Gwinnett 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 Gwinnett County Department of Water Resources in Gwinnett County. If sewage is spilling from a manhole, or the blockage turns out to be in the county's main or its service stub at the right-of-way, that is DWR's to handle; for the lateral from your house to the edge of the right-of-way, call us at (404) 482-2527.

Gwinnett County's Department of Water Resources (DWR) publishes more detail than most Georgia sewer providers: a written procedure for backups, a rule for who maintains which part of the lateral, and a claim process for plumber bills. If your home is on the county sewer, those documents decide who pays when the line near the street fails.

Below we sum them up for homeowners and renters, list the permit office for each city, and show where our work fits in. The statewide picture is in the guide to who is responsible for the sewer line in Georgia.

DWR's sewer system carries wastewater from more than 180,000 homes and businesses through about 3,000 miles of pipe and roughly 200 pump stations to three county treatment plants (DWR wastewater page). The department maintains the sewer mains and the short "service stubs" that connect each main to a customer's own pipe (DWR standard procedure).

Not every Gwinnett address uses this system. The City of Buford runs its own sewer department (see the Buford page), Loganville's city sewer serves areas inside its limits (see the Loganville page), and Auburn's sewer comes through Barrow County (see the Barrow County page). DWR also notes that, according to the Georgia Department of Public Health, about 30 percent of Gwinnett residents use septic systems (DWR septic page).

The quickest check is your county water bill. DWR says a sewer-use charge on the bill means you are on the public sewer, while a sewer amount of zero most likely means a septic system (DWR septic page).

In unincorporated Gwinnett, the Department of Planning and Development issues plumbing and other trade permits and schedules inspections through its online ZIP Portal. A homeowner can get a permit for work on their own property with proof of ownership and a signed property-owner-as-contractor affidavit (Building Services). That includes unincorporated communities such as Mountain Park; each city in the table below runs its own permit office. If the job needs a permit, we tell you before work starts.

Mulberry is a special case. Since January 1, 2025, and pending litigation over the city's charter, the city handles building and trade permits, while the county still provides plan review and inspections for water and sewer work (Planning and Development notice).

Before anyone digs, Georgia 811 asks for a locate ticket at least three business days ahead (Georgia 811), and the state dig law requires one before excavating with mechanized equipment. Under the same law, the sewer utility helps locate laterals only up to the edge of the public right-of-way (Georgia Dig Law). Before any digging we go over sewer line repair options with you, from spot repairs to replacing the run.

DWR says most grease-related overflows happen on residential lines, that a clog on your property is yours to clear, and that a large spill can also bring a fine (DWR grease page). It tells residents to put fats and cooled grease in the trash and notes that a garbage disposal doesn't make grease safe for the drain. Restaurants and other food businesses fall under a separate county grease program.

The county code bans stormwater, groundwater, roof runoff, swimming pool drainage and condensate from the sanitary sewer unless DWR's director authorizes it (Gwinnett Code § 106-126). DWR treats a roof drain tied into a lateral as a source of inflow, uses cameras and smoke testing to find defects, and notifies owners when a test finds one on their property (Sewer Lateral page). Everyday habits are covered in what not to flush or pour.

DWR sends septic owners to the county's environmental health office, which keeps records for systems installed from 1959 on, and the county's GIS Data Browser may show a septic sketch and past repair permits. Owners who have their tank pumped can earn a 10 percent stormwater utility fee credit each year for five years (DWR septic page). If a public sewer is within 200 feet of the home, the county code requires connection within 90 days of official notice (Gwinnett Code § 106-96). We do not pump septic tanks; for upkeep, see septic tank pumping in Georgia.

If the blockage we find turns out to be entirely in the county-maintained stub, DWR will submit a claim for the plumber's charges, ours included, on your behalf to the county's Risk Management office, which decides responsibility. DWR staff must see the excavated lateral before it is repaired, so we call DWR with you and allow at least two to three hours for staff to arrive (DWR standard procedure). The procedure lists what a claim needs: the incident address, owner and resident contact details, date and time, a short statement, a description of the damage, copies of bills and any photos.

The procedure also sets limits. A plumber-installed right-of-way cleanout isn't reimbursed unless DWR agreed in advance, so we don't put one in there without that agreement; payment may be capped at customary local costs, and if the home's lowest finished floor is below the upstream manhole rim, a damage claim must show a working backflow device. Risk Management has the final word on a claim; what we add is camera footage and photos of where the blockage sat. Insurance questions are covered in sewer backup insurance in Georgia.

Find your right-of-way cleanout now, near the street or the edge of the yard, and make sure its cap is intact. If your lateral has none, write that down: in a backup, DWR can install one at county expense when it needs one to locate the blockage. On your side of that line, we restore flow with main sewer line cleaning or hydro jetting, run a sewer camera inspection to show where the problem sits, and cut out the roots DWR finds most often at the 4-inch to 6-inch joint with root intrusion removal. A missing or cracked owner cleanout near the house calls for sewer cleanout installation and repair, and a broken lateral for sewer line repair. Call Georgia Sewer at (404) 482-2527.