If you’ve had builders in doing repair work, renovations or an extension, you’ll know that building sites are not generally very tidy places! It’s possible that rubbish, rubble, mud, or sand can inadvertently fall into your drains. That’s a cause for concern in itself, but if what’s gone down the drain is concrete or cement, once that sets it can obviously cause a major issue. Builders or other trades should definitely NOT be deliberately getting rid of plaster, mortar, grout, paint residue, and other assorted building waste down your drains! Apart from possibly blocking your drains up, it could contaminate the groundwater and have an environmental impact. So don’t allow your builders to wash off their tools and mixers where clumps of concrete will be washed into your drains. Layers of deposited concrete can build up and over time, reduce the diameter of the pipe, slowing down the rate at which water flows through and making it more likely that the pipe will get blocked.
There’s also the chance that builders working on neighbouring properties may have caused a blockage in any shared drains, so keep a close eye if there’s any work going on next door. Worth noting as well that shared drains are now the responsibility of the local water company rather than individual householders.
The root cause of any blockage would need to be investigated, and the easiest way to do that is to undertake a CCTV survey. This allows us to see exactly what is blocking your drains and where, without digging them up. We could then use high pressure jetting to clear any blockage, and make any repairs, again in many cases without the need for digging everything up.
So if you’re having building work done and your drains have stopped flowing freely, give us a call at Happy Drains and we’ll come and investigate further. The number you need is 0800 849 8099.