Pennsylvania Basement Waterproofing Rules for Pittsburgh, PA Homeowners
Drying out a basement in Pittsburgh, PA can involve four public bodies: the state Attorney General, the City's permit office, the Allegheny County Health Department and whoever owns the sewer under your street. Here is who handles what, with each office's number. This is a summary of public law, not legal advice.
Quick Summary
Think in layers: the state decides who may sell home improvement work, the City which jobs need a permit, the County who may touch a pipe, and the sewer owner what may drain where.
- Attorney General. Registers contractors, each with a number starting "PA".
- PLI. Issues building permits inside the City.
- Allegheny County Health Department. Licenses master plumbers and permits sump tie-ins, backwater valves and laterals county-wide.
- Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority; ALCOSAN (Allegheny County Sanitary Authority). Carry and treat wastewater; floor-drain backups belong to the local sewer owner.
What PA and Pittsburgh Require
The County rule surprises people most. Article XV of the Allegheny County Health Department's rules (plumbing) lets only a licensed master plumber, or a journeyman or apprentice on a master's payroll, install or alter sewer, water or drain piping. Hooking a sump to a drain, fitting a backwater valve or ejector, and replacing a building drain or lateral all count, each under a County plumbing permit. An owner living in a single-family house may do the labor personally, still with a permit and inspection.
Pennsylvania has no separate waterproofing license; Allegheny County licenses plumbers, and the state registers home improvement contractors. Waterproofing is named as home improvement in the Home Improvement Consumer Protection Act (73 P.S. 517.1 and following), so a business doing it registers with the Attorney General and shows its "PA" number on ads, estimates and contracts. To check a name, search the Attorney General's online Home Improvement Contractor list or dial the HICPA HelpLine, 1-888-520-6680.
Within City limits, PLI asks for that registration before issuing a residential building permit for an alteration. New construction, and alterations to a rental or investment property, also call for PLI's own General Contractor license, which belongs to the permit holder. PLI's general line is 412-255-2175.
The act calls anyone who offers or agrees to do home improvement a contractor, so Basement Waterproofing Pittsburgh PA does neither. It is a free referral service with no state registration or HIC number, writes no bids, signs nothing, does no plumbing and never names a contractor. One independent local contractor receives your request, visits and prepares the estimate. Contractors may pay the site for advertising, currently as a free trial; no money or gift passes between this site and you.
Get It in Writing
A home improvement job priced over $500 needs a written contract signed by you and the contractor. Before signing, find these five things on the page.
- The registration number. The contractor's "PA" number, matching the Attorney General's search.
- Two dates. When work starts and when it should be done.
- The scope. What the job covers, such as which walls get a drain.
- One total. The full contract price, not just a per-foot rate.
- Your cancel notice. Written notice of your right to cancel.
Payment has limits too. Past $5,000, the deposit generally may not exceed one-third of the price, plus special-order materials the contract lists, and nothing may be collected before both of you sign. Locally, add the sump's discharge point, the PLI permit holder, the plumber for any tie-in, proof of liability and workers' comp coverage, and whether the warranty transfers to a buyer.
When You Can Back Out
HICPA generally gives you 3 business days after signing a home improvement contract to cancel, and the contract has to say so. A sale of $25 or more made at your front door generally carries 3 full business days to cancel under the Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law. Emergency work can be an exception, and penalties climb when the person cheated is 60 or older.
Cancel in writing and keep proof of delivery. Unsettled disputes can go to the Attorney General's Bureau of Consumer Protection through the HICPA line, 1-888-520-6680.
Programs Before You Pay
About 75% of the City's sewer system is combined, according to Pittsburgh Water, so rain and household wastewater ride in the same pipes. In a surge, water can climb back through a floor drain, which is a backup rather than seepage; Pittsburgh Water takes those emergency calls around the clock at 412-255-2423 (press 1). The whole sewer lateral is the owner's to maintain, while Pittsburgh Water keeps up the main and the small joint where they meet, the wye.
Selling a City house takes an Evidence of Compliance Certificate from Pittsburgh Water. A plumber or general contractor runs a dye test, and any gutter, yard or driveway drain feeding a sanitary sewer gets corrected first. The certificate lasts 3 years; combined-sewer areas skip the test. The Dye Testing Team is at 412-255-2443, and if dye exits a public main, Pittsburgh Water handles that repair (PublicSource).
The stormwater fee follows a property's hard surfaces. A rain garden or underground system may lower it, a rain barrel of 50 gallons or more earns a one-time $40 credit, and income-qualified customers get an 85% reduction through PGH2O Cares, 412-255-2457. Those credits are Pittsburgh Water's to grant.
Outside the City, ALCOSAN also treats wastewater for 83 municipalities but leaves backups to whoever owns the local sewer. Where a home's drains face sewage backing up from the public line, County plumbing rules require protection, typically a backwater valve fitted by a licensed master plumber under a County permit. Most suburbs bar sumps and downspouts from the sanitary line.
On insurance, sewer backups are often left out unless an endorsement was added, seepage is commonly excluded, and a state geologist told PublicSource that land movement is almost always excluded. The state DEP says homeowners policies usually skip mine subsidence and runs its own Mine Subsidence Insurance program, with an address map, at 1-800-922-1678. Your insurer or agent answers policy questions; this site has no part in insurance.
Who Issues Permits
Foundation, excavation and retaining-wall work in Pittsburgh generally needs a PLI permit, and steep or landslide-prone lots may need geotechnical review; the contractor confirms permits with PLI. On hillsides, City Zoning (412-255-2241) may want a geotechnical professional's report for retaining walls, additions or cuts on slopes over 25%. Plumbing goes to the County: office 412-578-8123, permits 412-578-8036. Call 811 before digging or clearing a sewer line.
Each suburb has its own code office and sale rules.
- Mt. Lebanon, PA. New or replaced subfloor drainage needs a building permit and an inspection before it's covered; the sale dye test covers interior French drains and sumps. Inspection Office: 412-343-3408.
- Baldwin Borough, PA. Sellers need a Dye Test & Sewer Camera Inspection certificate, good for 5 years. Building Inspections: 412-882-9600, ext. 1715.
- Penn Hills, PA. Ask Code Enforcement, 412-342-1192, what a sale requires; sewer questions go to Water Pollution Control, 412-798-2171.
- Shaler Township, PA. The Township does its own dye or smoke test before each sale; apply 14 or more days ahead. Building & Zoning: 412-486-9700.
- Carnegie, PA. A licensed plumber's dye test is required to sell or refinance. Code office: 412-279-3787.
Common Questions
Who puts in a backwater valve in Allegheny County?
A licensed master plumber, working under a County plumbing permit from the Allegheny County Health Department. It is plumbing work, separate from waterproofing. For backups on the public side, contact Pittsburgh Water in the City or your own municipality elsewhere.
Is passing a dye test the same thing as a dry basement?
No. A dye test shows whether stormwater from gutters, drains or a sump reaches the sanitary sewer. Groundwater pressing through a wall is a different problem. A sump line moved outdoors, clear of the sanitary line, can help with both.
Official Sources
All read 2026-10-10; laws and program terms change, so check the live page.
- HICPA, 73 P.S. 517.1 and following; UTPCPL, 73 P.S. 201-7. Contracts, deposits and cancel rights.
- attorneygeneral.gov home improvement pages. Registration and the search.
- pittsburghpa.gov PLI and Zoning pages. Permits, licenses, hillside review.
- alleghenycounty.us ACHD Plumbing Program; ACHD Article XV (ecode360). Plumbing permits and backflow.
- pgh2o.com sewer, pipe-ownership, dye-test and stormwater pages; alcosan.org. Sewers and sale certificates.
- pa.gov DEP Mine Subsidence Insurance. The state program.
Request an Estimate
With the paperwork sorted out, a written number for your own basement is the useful next step. Send the short request form, and one independent contractor working around Pittsburgh will reach out, look at the space and put the scope, the price and its PA registration number in writing. Want a ballpark first? Try the cost calculator or the wet basement checker.