After dealing with sewer issues for a few months now, we finally have a reason for the constant backups: the sewer line goes UP to meet the city line. Not ideal, I'm to understand. We have 70 feet of pipe on our property that is graded properly, and then in the last 5 feet, on the easement, the pipe goes up (which is where solids gather/get caught/clogged and back up the line). So: Plumbers cannot fix this because they can't work on city property. The city, apparently, does not want to fix this because they're not really sure how to do it without redoing the entire sewer line for the neighborhood, which they're obviously not going to do for one person. They said (because they came out and talked to the plumber) that if this was a simple root issue or broken pipe they'd fix it in a second, but they're not really sure how to fix this and so are washing their hands of it. The plumbers have proposed the only fix they can think of--a grinder thingy that will mush up any solid waste so there's nothing to clog up the line--but the plumber isn't super happy with it and says it'll be a pain to keep clean, keep working, maintained, etc. Also fairly (very) expensive for what's essentially a stopgap measure. My question: What is the likelihood of the city fixing this if enough pressure is applied? I know this can potentially be a big project for them but the problem is 100% theirs and they've as much admitted it (although not in writing). Has anyone had experience with something like this? Would phone calls help? Appeals to a higher city council? If I bug them enough about it, call them out every time the line gets clogged, will they eventually fix it just to shut me up? Worst case scenario question: has anyone had any experience with these grinder systems, and are they as bad as I'm fearing? The plumber said they attract bugs, need to be serviced yearly, need to be cleaned a few times a year, etc. They also said it's a good idea to get a second one to have just in case the first one breaks randomly, which wasn't a very reassuring thing to hear. Has anyone had any good experiences with these? I am in Texas (DFW area) if that helps at all. Thanks everyone!