Stop water use and keep people clear
If sewage is coming into the building, stop laundry, dishwashing, showers, and every avoidable drain. Keep people and pets out of contaminated rooms and away from wet ground. Do not open or enter the tank, and do not pour improvised chemicals into the piping. Stay away from electrical equipment that is sitting in wastewater.
When you call, tell us whether the problem is inside, outside, or both; when it started; which fixtures are affected; and whether an alarm is sounding. Mention a recent pump-out, outage, deep frost, snowmelt, construction, or truck traffic. Those details help separate a building drain clog from a tank, pump, or field problem.
Call to check the next urgent opening
We accept urgent calls, but we do not advertise a fixed arrival time or round-the-clock crew. Availability depends on the contractor answering, road and tank access, weather, facility hours, and the jobs already underway. Call (207) 962-2299 and describe the active condition so we can confirm what is available.
Pumping may relieve a full tank and create short-term capacity. It may not be the final repair. If groundwater refills the tank or wastewater quickly returns over the field, we need to diagnose the cause and may need a permitted replacement design. We will explain what the first visit can and cannot fix.
What to do after the backup is controlled
Save the service record, amount pumped, photos, visible findings, and next-step recommendation. Follow public-health cleanup guidance after indoor sewage. If a tank part or field failed, call the Local Plumbing Inspector before excavation and bring in a licensed site evaluator when replacement design is required.
If the trouble repeats, write down water use, alarms, weather, and how long the relief lasted. That timeline can point to a pump control, groundwater entry, high-use period, or field problem that one isolated visit may not show.
Primary source: EPA septic emergency preparedness guidance.
What to tell us when you call
Have the address, callback number, last service date, system records, and a short description of the problem ready. Mention buried lids, gates, ferry travel, steep or soft ground, a long hose run, snow piles, and alarms. We use those details to confirm availability, equipment, scope, and price.
Much of Portland’s mainland is on public sewer, while island and outlying properties can use septic. Nearby towns have their own mix. If there is any doubt, check the address with the town or utility before scheduling an onsite wastewater job.
Clear normal items such as toys, loose hoses, and parked cars from the access route, but do not dig around an unknown lid or move heavy equipment across the field. Tell us about a second compartment, pump chamber, effluent filter, deep cover, damaged riser, or locked gate before the visit. We also need to know if the truck must stay on a narrow shoulder or if the hose crosses a walkway, neighbor’s land, or active business entrance. Those details affect setup time and what belongs in the quote.
Ask which truck will haul the load
Maine DEP licenses each truck used to transport Category C septage. Program rules call for a decal on the driver's side window, a license kept with the truck, and shipment records. Pumped material goes to an authorized receiving or disposal facility; ask where your load will be taken.
Calls are answered by an independent septic contractor serving the area. Ask for the business name, the truck handling the work, any credential or insurance information needed for your project, and the receiving destination before the load leaves.
Primary source: Maine DEP non-hazardous waste transporter program.
Keep a useful service record
Save the date, work completed, amount pumped, parts accessed, visible condition, load destination, and next step. Mark tank lids from fixed building corners. If the job needs a design or permit, take the field notes to the licensed site evaluator or Local Plumbing Inspector.
The invoice should say what was done. Ask questions while the tank or excavation is open, and leave required construction exposed for the inspector. For a recurring problem, compare records so we can see a timeline instead of one symptom on one day.
If a lid, baffle, filter, alarm, or pump needs separate work, ask for that item to be named instead of accepting a vague whole-system recommendation. A clear record helps the next service call start with the known condition rather than repeating the same locating and troubleshooting work.