If You’re in Iowa, Your Sewer Line is Your Problem

Life has its fun ups, and at times, dismal downs. This month for me has definitely felt like a roller coaster ride of enjoyable highs and depressing lows. The lowest of the lows came in the form of a flooded basement and what could have essentially been an entire sewer line repair. And I learned some not so fun facts about a homeowner's responsibility, insurance, and displaced clay pipes. Yikes! Writing can often be cathartic when working through big stressors, so let's give this a go. First, though, let's chat about all the good that was happening at the same time.

This month was filled with fun, I swear, but sometimes it's easy to forget all the good when you're dealing with such a "crappy" situation (see what I did there). My daughter excelled in her middle school production of "It's a Mad House" in Cascade. In fact, all the kids were great in it, and the show was another opportunity to see my in-laws and my parents. I got to spend an entire day working with my father in-law (unfortunately, sewer repair). My parents even put us up for a night, as running water in our house was a big no-no unless I wanted a basement sized swimming pool... again.

So on to the bad. The stinky, smelly, upsetting bad. First off, did you know that in almost all cities across Iowa the homeowner is responsible for the entire sewer line, from their dwelling all the way to where it meets the cities main line? That means even if your issue is a detached, smashed, or separated section of line in the middle of your neighborhoods road, it's your responsibility to repair it. And when I say repair, I mean all of it. The sewer line, the road, the curb. ALL. OF. IT. As it states in the Cascade, Iowa city code:

The Owner of the property served by a building sewer shall be responsible for the operation, maintenance, repair, blockage, surface replacement, and any damage resulting from operation, maintenance repair and blockage of said building sewer, from the point of connection with the building drain to the Public Sewer.

By the way, that exact line of phrasing can be found in most city codes across the state of Iowa. In other states the sewer line becomes the responsibility of the city from curb to curb (right where my issue was). Additionally, if the problem is not actually in or stemming from the city's main line you are responsible for any and all repairs and costs.

By the way, most homeowners' insurance (basically all) do NOT cover damaged sewer lines or clean-up costs without a special additional "rider." Icing on the cake, both are separate riders that each have their own additional price point. In fact, after talking with my insurance agent, he explained that most people do NOT pay the extra for these riders as they are rarely used by the homeowner. He also stated that he doesn't usually suggest purchasing them to clients. So that inch of water in your basement: Your problem. The bill to dig up, repair a sewer line, and repair the road: also, your problem.

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Money is money. And I get it. It's my house and my responsibility, but it seems that in all the things I already pay for (insurance, property taxes, utility bills, et. all) something would have helped cover even a fraction of the cost. Even better, one of our issues was caused by the original home builders.

Food for thought, a cast-iron drain with eventual rot and allow roots to grow into them. They will squeeze in the small, unsealed section between the drain and the main line searching for water and create a small forest in your sewer line. This will cause you to have to cut a chunk out of your basement floor and extract the root, before replacing the drain and pouring in new cement. If you have a cast iron drain in your basement, it may not be a bad idea to have it scoped with a camera to confirm it's still working correctly. Big shout out to my father in-law Delwin Vonk who helped me on a very dirty, dusty, and smelly repair. Quick note, insurance wouldn't cover any of the repair costs here either.

Long story short, I was given the name of a great local excavating company that does these exact kinds of repairs. Let me be the first to recommend, and say thank you to, Brad Gravel and the rest of the guys at Gravel Grading & Excavating. This job was no small task. The guys had to dig down 17 feet to the issue, do a full repair of the displaced clay pipe, refill the massive hole in the middle of the street, and keep collateral damage to a minimum as they were working around existing waterlines. And they did it all in one day; starting at 7:30am my family and I could use water again by 3pm and the road was ready to be driven on early the next day.

Of course, the city regulations state everything has to be done correctly from the filling of the hole, post repair, to excavating specifications, like the ones below in Cascade:

• Prior to beginning excavation, the contractor shall notify all utility companies of the location of the excavation work and request field location of their facilities. The contractor shall exercise care in excavating near all utilities or service connections to these utilities. 

• Excavation may be carried on by any reasonable method preferred by the contractor which shall insure systematic progress without danger to the completed work or the private or public property adjacent to the work. Whenever the contractor shall excavate below the grade of the sewer service line, they shall backfill the trench to grade with selected sand tamped in place.

• Service pipe shall be P.V.C. Schedule 40 or clay tile. The diameter shall be 4-inch. 

• Service caps shall be 4-inch Schedule 40, cemented to end of stub-in.

• All material found during the progress of the work to have cracks, flaws or other defects shall be rejected.

• All backfill material shall be subject to the prior approval of the city. If, in the opinion of the city, the material excavated constituted unsuitable backfill, the contractor shall provide, unless otherwise stated, at the contractor’s own expense, acceptable backfill material. No frozen material shall be used for backfilling. All surplus excavated material which is not used in backfilling shall be loaded and disposed of by the contractor at the contractor’s own expense.

Well, what's done is done. Maybe by going through this myself I can pass a little knowledge on to you other Iowans in similar situations. If you have sewer issues with roots, or it's backing up often, check your insurance coverage, it may save you some headaches. Additionally, a little research about your responsibilities as a homeowner or renter in your community could be worth its weight in gold. I have always been of the belief that in most situations it could always be worse, so I'm glad it wasn't and I will continue to look on the bright side of life (Monty Python reference). Trust me, this is a situation I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy. It just REALLY stinks!