Drainage Trouble

Trouble Shooting, If you are having a sewage backup or drainage problem, please read all of the information below to become educated about your connection to the IBCD system. Most professional plumbers are not familiar with the IBCD system which can lead to unnecessary costs for homeowners. The IBCD contracts with D&M Excavating out of Michigan CIty to service our portion of sewer lines and our holding tanks. IBCD customers may contact D&M Excavating directly at 219 874-2882 to contract for repairs to the homeowner’s portion of sewer line. D&M representatives are very familiar with the workings of the IBCD system. If your backup problem was not resolved by addressing blockages within your home or the line leading from your home into the IBCD solids tank, you may contact a board representative  to discuss possible service requirements of IBCD’s tank and/or outgoing sewer line 

Each home within the IBCD has either an individual or a shared holding tank with a nearby neighbor and has a manhole cover located on or between properties. These holding tanks separate the solid waste, which settles to the bottom and are digested by bacterial action, the processed liquids pass under a bulkhead and exit into an elaborate system of sewer mains and pumping stations. The bulkhead prevents the bacterial foam entering the tank outlet; therefore, the tank must be full to process your sewage.

Our system is connected the town of Chesterton sewer system where our effluent are processed. Your sewer utility bill is spent on maintaining and managing the IBCD system in addition to paying for the processing of liquids and the removal of solids from IBCD holding tanks. 

Key points for homeowners to know include:

Homeowners are responsible for maintaining the sewer line that leads from their home into the IBCD holding tank. This includes the clearing of any debris or tree roots that may have infiltrated your line. You are also responsable for the connection of your line into our tank and its seal. 

Additionally, we have schematics of your line to our tank, this includes the location of cleanouts and the lengenth of your line to our tank  

Holding tanks and the sewer lines that lead out of the tank are the property and the responsibility of the IBCD to maintain the tanks by regulary inspection and repair, this occurs approximately every 5 years; Pumping Schedule 

These tanks must be pumped-out and cleaned to allow a person inside for inspection. We inspect the inlet and outlet, bulkheads, and manhole cover for seal.