Forsyth County Sewer and Drain Service: Local Rules

Georgia Sewer clears, inspects and repairs the private side of sewer and water lines for homes served by the Forsyth County Department of Water & Sewer in unincorporated Forsyth County. Sewer overflows and problems in the county's lines and easements go to the department; drains, the building sewer and the water line on your property are the work we do.

If you live in Forsyth County outside the City of Cumming's water and sewer service area, your public sewer, if you have one, comes from Forsyth County's Department of Water & Sewer. Its published rules say a lot about easements, what may go down the drain and septic upkeep, and little about who owns the lateral. Here is what it does publish, and how we work within it.

Homes in the City of Cumming and the area its utility serves follow different rules, covered on the Cumming page.

Forsyth County says some homes treat wastewater on site with septic systems, while most homes, schools and businesses send it through the county's sanitary sewer to one of five water reclamation facilities (About Wastewater).

County customers get a monthly statement for water and sewer use, and sewer charges are based on water meter readings (Billing Information). A sewer charge on your county bill is the simplest sign that you're connected; if your county bill has none, ask the department whether your home is on septic.

In unincorporated Forsyth County, the Department of Building & Licensing issues permits. Its guide says plumbing work that adds or replaces fixtures with piping changes needs a permit, fixture repairs without piping changes don't, and a water heater replacement does, although an emergency replacement can be permitted and inspected afterward (Do I Need a Permit?).

If the property is on septic, Forsyth County Environmental Health must approve plans to build, remodel, or add a building or pool before a building permit can be issued (Forsyth County Environmental Health). Inside Cumming, the city issues its own permits; see the Cumming page.

Plan the dig ticket early in Forsyth County: Georgia 811 asks for requests at least three business days before any digging, and for excavation with machines the request is a legal requirement (Georgia 811; Georgia dig law). Forsyth County's locating duty under the dig law stops at the edge of the public right-of-way. If the job needs a permit, we tell you before work starts. For how we weigh repair choices, see sewer line repair options.

The county's grease flyer, produced with the regional Clean Water Campaign, calls fats, oils and grease the number one cause of sewer blockages in metro Atlanta. It asks residents to pour cooled grease into a sealable container for the trash, scrape and dry-wipe pans, and use a sink strainer, and notes that a garbage disposal only chops grease into smaller pieces (Fats, Oils and Grease flyer).

The county code bars stormwater, groundwater, roof runoff, subsurface drainage, swimming pool drainage and condensate from the sewer unless the director authorizes it (Forsyth County Code § 82-57). The construction notes also prohibit roof drains, pool drains and air-conditioning condensate drains from the sanitary sewer (Construction Notes). See what not to flush or pour for wipes and other household items.

Forsyth County Environmental Health's land use section issues septic system permits and does final inspections, and the office notes that an application or review may take 20 business days or more (Forsyth County Environmental Health).

We do not pump septic tanks. The Department of Water & Sewer runs a septic pump-out program. Owners of single-family homes on septic who are county water customers can get a credit on their water bill after a pump-out, once every five years per address, if the system is at least 36 months old, the pumper is approved by the state health department, and the application arrives within 90 days of the work. Renters aren't eligible, and credits depend on available funding (Septic Tank Pump-Out). For upkeep, see septic tank pumping in Georgia.

For homes on county sewer, our technicians work on the line from the house toward the street: drain cleaning, main sewer line cleaning and hydro jetting for grease and recurring blockages, sewer camera inspection to find the problem, sewer line repair and cleanout installation and repair. We also handle water line repair on your property. In Cumming, see our Cumming sewer line repair and drain cleaning pages. Call Georgia Sewer at (404) 482-2527 or request service.