Sand in drain

The basement is backed up.
I rented a snake, only to find it would not penetrate the clog at about 15 feet. When I pulled it back out and looked at the spade, it had sand on it. Oh boy...
I live in wisconsin where there's lots of sand and clay but never expected it to show up in the main drain.
There are no trees in the area that could be the cause.

ANY THOUGHTS ON THIS?

Thanks in advance for any insight.

If you have not been putting clay or sand down your drains, then it means the cable left the pipe. Many times I come in to power rod a main sewer can not get through, when I bring back the cutter, its covered in clay. So basically means a broken or collapsed pipe.

sand

The first thought is that you have some digging ahead of you because you either have a broken pipe, or a bad sewer, (the worst case being Orangeburg rolled tar paper pipes). You probably have to either dig up a connection and repair it, or replace the entire sewer line.

Thanks guys. You know the old saying...advise is something we ask for when we already know the answer, but wish we didn't.

I wonder now if my insurance will help pay for this.

mark536 said:

Thanks guys. You know the old saying...advise is something we ask for when we already know the answer, but wish we didn't.

I wonder now if my insurance will help pay for this.

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One thing my father told me when I was young... and I wish I listened to this back then. "It never hurts to ask, the worse thing they can say is NO" I tell this to all my home owners that are concerned about asking about home owners insurance.