The hygienic consequences of this system were serious. This was particularly noticeable in Wiesbaden due to the warm thermal water, which provided particularly good living conditions for pathogens. The water-powered grain mills located below the city in the direction of the Rhine spread the pathogens far and wide and were the biggest source of infection for the population. A severe typhus epidemic in 1885 marked the turning point for Wiesbaden.

Immediately afterwards, a separate city-wide sewer network, independent of the stream sewers, was initiated. In principle, this is still in operation today and has merely been adapted to the growth of the city. The approximately 800 kilometers of municipal sewers collect domestic and commercial wastewater, rainwater and water from the streams as well as thermal water and transport it to the main sewage treatment plant. The central structure of the sewer system is the Salzbach Canal, which was built in 1907 between the Warme Damm and the main sewage treatment plant and carries stream water and wastewater separately.