CCTV Drain Survey reveals collapsed drain. Help.

luckypotato · 10 January 2018 at 12:01PM

My partner and I are in the process of buying a house. It's a 1930s semi. Homebuyers report recommended a CCTV suvey of the drains as there are some large trees near the house. As well as some minor cracks, and some roots (not deemed severe), the survey uncovered a collapsed drain? It says...

'Collapsed drain/sewer: 0% Cross sectional
area loss - Grade 5
pipe dropping/collapsed against the flow.
System holding water'

I'm still awaiting the DVD to take a look.

Been advised that as the drains are so deep at nearly metres, it'd be easier and more cost effective to lay a whole new system costing just over £2500. Are there any alternatives?

Shall we ask the sellers to fix this or ask for some money off the purchase price? To be honest I'm not sure I want the hassle of actually excavating, etc. We don't want to have to pull out as we love the house.

Aylesbury_Duck · 10 January 2018 at 12:04PM

If you ask the sellers to fix it, they will probably do so at the cheapest possible rate. Would you accept that? It would make me nervous.

I would get an estimate for the job and adjust your offer accordingly. That way you have control over the quality of the job and the funds to do it, assuming the vendors agree. If they won't accept a lower offer, you'll have to decide whether to swallow the cost or walk away.

Davesnave · 10 January 2018 at 12:19PM

luckypotato wrote: »

Shall we ask the sellers to fix this or ask for some money off the purchase price? To be honest I'm not sure I want the hassle of actually excavating, etc. We don't want to have to pull out as we love the house.

You want the money to do this properly, in your own time, using a reputable contractor of your choice. Repairing failed 1930s drains is a bad second option.

What 'hassle' is there in excavating if someone else is doing the digging? Do you mean that it will involve damaging potentially expensive to replace hard landscaping? Can you get a digger in? Did you have plans to alter the garden anyway?

If there is likely to be damage to lanscaping, costs to replace it must be factored-in, but if a bit of garden disruption is too much to contemplate, then you don't really love the house.

P.S. Someone drove a digger through our garden three or four years ago and excavated to a depth of 1.2 metres to lay a new septic tank pipe for us. No one would know now.

kerri_gt · 10 January 2018 at 12:25PM

Get some quotes to have the work done and negotiate that off the price if possible (if the vendor refuses then you have to weigh up how much you love the house knowing those works need to be done and will cost in addition to the purchase price).

These kind of works are not unusual for older properties and ones with trees. Although it will need arranging / doing, it's far less invasive overall to the property than major internal works.

luckypotato · 10 January 2018 at 12:26PM

Ah Davesnave - you are a genius! Yes, we were planning to alter the garden anyway (in fact totally landscape it) so you make a good point. And yes, I suppose having the freedom to choose the best contractor to do the job is vital rather than getting the sellers to fix this 'on the cheap.' Many thanks.

We do love the house and got it at a good price so think we could swallow the cost of the repairs if needed.

caprikid1 · 10 January 2018 at 12:47PM

I had the same situation , similar value quote.

Showed the Vendors the report they deducted it from the house price no question.

House was over £700K and been on the market for a while though.

EachPenny · 10 January 2018 at 2:16PM

'Collapsed drain/sewer: 0% Cross sectional
area loss - Grade 5
pipe dropping/collapsed against the flow.
System holding water'

That description, plus 1930's house, implies the drain/sewer is constructed using spigot and collar clay pipes. These were jointed by inserting the spigot of one pipe into the collar of another and then filling the gap with various different materials. If the joint wasn't made properly then the spigot can 'drop' within the collar of the adjacent pipe leading to a 'step' and a place where water can stand. In theory this is a problem because the standing water can allow a build up of solids, but in practice it probably isn't an issue.

"0% cross sectional are loss" suggests the pipe is still intact and hasn't collapsed, so the flow capacity is unaffected. It is quite possible the pipe has been like that since the 1930's, and could still do the job perfectly ok for another 80+ years.

If it was a single pipe length and there was no indication that leakage was causing a problem, then many water companies wouldn't consider it worth carrying out a repair. Excavating to do a repair disturbs the ground and can lead to further problems in the future.

You really need to take a look at the video yourself to get a better idea of condition, but unless the problem is bad, or you are planning on putting expensive new hard landscaping above the drain, then I probably wouldn't go to the expense of having the repair carried out now.

If the pipe is very deep, or access for mechanical excavation is limited, then one option is to use a no-dig repair technique. For example, depending on the type of fault, repairs can be done by inserting a liner into the pipe from the nearest manhole.

The other thing to check - if you haven't - is whether this pipe is the responsibility of the householder, or if it is an adopted sewer the water company is responsible for.

Rambosmum · 10 January 2018 at 2:16PM

luckypotato wrote: »

We do love the house and got it at a good price so think we could swallow the cost of the repairs if needed.

This is what we did. We could have gone back and forward arguing re a few grand for a rewire and repointing, but felt what was the point, it was pennies compared to the asking price and the house needed other work anyway and we loved it.
ETA: The house was very popular and we didn't want to rock the boat.

luckypotato · 10 January 2018 at 2:30PM

Thank you all.

EachPenny you have given me a lot to think about. I definitely think a DVD viewing is in order. Will hopefully get that in the next couple of days. Will be taking all of your points on board then making a decision.

Davesnave · 10 January 2018 at 4:05PM

EachPenny knows more about drains than me, but the implication of my post was that the drain is working for the vendors, so you have time to consider your options before dealing with it, or not.

While there may be no harm in presenting the report and seeking a modest reduction, if you think you've already pushed the vendors to their limits, then it would be wise not to upset them or lose the house just for this.

EachPenny · 10 January 2018 at 4:24PM

Davesnave wrote: »

EachPenny knows more about drains than me, but the implication of my post was that the drain is working for the vendors, so you have time to consider your options before dealing with it, or not.

While there may be no harm in presenting the report and seeking a modest reduction, if you think you've already pushed the vendors to their limits, then it would be wise not to upset them or lose the house just for this.

I agree, that was the point I was making in my post, so apologies to luckypotato if that wasn't clear. If the DVD confirms the problems are minor and limited in nature then there is little point losing the house over it. Once you've got the house then you can decide whether it is necessary to get any work done - a decision that will possibly be guided as much by other plans (e.g. hard landscaping) you have for the house than the actual condition of the pipe.

The 'wildcard' is if the pipe is the responsibility of the water company - in which case I'd say nothing to the vendor and then get the water company to repair it once I've moved in.

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CCTV Drain Survey reveals collapsed drain. Help.

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