mean that the city’s underground sewage system has problems.
Two, it may mean that your street or your neighborhood is actually at risk of getting flooded.
Such is the efficiency and importance of a sewer backflow valve that even insurance companies recognize it. In fact, there are rebates and city subsidies to help you protect your home from sewer backups.
To get this device installed in your home, call us at 416-233-2660
Got It. So, How Does ExpressRooter’s Mainline Backwater Valve Work?
One of the most common questions homeowners have is:
“How does a mainline backwater valve work?”
That’s a fair question.
The mainline backwater valve is an essential part of any home and part of the plumbing equipment that protects your basement as well as your assets from backups. The way the backwater valve operates is simple. Here’s the process at a quick glance:
Step 1: The water discharged from the house passes through the valve, which you’ll be able to see, thanks to a clear cover on the valve. It allows our master plumbers at ExpressRooter to engage in a crystal-clear inspection.
Step 2: The water drains out to the street. In case of a sewer backup, the water will start backing up into the valve, and the gate that lies flat, under normal circumstances, will actually close.
Step 3: Once the water dissipates and the pressure is reduced, the gate will open, and the flow will be restored.
Contact ExpressRooter at 416-233-2660 for all your drain cleaning and plumbing needs.
Advantages of Putting a Backwater Valve
If you have some knowledge of a backwater valve, chances are that you’ve either experienced sewage backup in your home or have had to deal with a faulty backwater valve. By now, you might have understood that investing in a backwater valve is worth every cent.
There are several benefits and advantages of installing a backwater valve on the main-building drain:
- Using one valve, which allows for easy homeowner access: You only need one backwater valve for the entire building. The entire plumbing system is protected from municipal sewer backup with just one conveniently-located backwater valve at the point where the building drain sewer exits the building. This offers easy homeowner access.
- Intuitive design: The Mainline Fullport Backwater Valve is installed in the main-building drain because the fullport design allows:
- Venting of the municipal sewer through the building
- Unobstructed sewage flow and automatic closure of the gate upon reversal of flow (sewer backup), protecting the entire building from backflow
- No sewage backup: The entire building is protected from backflow. The Mainline Fullport Backwater Valve has a built-in main sewer cleanout in the valve for the rodding of the sewer. Since the Mainline Fullport Backwater Valve is a “normally open” backwater valve, it allows unobstructed sewage flow, which in turn prevents sewage buildup in the valve’s body. The “normally open” design also allows cleaning tools to pass through the body without getting hooked on the gate when retrieving the cable (this subsequently prevents the gate from being destroyed).
- Conveniently located and easy to access: It’s conveniently located where the main sewer cleanout is present. By installing the valve in the main building drain, it:
- Eliminates the need for branch line backwater valves and cleanout assemblies
- Saves groundwork labor and extra piping when trying to utilize one branch line to protect additional fixture drains
- Automatic backflow protection: It ensures that the entire building is protected from backflow, particularly where branches are often missed and left unprotected when using branch line protection. If additional fixtures or branches are added to the system, they are automatically protected from the backflow.
Contact ExpressRooter to get a backflow valve installed
Why Go with ExpressRooter Plumbers?
Whether you need emergency drain services or want to get a backwater valve installed, our team of experts provides 360-degree backwater valve services anytime, anywhere. Here are some of our biggest USPs that make us stand out from our competitors:
- Accurate installation: Our master expert plumbers can help:
- Choose the right backwater valve for your home
- Guide you throughout the installation process, from start to finish
- Arrange for the required permits and for a credit/subsidy from the city to lower your costs
- Drive the right kind of retrofitting needed to install a new backwater valve seamlessly (such as removing concrete to access the main city sewer line)
- Excellent customer support: Installing sewer backflow valves is a technical process that requires a fair bit of hand-holding and guidance, especially for first-time homeowners. Whether you need an additional explanation of the installation process or simply want to understand the kind of options available for adding a backwater valve to your home, we can help. Our customer support team is ever ready to address your issues in real time.
- Professional backwater valve maintenance: An integral component of a well-functioning valve is periodic maintenance. So, to ensure they are in perfect working order, try getting an annual maintenance done. Our experts at ExpressRooter offer annual backwater valve maintenance services—from cleaning out the systems to keeping them free of clogs, backup, and more.
- Trusted and quality workmanship: Our master plumbers come with decades of experience in all things plumbing-related, and installing a sewer backwater valve is no exception. We take pride in having built a team of robust professionals who are passionate about their job and delivering high-quality service.
Don’t underestimate the benefit of having a new backwater valve installed in your home. It will prevent sewage from entering your home and give you peace of mind. Instead of Googling: “sewer drain cleaning near me,” connect with our team at 416-233-2660.
FAQs
Q. Why do you need a sewer backflow valve in your home?
A backwater valve protects your home by preventing harmful sewage from entering the house. You need a professional that specializes in sewer and drain repair as well as maintenance to get this device installed correctly.
Q. What are the dangers of backflow?
Sewage backflow is a risky, unhygienic affair. If not treated in time, it can become overwhelming. If your sewer line starts backing up, it can lead to major plumbing catastrophes such as:
- Backup of sewage into your home, which can lead to health risks
- Introduction of wide-ranging viruses, bacteria, and other contaminants into your home, which can spread diseases
- Property damage as a result of damaged pipes, which may warrant drain replacement
- Mold and mildew growth, which can destroy your home’s furniture, floor, and walls
In simple words, delaying installing a backwater valve can cost you your family’s health and risk your home’s safety.
Q. Where should I install a backwater valve?
Ideally, you should install a backwater valve under the floor of your basement. The area should be close to the main sanitary sewer. You can also install it in your front/back yard, depending on where the city sewer lines are located in the area.
Q. Can a backwater valve fail?
Yes. Without routine maintenance, your backwater valve can fail and lead to compromised performance over a period of time. This becomes risky during a flood event. This is why you must always get your backwater valve checked and engage in proper maintenance.
Q. Are backwater valves normally open?
Yes. Backwater valves generally stay open until a sewer surcharge occurs. The valve will close if there is a sewer surcharge.
Q. How do I maintain a sewer backwater valve?
There are many best practices you can follow to ensure that your backwater valve is properly maintained:
- One, ensure that the flapper is able to open and shut with ease
- Two, the flapper should be free of all kinds of impairments
- Three, you must always remove the flapper carefully when inspecting the edges, including the top and bottom of your gate
- Four, always remove any buildup you see in your backwater valve
- Five, replace the flapper mindfully. It should swing freely once it is seated back into the hinge
If all this seems overwhelming and too technical, we recommend letting the experts take over. It’s always a good idea to get professional help and safeguard your home.
View ExpressRooter Plumbing’s Marcin Wroblewski educate Mike Holmes on backflow valves:
