Sewage is coming up through our floor drain in Campbell. Who do we call first?
West Valley Sanitation District asks to be called first, day or night, and checks its main at no added charge because the service is part of the sewer charge on the property tax bill. If there is a property-line cleanout, its crew also clears the lower lateral to the main. If the problem is on the house side, or there is no cleanout, the owner hires a plumber. Hold off running water until the backup is cleared.
Our Campbell rental is owned by an LLC. Can we pull the plumbing permit ourselves?
No. Campbell's trade-permit guide says a limited liability company cannot be an owner-builder, so the water heater, water line or sewer line permit has to come from a licensed contractor holding the C-36 Plumbing class. The guide lets owners of single-family homes act as owner-builders under certain conditions, after signing disclosure forms, but an LLC never qualifies.
Our two-story house needs a backwater valve. Does the upstairs plumbing have to be rerouted?
Not necessarily. Fixtures above the trigger level may not drain through the valve, which usually means separating the upstairs lines, but for existing homes of two or more stories Campbell accepts a sewer-backup alarm instead. Submit the alarm plan with the permit application; adding it after the permit is issued brings a revision fee.
Is Campbell's water hard enough to scale up a water heater quickly?
Less so than in much of San Jose Water's system. Its source map says Campbell typically receives water bought from Valley Water, which averaged 99 ppm of hardness, about 5.8 grains per gallon, in the 2025 water quality report, against an average of 288 ppm for the company's well water. Sources do shift at times with supply and drought, so it is worth asking a plumber what the tank shows.
How soon does an inspector come once we request one in MGO?
Campbell says a request submitted before midnight is set for the following business day unless the inspector says otherwise. Inspections run from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekdays. Put a morning or afternoon preference in the notes, along with the name of whoever will meet the inspector on site.
