Backflow Preventer

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utterchaos

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I live in a corner lot 95 y/o home and when there is a heavy rainstorm, the city’s sewer line can’t handle it and so we get sewage into our basement. The original waste line is there and I’ve had it videoed and our waste line is in very good condition, except for one small area just outside of the foundation, where there is a small bit of crumbling on the bottom of the line and you can see the start of hairline fracture. No telling how long it’s been there, we’ve not had any problems, except of course the flooding during heavy and fast rainstorms.

Our plumber has given us 3 options. First option is with putting in just a backflow valve inside at the foundation. Second option is along with the backflow valve he installs an ejector pump along side of it, so we can use our bathrooms, and run our plumbing equipment (washer, shower, etc). Third option is he installs the backflow valve on the outside of the foundation right at the location of the hairline fracture fixing two problems in one. Now with that option he can’t put the ejector pit on the outside of the house, so we wouldn’t be able to use the bathroom or any plumbing equipment, we’re fine with that except for not having a bathroom to use. We’re leaning towards the third option, as I’m thinking if we going with the other two options, wouldn’t it be possible that the force of the sewer water trying to get in and can’t put pressure on the hairline fracture and break it down.

I know you can put plugs in the floor drains and in the shower in the basement, but that wouldn't fix the flooding issue as there is a toilet in the basement and there is no way to put any type of plug in there, so we believe our only option is the backflow valve, as we cannot afford over head sewer line. Also there is already a sump pump in the basement, which is not connected to the sewer line, it pumps out a pvc line to the back of the house.

I added a pic of the damaged area in our sewer line, again this is on the outside of the house on our property not the citys. Also, again we've not had any issues with our sewer line except for the flooding when the city line can't handle the amount of rain.

I'm so sorry I made an error when I first posted it's backflow VALVE, to prevent sewage coming in during a flood. Not a backflow preventer. I thought they were the same thing, my bad.

I’d appreciate any input.
 

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utterchaos

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Even with the outdoor valve, you can still install the ejector pump in the basement.
But how would it pump into behind the backflow preventer. Is it running a pvc from the ejector pit out the foundation to behind the flap in the backflow preventer?

Thank you for your reply.
 

Tuttles Revenge

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Can the backwater valve be installed so that it only protects the basement fixtures? So that in a flood scenario only your basement fixtures are unusable. Unsure of the physical topography of your home and sewer system.

If you installed the sewage ejector that captured only the basement fixtures, it would act just like the Backwater valve in that the pump has a check valve on the discharge. Hopefully the upstairs fixtures are higher than the sewage flood / upstream manhole cover and don't need flood protection. Then when the pump discharges into the main drain, it forces its waste into the flooded sewer, but it doesn't come back into the house, but floods into the street out of the already overflowing manhole.
 

utterchaos

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Can the backwater valve be installed so that it only protects the basement fixtures? So that in a flood scenario only your basement fixtures are unusable. Unsure of the physical topography of your home and sewer system.

If you installed the sewage ejector that captured only the basement fixtures, it would act just like the Backwater valve in that the pump has a check valve on the discharge. Hopefully the upstairs fixtures are higher than the sewage flood / upstream manhole cover and don't need flood protection. Then when the pump discharges into the main drain, it forces its waste into the flooded sewer, but it doesn't come back into the house, but floods into the street out of the already overflowing manhole.

The 1st and 2nd story of our home are above the city sewer line, just the basement is below. From my understanding of what our plumber said if we just install the backflow preventer in the basement, during a flooding we can't run the washer, dishwasher, take baths/showers etc. The backflow flap would be sealed to prevent sewage from coming in. He said we could install an ejector AND that can push the water/waste we make during a flooding out past the backflow flap. He said the ejector has a flap also to prevent sewage from coming in. That got me wondering, could we just eliminate the backflow and use the sewage ejector?

I made an error in my original post. He would be installing a backflow valve not a backflow preventer. I didn't realize they're two different things.

I appreciate any input.
 
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Tuttles Revenge

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The big downside to having an ejector pump all the time is that you have to maintain them.. they fail periodically, get clogged, gummed up.. I'd rather have gravity and a backwater valve than a pump if that were my only choice.

To be fair, you have to maintain a backwater valve too, its just a lot easier and less gross.
 
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