Sewer Backup Cleanup
When the Water Comes Back Up the Drain
A sewer backup isn't a flood of clean water — it's contaminated, and the clock on it is shorter. Our line is answered 24/7. Here's how the job runs, from the first call to the floor going back down.
How It Works
The same four stages whether it's one basement bathroom or a backed-up stack in a multiplex.
Call & Containment
You call — any hour, any day. We get the affected area sealed off first so contaminated water doesn't get tracked through the rest of the house.
Extraction & Sanitation
Standing water is pumped out, then every surface that stays gets cleaned and disinfected rather than simply dried.
Controlled Removal
Soaked porous material — underlay, the bottom of the drywall, insulation — comes out. This is the step that separates a backup from a clean-water leak, and skipping it is what leaves smell behind months later.
Drying, Then Rebuild
We dry to logged moisture readings, then put back flooring, drywall, and paint — with the backwater valve left accessible, which matters more than most people expect.
What's Included
One crew from the first pump to the last coat of paint, documented throughout.
Contaminated Water Extraction
Pumped out and hauled away, with the work area contained so the rest of the property stays clean.
Disinfection & Odour Treatment
Surfaces cleaned and disinfected, not just dried — odour is usually a sign something porous was left in place.
Documentation for Your Claim
Moisture readings and photos logged from the first visit to the final walkthrough, in a form an adjuster can process without a follow-up call.
Full Rebuild
Flooring, drywall, trim, and paint restored by the same crew — including keeping the valve's access point reachable for future servicing.
Sewer backups in Laval and Montreal
The difference between a backup and a burst pipe is what's in the water. A supply line lets go and you have clean water that can often be dried in place. A backup brings contaminated water, so the rule changes: soaked porous material — carpet underlay, the bottom of the drywall, insulation in a finished basement — comes out rather than getting dried and hoped over. The EPA's 24-to-48-hour benchmark for mould growth on wet material still applies on top of that, which is why the removal decision gets made on the first visit rather than after a week of monitoring.
On the island, backwater valves are not optional. Ville de Montréal's municipal by-law makes them mandatory, and every building built since 2011 has to have one. The city's Rénoplex program helps with the cost for owners of one- to five-unit buildings: roughly $80 toward a standard valve, up to $560 per valve where it has to go in under an existing floor, and $1,500 toward a retention basin with a pump system.
Here's the part that concerns us specifically, and it comes straight from the city's own guidance: a valve needs servicing about twice a year, and it has to stay accessible — and flooring laid over the access point is one of the most common reasons it isn't. That is a renovation mistake, not a plumbing one. When we put a basement floor back after a backup, the access hatch stays reachable, because the alternative is that the next inspection starts by pulling up a floor you just paid for.
In Laval the rule is not Montreal's, and it surprises people. Municipal by-law L-5057 requires a backwater valve on every discharge connection serving fixtures below street crown level — but forbids installing one of any type on the main collector. The same by-law requires valves to be easily accessible at all times and maintained by frequent cleaning, and states that where an owner is in default of installing or properly maintaining them, the City is not responsible for damage caused by a backup. That is why the access hatch stays reachable when we put a floor back: in Laval, an unreachable valve isn't only a maintenance problem. Worth checking separately: sewer-backup coverage is frequently a separate endorsement on a Quebec home insurance policy rather than part of the base coverage — the time to read that page of your contract is before you need it.
Ready to start your project?
Get a rough estimate in minutes with our instant estimate tool, or call us directly.