Hampton Sewer and Drain Guide for Homeowners

Who provides sewer service here

The Hampton Utilities Department covers water and electric operations, system maintenance and customer service, and its staff includes a wastewater superintendent. The department's water section lists the Bear Creek water pollution control plant, which began operating in 1958 as a trickling filter plant. Customers apply for water and sewer service in person at City Hall and pay a cash security deposit for sewer service set by the mayor and council (Sec. 86-81).

If your sewer bill comes from someone else, use that provider's rules; the Henry County Water Authority is the county-wide sewer utility.

Where your responsibility ends

Under Sec. 86-84, the owner bears all costs of connecting the building sewer from the building to the city property line, and any connection from the city property line into the public sewer is made by the city. Where the main does not reach your lot, the owner also pays to build the sewer from the property line to the nearest existing sewer line unless the mayor and council approve otherwise. The code does not separately describe who maintains each stretch after installation, so ask the Utilities Department before paying for digging near the street.

The construction rules in Sec. 86-87 matter when a line is replaced. The building sewer must be at least 4 inches across with a slope of at least one-eighth inch per foot. Any part within 10 feet of a water service pipe must be cast iron soil pipe or ductile iron with bolted mechanical joints, and the city may require the same where tree roots could damage the line. Drains too low for gravity flow must be lifted by an approved pump. The guide to tree roots in sewer lines explains why joints matter. This is general information; the city or a licensed plumber can confirm how the rules apply to your lot.

If sewage backs up

The Utilities page does not set out a sewer-backup procedure. It lists the department's staff, including the wastewater superintendent, and separate numbers for leaks and outages during and after business hours (Hampton Utilities). If only your home is affected, start with a licensed plumber; if neighbors have the same problem or a manhole is overflowing, call the Utilities Department. The sewer backup procedure covers safety steps inside the house.

Repairs, permits and inspections

Building permits and inspections in Hampton are handled by the city's Community Development department through its online public portal, not by the county; Henry County's building department confirms that each city has its own (Henry County).

Sewer work also needs the city's sign-off. No one may uncover, connect to or alter a public sewer without a written city permit; owners apply on the city's form, with plans if requested, and pay a permit and inspection fee set by the mayor and council (Sec. 86-83). Building sewers are laid in open trenches unless the city approves another method, and no backfill may be placed until the work is inspected (Sec. 86-87). Ask before scheduling trenchless work, since that requires the city's approval. Georgia 811 asks anyone planning to dig to request a free locate at least three business days ahead (Georgia 811), and Georgia's dig law requires that request before digging with machines (dig law).

Grease, wipes and rainwater

Hampton keeps rainwater out of the sanitary sewer by ordinance. Stormwater and other clean drainage must go to storm sewers or an approved natural outlet, and no one may discharge stormwater, surface water, groundwater, roof runoff or subsurface drainage into a sanitary sewer (Sec. 86-88).

The list of banned discharges in Sec. 86-89 reads like a homeowner's checklist once the industrial items are set aside: no liquid hotter than 150 degrees Fahrenheit, no waste carrying grease or other substances that harden between 32 and 150 degrees, no garbage that has not been properly shredded, and no rags, plastics or other solids that can block the flow. Restaurants fall under a separate grease management program run by the public works director. What not to flush or pour has household disposal tips.

Septic homes in this area

Hampton's code treats unconnected homes near a sewer as "nonconforming." A home within two miles of a public sewer line that could drain to it by gravity, but is not connected, must connect within 60 days of official notice when it is destroyed and replaced or when its septic system fails and cannot be properly repaired. The city or the Henry County Health Department decides whether a system has failed, new construction within two miles must connect, and an owner who claims undue hardship can appeal in writing to the mayor and council within five days of the notice (Sec. 86-82).

Septic permits and records are kept by the Henry County environmental health office, which the Department of Public Health lists at 137 Henry Parkway in McDonough (DPH). If you are unsure which system serves your home, see septic or sewer: how to tell.

Cities and communities served

The city system serves Hampton. Homes in the surrounding unincorporated county are covered by the Henry County Water Authority's page.

Next step

If your septic system is failing or you are rebuilding, call Hampton's Utilities Department before you call a septic contractor: city code may require a sewer connection instead of a repair.