Your sewer line’s job is to move wastewater out of your home and into your town’s sewer system or your private septic tank. It uses gravity to do this. Usually, there’s only one main sewer line per house. However, the system itself has a few parts.
Your Drains
All your drains, including your toilet, feed into your sewer system. These drains are found in your sinks, toilets, showers and bathtubs, washing machine, dishwasher, and other appliances that depend on water. The size of the drain is determined by your local building and plumbing codes. These drains are referred to as branches as if they were the tributaries of a river.
Wherever they are, all your drains need to be trapped. A trap is a part of the drain that lets wastewater flow but holds enough water to stop sewer gas from coming into your house. The trap is usually a type of bend in the drainpipe.
There’s also a large, vertical pipe that extends upward from the lowest area in your home and comes out through the roof. This is the soil stack, and all the branches connect to it. Your home may have more than one. The soil stack also communicates with the primary vent. This vertical pipe both brings air to the trap outlets and vents sewer gas to the outside.
The House Drain
The house drain is found at the very bottom of your home. You’ll be able to see it if you have a crawlspace. To make sure that wastewater flows through it easily and at the right rate, it’s installed at an incline of 1/8 of an inch to 1/4 of an inch per foot. To help you or your plumber wipe it out or unclog it, it has a clean-out plug. Codes require that a clean-out plug be installed every 100 feet of your drain and wherever the drain changes direction.
The Sewer Line Itself
When the drain is outside the house, it’s then properly called the sewer line or the house sewer. It’s almost always found underground and is at least 4 inches around. How deep it’s buried depends on your climate and your local codes.
The house sewer feeds a branch sewer, which is found under the street. The branch sewer then sends the wastewater to a treatment plant. If you have a private septic tank, it separates solid waste from clear effluent. The effluent is then sent to a leach field where it is cleaned, joins the groundwater, or evaporates into the air.
Your sewer line makes living in your home not only comfortable but possible. If you ever need a sewer line installed, don’t hesitate to contact our professional plumbers at ACE in Albuquerque, NM.