A sewage backup is one of the most unpleasant problems a property can face. It happens when foul drainage fails — a blockage, a broken pipe, or a pump fault. Raw sewage can then rise through toilets, sinks, and floor drains, and it carries harmful bacteria. Since the risk to health is real, we wear protective gear and use industrial pumps and sanitising kit to clear the fault behind the backup.
Before you send a request, our guide Emergency Drain Problems: What to Do Before the Engineer Arrives explains what to look for and what your options are. It also covers the questions we usually ask when you get in touch.
Send your request through our 24/7 online enquiry form. We give sewage jobs the highest priority, and the engineer brings containment and clearing gear.
On arrival, we put on protective gear and cut off the sewage source where we can. We then pump out standing sewage with industrial-grade kit, since this comes before any repair work.
We find and fix the cause of the backup — clearing blockages with jetting gear, making emergency pipe repairs, or fixing pump faults to restore normal flow.
We clean and sanitise the affected areas to cut the health risk. We advise on further deep cleaning, give you a report for your insurer, and suggest ways to prevent it recurring.
Sewage emergency costs depend on how much contamination there is and the drainage work needed — containment, clearance, and basic clean-up. We confirm costs as soon as we have checked the situation.
Yes. Raw sewage carries harmful bacteria, including E. coli and Salmonella, as well as viruses and parasites. Avoid direct contact with sewage, keep children and pets away from affected areas, and do not try to clean it up without protective gear.
Stay out of affected rooms, and open windows to air the space. Turn off electricity at the consumer unit if sewage sits near sockets. Do not flush toilets or run taps, since this can make the backup worse, and place towels at doorways if you can to stop it spreading.
If the backup starts in the public sewer rather than your private drains, Wessex Water handles the repair. We can tell you whether the fault sits in your private drains or the public network. If it turns out to be a public sewer problem, we provide emergency containment while you contact Wessex Water.