Sewage spills are unpleasant and can cause vast disruption to your business or home. Raw sewage can contain a variety of bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites that can cause serious illness and even death. The risk of contamination from unknown chemicals such as solvents, carcinogens and pesticides is incredibly high.

The potential danger of toxic, asphyxiating and flammable gases within a confined space can also be hazardous to your business and can have disastrous consequences to the environment and local water supply.

Spills from sewage pipes can spread rapidly so it is essential that any spills are dealt with quickly and effectively to minimise exposure and contain the spread.

Clean up tips:

• Keep children and pets out of the area until clean-up has been completed.
• Wear rubber gloves and boots. Use eye protection.
• Wash your hands thoroughly and launder clothes separately after completing the clean-up.
• Remove all furniture, loose rugs, and so on from the area.
• Saturated wall-to-wall carpeting (and the pad) usually cannot be adequately cleaned. They should be removed, wrapped in plastic, and taken to a transfer station or sanitary landfill. If you decide to keep the carpeting, hire a licensed carpet cleaning company to steam clean and disinfect the carpet.
• All hard surfaces, such as linoleum, hardwood floors, concrete, wood moldings, wood, and metal furniture, and on should be thoroughly cleaned with hot water and a mild detergent (dish detergent), and then rinsed with a bleach solution by mixing one tablespoon of liquid household unscented bleach to one gallon of water. Let the surface air dry.
• Upholstered furniture, loose rugs, drapery, and so on should be professionally cleaned. Notify the cleaner of the problem.
• Remove and replace plaster, plasterboard, and lath that have been saturated and are soft to the touch. If the surface has been wetted, clean as you would a hard surface, but do not saturate the plaster.
• Clean sinks, dishwashers, and other plumbing fixtures that have had sewage back-up with detergent, and then rinse with the bleach solution.
• Disinfect clean-up mops, brooms, and brushes with the bleach solution.
• Prevent mold growth and reduce odors by increasing air circulation — open all windows and doors. The use of fans and heaters may speed this process.