Follow these guidelines if you have received door hanger notification regarding smoke testing in your neighborhood:

The smoke should not enter into buildings unless leaks or plumbing defects exist.  The smoke that you see coming from the vent stacks on houses or from holes in the ground is:

 NON-TOXIC, HARMLESS, HAS NO ODOR, AND CREATES NO FIRE HAZARD

Please make sure that traps for all basement floor drains and other sink traps and plumbing fixtures have water in them by pouring approximately 24 ounces of water into each drain.  You can prepare your drains as soon as you receive this notice.  This preparation adds moisture to drains that are not often used, such as a basement floor drain.  This only needs to be completed one time before smoke testing begins.  You do not need to be home during the smoke test procedure. 

Smoke may also enter your building around a faulty wax ring at the base of toilets.

Should you detect smoke in your building, the room should be ventilated through an open window or door. Leave the area and ventilate well to dissipate the smoke.  Please notify the field technicians who are conducting the test should smoke enter your building.

The purpose of these tests is to locate breaks and defects in the sanitary sewer pipes that allow stormwater to enter the sanitary sewer system.  Large quantities of stormwater in the sewers use up part of the pipe capacity needed to carry wastewater.  This system overloading can cause sewage backups and increases the cost of wastewater treatment that affects each homeowner through increased sewer charges.  Testing activities should only require a few hours in your area and the information gained will be used to improve your neighborhood’s sewer services.