Help! Blocked drains.

Kaz2904

Just a quick update. I was able to clear the drain quite quickly, it was easier this time, probably because it was fullish and had the weight there to help swoosh it all away. After I had done this, I got the hose and washed out the drain again. When I got around to the back of the house to put the hose away, I thought that I'd just double check that the rear drain had cleared.
This is when I realised what probably caused the problem this time.... When I lifted the cover, my heart sank as it was still full. I lifted it right off and realised that all of the wet had drained but there was an awful lot of sediment. I think that some of this must have dropped off and then moved down to the front of the drain and blocked it. So I spent a further half hour pressure washing all the sediment away from the rear manhole. It is now nice and clean. Hopefully, this will be the end of our problems but if not, at least it is clear for now!
So, moral of the story is, remember to clean all of the bits of blocked drain that you have access to. It might save you the stress and worry of having to do it all again 4 weeks later

netti

This sounds so much like our experience last month. 3rd of our 3 manholes full to the top. Good old FiL (74years young!) came to the rescue with rods and managed to unblock it, but excavated loads of those wipe things which I have never bought and certainly wouldn't flush. Had a word with the 2 neighbours attached to ours and they swore blind it wasn't them :cool:

Next day checking to see if all was still ok and remembered we have a land drain which overflows in to the sewer - all backed up in there as well yeuuchh!

All nice and clean now, and planning to check regularly in future to spot problems

woodbutcher_2

Me and my mate have just had a job of shifting a manhole to accomodate an extension and it just happened to be blocked solid when we went to do the job.It was a case of getting on our waterproofs and blasting away with a hose pipe to liquify the contents as best we could,all thew time plunging drain rods in and out.After a good while,there was a bubbling and the mass dropped about halfway down the manhole as the stuff at the bottom became liquid enough to pass through.Carried on again and after a while,the same thing happened with the rest of it and it cleared.It was then a case of giving everything a good hosing to clean it all out from both ends as there was another manhole down the drive.Done a few of these in my time as a builder but i have to say it is becoming more common now as people will insist on throwing anything and everything down the toilet and forgetting about it.Disposable nappies and face wipes seem to cause the most problems.Face wipes will not dissolve in water like toilet tissue will.

I give my manholes a good clean out every spring and try to make sure that people don't throw too much stuff down the loo.This failed at xmas when the 2 student daughters and assorted friends came home for the holidays.After they went back i noticed the drains were blocked and had the lovely task of unblocking them of all the detritus they had chucked down there including some wrapping paper and enough toilet roll to start recycling factory.

Bloody students.:laugh:

Kaz2904

Wrapping paper? Oh my lord! Where the wipes in our drains came from I'll never know because I don't buy them. It's very odd! The littlies are too big for wipes and too little to buy their own.
I do think that perhaps it's the new flushes on the loos not giving the woosh that's needed to get rid of the paper though.

ormus

can you clear something up for me. do you have two manholes?
it wasnt explained too well in the OP.

or i misread it. (not unkown).

woodbutcher_2

Kaz2904 wrote: »

Wrapping paper? Oh my lord! Where the wipes in our drains came from I'll never know because I don't buy them. It's very odd! The littlies are too big for wipes and too little to buy their own.
I do think that perhaps it's the new flushes on the loos not giving the woosh that's needed to get rid of the paper though.

Yep,don't know why anyone would throw wrapping paper down the loo but to be fair it could have been anyone in any of the houses that share the sewer in my cul-de-sac and that's the problem and explains where the mystery face wipes are coming from.Probably someone else up the street from you.

BTW,i've just been watering the garden and swilling the paths.While i was at it,i lifted the manhole cover and gave it a blast out.Took about 5 mins and i would recommend people do this whenever they are pottering in the garden as i do.Prevention is better than cure.Give all the gulleys a blast out too,especially any that have a kitchen sink and/or washer draining into them.Grease,discarded food on plates and wash powder can soon block a drain and the smell can be awful.

I know a guy who earns a fortune unblocking peoples drains and it's usually a simple task but one people don't think about until it stops working and the toilet won't flush.