Drain a soil pipe?

So I have a whole house backup. The city came out and cleaned out their side which was full of roots and told me they need to replace the tap (whatever that is). They also told me when they went down with the camera that I have some root blockage on my side of the sewer. So I've got to run a power auger down the line to clean out what I can until the city can come and replace the tap.

The problem is that I don't have a cleanout. So decided to dig up the line to find out what kind of pipes I have and install a wye. I unearthed the line, and it looks like a blueish metal or iron. I'm in the process of clearing the dirt out some more so I can get at the pipe better. I've attached a picture of where I am right now. The house is on the right side of the picture.



It occurred to me that when I cut the pipe, all of that water that's in the tubs and sinks is going to come gushing out and I'll have a colossal mess. I there some trick that I can use to deal with all of this water? Should I drill a small hole and let the water leak out gradually over a couple of days? Or just break it open and pump out the water?

Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks!

If you did get a pump in there, where would you pump it to?

It looks like cast iron to me. I don't like that 45 elbow right outside the house, either. If there are roots in the line, and it is cast iron, the line may just have rusted through in one area. I suppose it could have shifted and cracked a joint - I just don't know enough about that. If the pipe was in perfect shape, roots couldn't get in. If the city is going to replace their tap into the main, it may be a good time to think about replacing the line with say pvc. How far is it to the street? It sounds like the ground isn't frozen if you've been able to dig up that part. Might be smart to just keep going.

Sometimes, you can remove a toilet and run a snake out, but it's easier if it is closer to the place where it exits the house. You may have a toilet that is close...that would be the easiest place to start without tearing things up. Course, if things are flooded above that toilet, that won't be a good idea, as it would then just flow out of that pipe onto the floor.

Usually, the liquids slowly flow out. You may just have to wait a little, then tear up the line.

If you have a root problem, you're going to be having clog problems and be cleaning roots out at least every other year until you replace the entire underground line with ABS black plastic or PVC white plastic line with "glued" joints that will never let roots in.
Now would be a very good time to coordinate all with the city.
Good Luck!
Mike

It's about 40 ft to the road with no sidewalk. The only problem I see with replacing the whole pipe is that the city water guy told me that the manhole goes down almost 12 feet. So I'm guessing there's quite a slope. That would be a massive digging job.

Maybe it's hard to tell from the picture, but the elbow joint sits about 6 or 7 feet from the side of the house.

Also, is it possible that all of the root problems are originating from the city's tap and somehow getting up into my part of the line?

The city water guy also told me that when they replaced the tap that it would more than likely solve my problem. However, I have to wait 2 months in order for them to get out here to do the job. They said they'll have to dig up the road, and that requires safety assessments and approvals and bureaucratic red tape. In the meantime I have no sewer. I just need to get something done until they come out to do whatever they need to do.

sewer

Call a plumber. You will have to do it to get the sewer snaked anyway, and HE will know how to install the cleanout, (after he unplugs the sewer). The roots will normally be wherever the cast iron, if that is what you have, changes to the vitrified clay tile the city uses.