Our problem started last April (on my birthday, no less).
We woke up that morning to the sound of our sump pump pumping over and over again. We didn’t think anything of it. We moved at the end of 2020 so this was a new home for us.
That morning we went about our routines. However, we found all that water from our showers etc. was now in the basement.
ACK!
It was a harrowing day- we had to wait several hours for a plumber to come and free us from our flooded prison.
Someone came and we were not the worse for wear. The plumber helped us hypothesize about what the problem might be and he said that the big oak tree up in front might have its roots in our sewer line.
We immediately treated with root killer and we went almost a year without any issues- until January of this year.
At the absolute worst possible time, right before a big snow storm, our sewer line backed up again.
I ran to Home Depot asap and rented a professional drain augur that I had to carry down into the basement with my wife (weighs 250+ lbs). We cleared the line just in the nick of time.
Clogged Again Two Weeks Later
Unfortunately, it clogged again two weeks later. This time we bought a Ridgid drain cleaner. Right as I’m setting up to snake it through the pipes the drain cleared. Unbelievable! I ran the snake through the drain anyway.
And, we treated with root killer right away.
Knock on wood, we haven’t had any issues since February.
Anyway, we’ve notified the town that this tree should come down and it’s cross our fingers and wait time for now. But, I’ll keep everyone posted!
If you’re having the same or similar problem, here are the products I mentioned:
Zep Root Kill
Ridgid K-400 Drain Cleaning Machine
