If you see or suspect a sewage overflow or spill, or you have a sewage backup problem, call 311.

When a sewage backup occurs, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Utilities will provide cleanup assistance services in the home or business where the backup was reported. Wastewater collection crews will locate and remove the blockage in the public sewer main or the City maintained portion of the customer's connection.

This prevents more wastewater from backing up in the pipe. Then the crew will begin the cleanup process in the affected home or business.

If the backup occurs within your home or business's private internal plumbing, however, the City cannot assume responsibility for the blockage or the necessary repairs. At that point, the customer should contact a plumbing contractor to make any repairs or changes to their private plumbing.

It is possible to prevent sewage backups with a plumbing fixture called a backwater valve, or sometimes known as a check valve or backflow valve. Backwater valves have been required by the North Carolina State Plumbing Code since the early 1930's. If you have plumbing fixtures that are below the top of the first upstream manhole, state regulations require that you have a backwater valve.

To find out if your property has a backwater valve or requires one, you can refer to your home or business's plumbing plans or you can ask the builder. A professional plumber or contractor can also tell you whether you need this device.

Did you know that grease plays a part in more than half of all blockages? Help prevent sewage spills and overflows by eliminating greases from our sewers!