Out of all the problems you can have with your sewer pipes, roots growing into them is one of the most frustrating. After all, if caught on time, the problem is relatively easy to solve. Yet it can be hard to attribute the issues you are having to such a unique predicament, so it is hard to take timely action. The only possible way to avoid spending a lot more money than necessary is to possess the required knowledge. To that end, we have prepared a list of signs you have tree roots in your sewer pipes!
Weak water pressure
The first of the signs you have tree roots in your sewer pipes is the weakening in your water pressure. Now, this will not happen suddenly. It will not be a cut-off where one day everything is fine, and the next, your water is barely trickling out of the faucet. It will be a gradual weakening over what could be weeks or even months, depending on the speed of root growth. If you notice such a thing happening to you, it is best to look into a plumbing cost quote for having your system checked out. If you catch the issue early, it will be much easier and cheaper to fix.
Clogged drains
Tree roots in your sewer pipes can very easily lead to a clog. The more they spread, the larger the chances of this occurring. The alarming thing is that clogged drains can cause a lot of problems. If you are careless, they can even lead to flooding, which would leave you scrambling to find a storage facility that offers an affordable solution near your home for storing items away from destruction. And even worse is the fact that, if the issue has progressed to this point, it is very easy for it to get even worse by seriously damaging the pipes.
Slow draining of wastewater
Thankfully, there is a way to avoid the issues we just discussed. And the reason this is possible is that one of the signs you have tree roots in your sewer pipes is the slower draining of wastewater. You can see this as the precursor for the much more severe clogging problem. Unfortunately, this is another thing that slowly creeps up on you. It is easy to miss the warning signs when the water only gradually starts to drain away less efficiently. The good news is – experienced plumbing experts will almost always notice the issue and alert you to the potential implications if they are checking over your plumbing system for whatever reason.
Toilet backing up
If roots get into the pipes leading away from your toilet, clogging can become the lesser of two evils. This is because tree roots growing in sewer pipes are among the most common causes of home sewer backups. And it should be very, very obvious why those are horrible things to experience, especially if your sewer backing up is accompanied by one of the other symptoms, such as clogging of drainage in general or slow drainage of water. Both would make it increasingly difficult to clean up and make it necessary to temporarily leave your home while a professional plumber solves the problem.
Sinkholes or puddles in your yard
If your sewer pipes get damaged even further, you would likely start experiencing issues with your yard. Burst pipes can easily cause the formation of sinkholes or puddles around the area where the damage happened. This means you would need to immediately look for bust pipe services. The problem is very easily noticed if the pipe in question is supposed to lead the sewage away from your house since it will likely smell exactly the way you would expect wastewater to smell. This should, however, let you notice the problem relatively quickly.
Water bills increasing
Never ignore the occurrence if you suddenly notice your water bills increasing. Even if the increase does not seem like a huge one. If your water bills are typically the same month to month, then any deviation is likely not the result of your actions. Unless, of course, you know you had suddenly used more water than you usually would. If you know you haven’t, the only logical explanation is that your pipes are suffering from a leak. And while this is not one of the guaranteed signs you have tree roots in your sewer pipes, it is a hint at the possibility. It would be the state between a mild or severe clog of the pipes and their bursting. The best thing you can do once you notice an increase in your water expenses is look for leak detection services.
Bad smell coming from your drains
The final of the signs you have tree roots in your sewer pipes is a constant bad smell wafting from them. This happens because the waste gets caught on the roots and starts to decompose on them. Of course, you will definitely suffer the consequences with the only real path for the gases produced during the process leading into your home. The only thing to be grateful for in this scenario is that this makes it easy to detect the issue. Unfortunately, many people tend to disregard such smells. Which can turn a situation which does not have any real consequences for your home other than some unpleasantness into something you would need emergency plumbing services for once it worsens. So, always act on any problem or change you notice in your home related to your plumbing!
What to do
Keeping the signs you have tree roots in your sewer pipes firmly in mind, you will likely be able to diagnose the issue early. What you need to do then is immediately contact a professional. The longer you wait, the greater the chances of not solving things cheaply and quickly.