MILWAUKEE — The Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District (MMSD) is offering financial incentives to help homeowners prevent basement backups through its Pipe Check program.

That includes helping one local homeowner pay a portion of the cost to have a plumbing company fix their sanitary sewer line.

What You Need To Know

  • MMSD's Pipe Check program aims to prevent a basement backup caused by clear water, which is better known as rain or storm water

  • The program helps homeowners pay thousands of dollars in upfront costs to repair sanitary sewer lines

  • To learn more about the program and how to qualify, click here

Heiden Plumbing President Andy Wyderka used a push camera to check on the conditions of the pipe in a homeowner’s basement. 

Wyderka said that parts of the pipe in the basement had collapsed.

“If there is a blockage downstream and there is water getting into the lateral, it can then back up into the property and go through the floor drain,” said Wyderka.

(Spectrum News 1/Phillip Boudreaux)

To fix it, Wyderka said he planned to break up the floor. He said a project like this can cost a homeowner somewhere between $12,000 to $30,000.

“We are going to open up by the city main and then we are going to basically expand the old pipe and put in a brand new pipe in its path through a process called pipe bursting so there will be no excavating on the property,” said Wyderka.

The main thing MMSD is trying to prevent are backups caused by clear water, better known as rain or storm water.

MMSD public engagement specialist Hannah Johnson said the organization can save homeowners thousands of dollars in upfront costs to repair these pipes.

(Rendering courtesy of MMSD)

“All of these aging laterals and connected sewer drains create problems, not just for the homeowner in their home, but it creates problems all the way down the line. It adds more ground and storm water to the system that doesn’t need to be there,” said Johnson. “It ends up costing taxpayers more money once it gets to the wastewater treatment plant and needs to be treated.”

Wyderka said he also appreciates that the Pipe Check program can make these projects more affordable for more people.

“What’s nice about is that you can come in and you can provide solutions to their problems and you can try to do it where it’s minimally invasive, where you can minimize costs. So for us it’s looking at every job differently and figuring out what tools in the tool bag work for that application,” said Wyderka.

That’s why he and his team at Heiden Plumbing, along with MMSD, said they take pride in making sure these systems flow smoothly.

To learn more about the program and how to qualify, click here. 

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