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Winston-Salem homeowner turns to News 2 for help with a sewage problem

It seemed like every time Winifred Hauser would flush the toilet there was a problem. It would gurgle and not flush all the way. Sometimes it would overflow.

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — Winifred Hauser is proud of her Winston-Salem home. For more than 28 years the home has provided security and comfort.

Like many older homes, there are necessary repairs that pop up every now and then and Hauser has also made several upgrades and improvements through the years.

“I have done a lot of upgrades since I’ve been here,” Hauser said.

The latest issue was a toilet that wouldn’t flush properly. The toilet kept backing up and would never seem to flush completely. Hauser was convinced the sewage pipes were blocked or obstructed.

“I called the city first to see if the blockage was on their side of the line,” Hauser said.

The city investigated and determined the blockage was on Hauser’s property. A couple of days later she reached out to a plumber to have the repairs made. The plumber inspected the line and flushed it, along with doing a couple of other simple repairs.

The cost for the work was $3,500.

“It wasn’t cheap,” Hauser said.

The toilet issue seemed to be OK for a couple of days, but the problem came back a short time later. Every time Hauser would flush the toilet it would flush but not completely.

“The toilet would bubble up and overflow,” Hauser said.

She reached out to the plumber who came back out to see why it wasn’t working perfectly. After looking into the issue, a bit more he suggested Hauser contact the city again about the sewage pipe.

Hauser contacted News 2 about it this time to assist in the issue. We contacted the city in hopes of getting some answers about the ongoing issue. Hauser also reached out to the city and someone from the utility department was sent to the house.

Eventually, Hauser says a representative from the city brought out a camera to look for a blockage in the line.

“He said he checked the pipe and there’s a lot of rags, rocks and debris, all kinds of stuff in the pipe,” Hauser said.

The pipe was flushed by the city and the problem seemed to go away.

“Go figure,” Hauser said.

The issue now was the $3,500 bill Hauser had already paid the plumber for an issue that may not have been entirely hers. We spoke with the city and the mayor about the issue.

The city agreed to send Hauser a check for $1,750 to help cover the cost of the plumber.

“I want to thank News 2 for stepping in to help me,” Hauser said.

The system is working perfectly now and Hauser is thrilled with the outcome.

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