ANY PLUMBERS/BUILDERS?

[Saffy]

Our house is victorian terrace town house. Toliet is located in their own room towards the rear of the house and drain into main sewer system at rear of property. The bathrooms on the other hand is at the front of the house and bath/shower and sink for our house and next doors bathroom drain into the same down pipe at the front of our house along with both houses front roof guttering drainage.
This is a plastic pipe that goes further 3 foot into the ground and bends and goes god knows where (haven't found a man hole cover nearby).

The fricken thing blocks up every few months until there's about 8 foot of waste water in the pipe right up the wall and then spurts out when every it rains or bath plug is pulled etc

I have to dismantle the drain pipe and use the jet wash and pipe cleaner (and makeshift plunger) to break up the clogage that's in the ground pipe - it's all hair and thick clumps of soap and a tonne of roof silt. It takes about an hour to clear it enough for water to drain. It's worse that it next doors waste wash water too not just ours.

I am wondering if there is some sort of contraption that can be put inline with the down pipe before it enters the ground which will trap all the solids and allow easy cleaning rather than praying that I can clear the ground drain pipe?

[lambert]

i would suggest dynarod or similar come do an inspection/survey to see where it leads and if there is a blockage further down drain. that said if the bore is too small it will allow sediment to settle out if the flow is too slow, this can also be caused by the pipe being too level for too great a distance. if the pipe enters the grund on your property then you will be responsible unless you can proove it enters next doors garden and that that is where the defect is. you could i suppose put a u trap in above ground with a gause to catch larger debris but you could end up cleaning it every week.

[jay2578]

Take a look at something like "rain-mate" (IIRC), or similar in-line rain-water filters.
Technically they do have a hose connection for diverting rain water after the debris has been filtered out but this would be easy to block with silicone.
It`s easily installed into existing pipework.

Alternatively, you could fit a rodding eye at ground level and as suggested above have a survey done further down your branch to ensure the problem doesn`t start further down the line.

[Somerset Mark]

Are you sure that the pipe run is to a running drain and not just a soak away?
It was common practise to run sink drains to the roof water soakaways in such properties.
If that's the case then it'll keep on being a problem.
It would be ok if only water from sinks goes this route, however when solids enter these drains, everything stops.
Only thing to do is a camera survey, then if it's a soakaway, then you may need to divert the drain run to a foul sewer.
Good luck!
Cheers
Mark

[Saffy]

Are you sure that the pipe run is to a running drain and not just a soak away?
It was common practise to run sink drains to the roof water soakaways in such properties.
If that's the case then it'll keep on being a problem.
It would be ok if only water from sinks goes this route, however when solids enter these drains, everything stops.
Only thing to do is a camera survey, then if it's a soakaway, then you may need to divert the drain run to a foul sewer.
Good luck!
Cheers
Mark

Thanks for advise all - trying to avoid spending money on someone to come look at it at the moment.
It maybe a soak away. The garden slopes about 20 foot down to the garden wall, and then the road/footpath level is probably a good 4 to 5 foot below the level of the bottom of drain pipe. When we moved in I recall  water coming out of a hole in bottom of the garden wall but it might just a drainage thing. I am going to break up the concrete and dig down and see where the plastic pipe goes - it clearly not Victorian original and may it's been bodged to fit into an older pipe and maybe full of concrete

[LandRoger]

Where,s BOB when you need him ????????

[KevinStorr]

Only rain water should go to a soak away and not you dirty waste water.

You really must get it inspected. Have you got any emergency cover on your house insurance ?


KevStorr WM06 WA039

[Jim-Willy]

My understanding is that shared use drainage pipes underground are maintained by the water authority.  If it is a soakaway it is your issue but if the pipe is shared and goes to a sewer then it is the water companys responsibiity once it goes underground.  Give them a ring and they should be able to investigate it without it costing you anything.

[Saffy]

Thanks all. I am going to dig down (need to break concrete first)and make sure the plastic drain pipe enters correctly what ever it enters down there. When I stick the drain cleaner jet wash attachment down it doesn't go around a bend so maybe there a problem at that point. If it is beyond that then I will get professional in.