If you live in the City of Wheaton, please contact the City of Wheaton Sewer Department at 630-260-2110 because the City of Wheaton is responsible for the City's sewer mains. These sewer mains transport the wastewater to lines owned by Wheaton Sanitary District (a separate agency) for treatment.
If you live in any other portion of the Wheaton Sanitary District service area (i.e. receive a monthly bill from the Wheaton Sanitary District), please contact Wheaton Sanitary District at 630-668-1515, any time. It is helpful if you can provide us with the time the flooding occured and the estimated depth of water above your floor drain.
DO YOU HAVE A SEWER BACKUP?
You are responsible for your sanitary service lateral from your building to the main line sewer. The District maintains the main line sewer. Therefore, it's a good idea to conduct preventative maintenance on your service lateral to minimize the potential for problems that may cause sewage to back up in your home. You want to ensure that tree roots, grease, and debris do not cause your sewer to become blocked. Sewer backups in a home or business may be caused by a number of factors:
Power Outage - A power outage can prevent your sanitary sewer sump pump from working. To ensure that it operates during a power outage, you could consider acquiring a backup power supply system. Batteries typically provide one or tow hours of power for a sump pump. If you want even more back up power, then you may want to consider renting or the purchase of a generator.
Tree Roots - Private service laterals can become blocked with tree roots. Roots typically reach out unground the same distance that branches reach from the tree trunk. If your service lateral is located under tree branches, then tree roots may have a chance to grow into your service lateral and block it up.
Main Lines - All the problems that can occur in a service lateral (roots, debris, grease, ect) can also occur in a sanitary sewer main. That is why the District conducts routine maintenance activities on the main lines. The main lines are televised every few years to ensure they are in sound condition, and any defects observed are fixed as a routine part of our preventative maintenance program.
Heavy Rainfall - Rain water (that's supposed to go into storm inlets, drainage ditches, and creeks) can enter the sanitary sewer many different ways. If too much stormwater enters the sanitary sewer, it can reduce the capacity of the sanitary sewer to transport your sanitary wastewater, thereby contributing to the probability of a basement backup. The District routinely rehabilitates the main lines to minimize the amount of rainwater that can enter the sanitary sewers.
If you suspect there is a problem with a main line sanitary sewer, please follow the guidelines outlined below in the section titled "Do You Suspect There's a Problem in the Main Sewer Line?", and contact the appropriate government agency to investigate the situation.
If you do NOT live in the City of Wheaton and believe you may be interested in a cost participation program that the District offers, then you should review:
Ordinance 511 - Overhead Sewer Financial Assistance
You may want to consider a few options:
1. A backflow prevention device
2. Overhead sewers (sanitary sewer sump pump with check valve)
3. A gate valve (manually operated valve)
None of these options guarantee the elimination of basement backups. For example, the backflow device can become plugged or stuck partially open. An overhead sewer sump pump won't work if power isn't available. A gate valve requires someone to to close it, and eventually all valves will fail. However, these options can significantly increase your level of protection.