A sewage backup, a failed septic system, or other biohazard waste in a Bellevue home, rental or business is cleaned up by an independent cleanup company that the owner or property manager hires directly. What happens first is simple: keep people and pets out of the affected area and leave the material where it is. Biohazard Network can connect you with an independent local company that serves Bellevue; we do not clean, remove or haul anything ourselves.
Finding sewage across a basement floor, needles left in a vacant unit, or rodent droppings in a storage room is upsetting, and it is reasonable to want it handled calmly. This page explains what the work involves, what to avoid touching, and how the waste has to leave the property.
What this service covers
A biohazard is any material that can carry germs able to make people sick. This page covers biohazard waste that is not tied to a death or a crime: sewage from a backed-up line or a failing septic system, which is an underground system that treats a building’s wastewater on its own property; sharps, meaning needles, syringes, lancets and blades; rodent droppings and nests; and contaminated material left in rentals, vacant properties and businesses. If a death or an injury is involved, the page on unattended death cleanup in Bellevue is a better fit.
Ordinary cleaning is not enough because sewage soaks into porous materials, which are things like drywall, carpet pad, insulation and upholstered furniture that absorb liquid. Wiping the surface leaves contamination underneath. The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) says to hire a cleaning professional if a moldy area has been contaminated by sewage, and it notes that even dry, dead mold can cause health problems.
What to do first, and what not to touch
Close off the area if you can, and stop sending water down drains on the affected line. Because sewage keeps soaking in while it sits, starting sooner is better than waiting.
For rodent droppings, DOH1 says people can be exposed to hantavirus, a virus carried by infected deer mice, by breathing dust after disturbing or cleaning droppings or nests. That is why you should not vacuum or sweep them up. Keep in mind that DOH says a dust mask does not protect against viruses. Since DOH also says the age of a dropping can’t be told, treat every dropping as if it were infectious. It may ease some worry to know DOH says there is no evidence hantavirus spreads from one person to another.
If you find needles, do not pick them up with bare hands or try to recap them. Public Health – Seattle & King County2 has a program called How to handle used or found sharps.
If you manage a rental, leave a tenant’s damaged belongings in place for now. The Office of the Insurance Commissioner (OIC) tells renters not to throw damaged things away yet, because the insurer may want to inspect them.
A former drug lab is a separate job: Washington requires clandestine drug lab decontamination workers, supervisors and contractors to be certified through DOH’s Drug Lab Cleanup Program.
What to expect from the company you hire
Cleanup workers wear protective equipment such as gloves, eye protection and breathing protection. The crew sets up containment, which means sealing off the work area with barriers so contamination does not spread to clean rooms. Porous materials that sewage has reached are cut out and bagged. Then comes disinfection, which means applying products that kill germs on the surfaces that remain. Odor work belongs after the source is gone; see odor remediation in Bellevue. For insurance, ask for photos, a written scope and a list of what was removed.
Before you hire, ask whether the crew follows OSHA’s bloodborne pathogens standard3, 29 CFR 1910.1030, which covers workplace exposure to germs carried in blood, and the ANSI/IICRC S540 Standard for Trauma and Crime Scene Cleanup from the Institute of Inspection Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC), a non-profit for the cleaning and restoration industries. You can also look the business up yourself in the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries4 (L&I) tool called Verify a Contractor, Tradesperson or Business4, and the certifications guide explains what each of these means.
How the process works, including disposal
Biohazard remediation means removing contamination and fixing what caused it. Here is the order a job follows.
- Look and plan. The company inspects the area. Ask for a written plan showing what will be removed and what will be cleaned before work starts.
- Contain and remove. Affected materials are taken out and bagged inside the sealed work area.
- Sort the waste. Not everything that leaves is biomedical waste in the legal sense. Washington’s definition of biomedical waste is limited to the types the state lists, and those include sharps waste and discarded human blood or materials holding free-flowing blood. Ask how the company will keep these apart from ordinary debris.
- Haul it the right way. Ask which hauler or method the company uses, and if a separate firm hauls it, ask for that firm’s name. A company that collects and transports biomedical waste must keep an operating plan that keeps that waste separate from other solid waste and limits who may handle it. For other debris, the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission (UTC) says companies must obtain a certificate of public convenience and necessity before transporting solid waste for compensation, so ask who is hauling the rest.
- Disinfect and confirm. Remaining surfaces are disinfected. Ask how the company confirms the area is clean before it leaves.
- Restore. Sewage cleanup overlaps with water damage restoration. Once contaminated material is gone, drying and rebuilding can follow; how biohazard cleanup fits with restoration explains the handoff.
Insurance questions to ask
The OIC says you can ask your agent or company whether a loss is covered without filing a claim. It also says most homeowner policies don’t cover gradual leaks. You have the right to choose your own contractor for covered repairs, and the OIC warns that signing a contractor’s assignment of benefit form could affect your rights, so read it before you sign.
Usually covered: If your home is on a sewer system, sewer backup coverage can be added to a home policy as an optional endorsement, says the Insurance Commissioner’s flood insurance page5.
Usually not covered: A standard home policy does not cover sewer backup, but it can be added as an optional endorsement, says the Insurance Commissioner’s flood insurance page5. If you rent, your landlord’s or property management company’s policy covers the building but not your belongings, says the Commissioner’s renter insurance page.
Ask your insurer: “Does my policy include a sewer backup endorsement, and does it cover this backup?” Source: Learn how home insurance works (Washington State Office of the Insurance Commissioner)
Sewage and biohazard waste in Bellevue
Bellevue is an incorporated city, so its Development Services department handles permits, inspects projects and investigates code violations. Contact it if rebuilding after removal needs a permit, or if a neighboring property has a problem you want reported as a code violation.
For health questions, Public Health – Seattle & King County2 can be reached at its main number, 206-296-4600. Its programs include the On-site Sewage/Septic System Program, Sewage releases in Seattle and King County, Rodent complaints and Illegal dumping. Business owners can also use its Biomedical waste guidance for businesses that generate that waste. Its Mold page notes that Public Health does not conduct mold assessments.
If you also manage property in Rural Snoqualmie Valley/Northeast King County, which surrounds Duvall, Carnation, Snoqualmie, North Bend and Skykomish plus Fall City and Snoqualmie Pass, ask each company whether it serves those addresses too.
Who to call first
In an emergency, call 911.These official offices may be part of the first steps. They are government pages, not ours.
- King County Medical Examiner (opens in a new tab)After a sudden or unexpected death, cleanup waits until this office is done.
- Public Health – Seattle & King County (opens in a new tab)For local health questions, such as a home that was used as a drug lab.
- Washington Crime Victims Compensation Program (L&I) (opens in a new tab)If a crime happened, it may help with some costs, such as funeral expenses. It doesn't pay for cleanup.
- Verify a contractor (L&I lookup) (opens in a new tab)Look up whether a company is a registered contractor before work starts.
- Washington State Department of Health (opens in a new tab)State health rules, such as for drug lab cleanup and hantavirus.