Basement floor drains

[jtfoxman]

plastic? I'd say 3 inch - cast iron four inch.

Sorry it's 2 1/2" forgot the half.

[jtfoxman]

Your floor drains may go to a storm sewer and not the sanitary sewer.

Given what you just said about water coming from a clean out and an old basement bathroom but not the floor drains I would suspect this.

I would also suspect that your sanitary sewer may have a blockage or retriction causing this water to appear. I would check that ASAP.

I had a little water in the basement the other day and it smelt a little sweet. Would that be sewage?

But it only does it when it rains. That should have nothing to do with the sanitary sewer just the storm drains. I have 2 gutter downspouts connected to drains on the outside of the house, would they be sewer or storm.

[Redwood]

Like Lazy Pup said floor drains go into a grey area and often times gutter drains join them. The latest thinking in many areas is to separate combined sewers into separate sanitary and storm sewers. This lessens the load put on water treatment plants during heavy rains. Lessening the likelyhood of plant overflows. Storm water does not recieve treatment.

The skinny is we can't tell from here!

If you had some sweet water in your basement I would get your drains looked at ASAP. The person that you hire to clean them should be able to give you some advice, as to whether or not they are combined or, separate.