Guide · City of Atlanta
Atlanta's pipes: who owns what, who to call
When water shows up where it should not, the first question is whose pipe it is. The answer decides who you call and who pays for the repair.
The water line: split at the meter
The City of Atlanta's Department of Watershed Management (DWM) describes the water service line as the pipe that connects the city's water main to your home, and says responsibility for it is shared.
DWM is responsible for the section from the water main to the water meter. The property owner is responsible for the section from the meter to the home or building. On its reporting page, the department repeats the split: repairs from the meter to the house are the homeowner's, repairs from the main to the meter are the city's.
Sources: DWM, service line information; DWM, Report a Problem
Telling a water leak from a sewer leak
DWM gives a simple test for water you see running or pooling outside.
Clear, smells of chlorine
Probably drinking water from a main, meter or service line. Report it to 404-546-0311.
Cloudy, smells of sewage
Probably a leak in the sewer system, which can be in the pipe from the house to the main or in larger lines. Also 404-546-0311.
The sewer line from your house
DWM lists the pipe from the house to the main as one of the places a sewer leak can be, but its reporting page does not say who repairs that pipe. If sewage is surfacing in the yard or backing up into the house, report it to the department and ask whether the problem is on the public side or yours.
Some nearby cities spell it out. Smyrna says lateral clogs and the sewer cleanout are the property owner's responsibility, and Brookhaven says homeowners are responsible for the water and sewer systems within their property.
Inside the house, sewage that has backed up needs cleanup whoever's pipe caused it.
Sources: DWM, Report a Problem; Smyrna Public Works FAQs; Brookhaven FAQ
Storm drains, grease and cold weather
Storm drains
In general, the city looks after stormwater pipes and structures in its right-of-way along city streets, those formally deeded to and accepted by the city, and those on city property. Other portions belong to private owners or homeowners' associations. Drainage problems inside the city go to 311.
Source: DWM, Stormwater Management
Grease
Grease poured down the sink cools, hardens and narrows the pipe. DWM suggests scraping grease and food scraps into a container or the trash instead, and notes that a garbage disposal does not stop grease going down the drain.
Source: DWM, Grease Management
Cold snaps
DWM says temperature swings shift the ground and stress mains and sewer lines. Running water on the street should be reported. At home: insulate pipes, disconnect hoses, drain in-ground sprinklers.
Source: DWM, cold weather message
Help with plumbing repairs
DWM's Care and Conserve Plumbing Repair Program funds non-profits that make plumbing repairs for qualifying low-income homeowners on single-family City of Atlanta water accounts. Applications go through the non-profit named on the city's page.
Nearby cities
Not in the City of Atlanta? Your utility may differ
Atlanta (city)
City of Atlanta Department of Watershed Management, water and sewer: 404-546-0311
Sandy Springs
Water from the City of Atlanta; sewer from Fulton County (North Fulton sewer emergencies 404-612-3061)
Sandy SpringsDecatur, Brookhaven, Dunwoody
DeKalb County Department of Watershed Management, emergency line 770-270-6243
BrookhavenWater where it should not be?
Get an Atlanta restoration contractor on the line
The sooner wet materials start drying, the less there usually is to tear out. One call puts you through to an independent contractor who can look at the damage, explain the work and give you their own price.
Speak with a restoration contractor
Your call is routed to an independent water, fire and mold restoration contractor that takes jobs in metro Atlanta. Describe the damage and ask what they would do first.
Call (678) 649-1321Calls may be recorded. How referrals work: disclosure. How call data is handled: privacy.