Outside Drain Overflowing
Water rising in a gully or inspection chamber, sometimes with foul water backing up indoors..
Water rising in a gully or inspection chamber, sometimes with foul water backing up indoors.
What is actually going on
Water rising in a gully or inspection chamber, sometimes with foul water backing up indoors.
The realistic causes, in order
A blockage downstream of the chamber, affecting everything upstream of it Root ingress or a displaced joint in older clay drainage Surface water and foul water wrongly combined, overwhelming the run in heavy rain
What we test on site
Which chambers are full and which are clear, which locates the blockage between them Whether the problem is on the private drain or the shared sewer Whether it repeats, which points at a structural defect rather than a blockage
Get an overflowing outside drain diagnosed properly
Where the fault is on a shared sewer your water company may be responsible, and we'll tell you when that's the case rather than charging for their work.
Questions we get asked
Where does an overflowing outside drain usually start in the pipework?
A blockage downstream of the chamber, affecting everything upstream of it
What normally puts an overflowing outside drain right?
Where the fault is on a shared sewer your water company may be responsible, and we'll tell you when that's the case rather than charging for their work.
Is it safe to keep using the system with an overflowing outside drain?
Foul water is a health hazard. Avoid contact, keep children and pets away, and wash thoroughly if you have handled anything contaminated.