Athens City Code

1. (1) Generally.
   1. (a) All costs and expenses incident to the installation, connection, and inspection of the building sewer shall be borne by the owner, including all service and connection fees. The owner shall indemnify the city from any loss or damage that may directly or indirectly be caused by the installation of the building sewer.
   2. (b) A separate and independent building sewer shall be provided for every building, except where one building stands at the rear of another on an interior lot and no private sewer is available or can be constructed to the rear building through an adjoining alley, courtyard, or driveway, the building sewer from the front building may be extended to the rear building and the whole considered as one building sewer. Where property is subdivided and buildings using a common building sewer are now located on separate properties, the building sewers must be separated within 60 days.
   3. (c) Old building sewers may be used in connection with new buildings only when they are found on examination and tested to meet all requirements of this chapter. All others may be sealed to the specifications of the city.
   4. (d) Building sewers shall conform to the following requirements:
      1. (i) The minimum size of a building sewer shall be as follows: A conventional sewer system shall be four inches.
      2. (ii) The minimum depth of a building sewer shall be 18 inches.
      3. (iii) Building sewers shall be laid on the following grades: Four-inch sewers shall be one-eighth inch per foot. Larger building sewers shall be laid on a grade that will produce a velocity when flowing full of at least two feet per second.
      4. (iv) Building sewers shall be installed in uniform alignment at uniform slopes.
      5. (v) Building sewers shall be constructed only of polyvinyl chloride pipe schedule 40 or better. Joints shall be solvent welded or compression gaskets designed for the type of pipe used. No other joints shall be acceptable.
      6. (vi) Cleanouts shall be provided to allow cleaning in the direction of flow. A cleanout shall be located five feet outside of the building, as it crosses the property line, and one at each change of direction of the building sewer which is greater than 45 degrees. Additional cleanouts shall be placed not more than 75 feet apart in horizontal building sewers of six-inch nominal diameter and not more than 100 feet apart for larger pipes. Cleanouts shall be extended to or above the finished grade level directly above the place where the cleanout is installed and protected from damage. A Y (wye) and one-eighth bend shall be used for the cleanout base. Cleanouts shall not be smaller than four inches. Blockages on the property owner's side of the property line cleanout are the responsibility of the property owner.
      7. (vii) Connections of building sewers to the public sewer system shall be made only by the Athens Utilities Board in accordance with established policies and procedures.
      8. (viii) In all buildings in which any building drain is too low to permit gravity flow to the public sewer, sanitary sewage carried by such building drain shall be lifted by an approved pump system according to ACC 18-34 and discharged to the building sewer at the expense of the owner.
      9. (ix) The methods to be used in excavating, placing of pipe, jointing, testing, backfilling the trench, or other activities in the construction of a building sewer which have not been described above shall conform to the requirements of the building and plumbing code or other applicable rules and regulations of the city or to the procedures set forth in appropriate specifications by the ASTM. Any deviation from the prescribed procedures and materials must be approved by the city before installation.
      10. (x) An installed building sewer shall be gastight and watertight.
   5. (e) All excavations for building sewer installation shall be adequately guarded with barricades and lights so as to protect the public from hazard. Streets, sidewalks, parkways, and other public property shall not be disturbed without prior approval of the city and all public property disturbed in the course of work shall be restored in a manner satisfactory to the city.
   6. (f) No person shall make connection of roof downspouts, exterior foundation drains, areaway drains, basement drains, sump pumps, or other sources of surface runoff or groundwater to a building directly or indirectly to a public sanitary sewer.
   7. (g) Inspection of connections.
      1. (i) All building sewers from the building to the public sewer main line shall be inspected by the city before the underground portion is covered by the contractor or owner.
      2. (ii) The applicant for discharge shall notify the city when the building sewer is ready for inspection.
2. (2) Maintenance of building sewers. Each individual property owner shall be entirely responsible for the construction, maintenance, repair or replacement of the building sewer as deemed necessary to meet specifications of the city. Owners failing to maintain or repair building sewers or who allow stormwater or groundwater to enter the sanitary sewer may face enforcement action by the Athens Utilities Board up to and including discontinuation of water and sewer service.
3. (3) Sewer extensions. All expansion or extension of the public sewer constructed by property owners or developers must follow the established policies and procedures developed by the Athens Utilities Board.

(Code 1972, § 13-106; Code 1995, § 18-106; Ord. No. 972, 11-18-2008)