Anyone know how much a CCTV drain survey costs?

af2909_2

Hi

I'm in Watford, what should I expect to pay for a CCTV drain survey?

Thanks in advance for your help :money::D

smileytiger

Have you got a problem with the drain & is it covered on your house insurance??
I didn't realise mine was covered til i read the small print after a friend pointed me in that direction.
We ended up having a whole new drain laid and the old one capped off after the CCTV survey confirmed the problem was under neighbours house and so our waste water couldn't get to mains.
I only had to pay insurance excess of £100 - saved me ££££'s
Good luck

af2909_2

smileytiger wrote: »

Have you got a problem with the drain & is it covered on your house insurance??
I didn't realise mine was covered til i read the small print after a friend pointed me in that direction.
We ended up having a whole new drain laid and the old one capped off after the CCTV survey confirmed the problem was under neighbours house and so our waste water couldn't get to mains.
I only had to pay insurance excess of £100 - saved me ££££'s
Good luck

Unfortunately not, as my insurance company said it's a pre existing condition (as it was foliage growing out of the rainwater drain) - do you know how much the survey was roughly?

hotpot1000

Last month I had a survey on a house I am buying, the surveyor mentioned I might like to double check with a camera survey in the drains which would cost £80-120, Im in Lancashire

Gonzo33

hotpot1000 wrote: »

Last month I had a survey on a house I am buying, the surveyor mentioned I might like to double check with a camera survey in the drains which would cost £80-120, Im in Lancashire

Mine was £150 in Hampshire, but did include the cost of a drain sleeve (I think that is what they are called).

As an aside is it definately your drain to maintain or is it the local councils. I can't remember the exact date but the law has changed recently on drain pipes.

Mr_Thrifty

From what I've seen on shows like "house of horrors", it usually ends up costing about £20,000.

smileytiger

Sorry i couldn't be more specific - but you're probably looking at a couple of hundred quid i would think.
Get plenty of quotes and haggle if you can!

eddddy

The "survey" just means they put a camera down the drain to have a look to see what the problem is. The big cost tends to come from fixing the problem.

In my case, the charges ramped up like this (fortunately my insurers were paying):

Drain company arrive to do a cctv survey, drain is currently blocked.
Charge 1: unblocking drain (so that they can do the cctv survey)
Charge 2: cctv survey (identifies tree roots in drain)
Charge 3: use root cutter to cut out roots
Charge 4: another cctv survey to see if roots have damaged drain (yes they have)

So the headline price of cctv survey for £70 has turned into a bill of maybe £300 so far (for about 2 hours work).

Charge 5: lining the drain - plus some repairs (a 2 man / 2 day job). I don't know the cost of this - it was negotiated with the insurance co.

If I was paying for the job, I would ask lots of "how much would it cost if" questions in advance:

How much would it cost if there are roots in the drain... if the roots need to be cut out... if the drain needs to be lined... if the drain has collapsed... etc. To get a better feel for who would be best value overall.

Or if you feel adventurous, it looks like you could buy your own drain cctv for under £30. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/LASERWARE-5-Metre-USB-Drain-Camera-LED-Endoscope-Waterproof-5m-CCTV-Inspection-/230750648951?pt=UK_DIY_Materials_Plumbing_MJ&hash=item35b9cf7a77

Maybe you could take a look first. It might give you a better idea of what to ask the drain company and/or help you challenge them if they say lots of work is needed.

Also, it was suggested to me that a local general builder might be a cheaper option for repairing/relaying drains than a specialist drain company (as they spend less money on TV adverts and brightly coloured vans). But, then again, it was a local general builder that suggested it. And if drain lining is the best option, a general builder won't have the specialist equipment for that.

(By the way, I'm not recommending the particular cctv drain camera from ebay. I don't know anything about it - it may be rubbish!)