Blocked drain? (Photo)

ripplyuk

There is a small drain at the front of my house with a downspout. That drain has been overflowing every time it rains for the last few months. In heavy rain the water now fills the front paths and part of the garden. It’s a council house so I reported this and they sent a contractor out who did nothing. Many phone calls/emails/formal complaint later, I’ve given up. All were ignored. I then asked the water board to come out and they wouldn’t help because it’s a council house but they said that it’s normal for a drain like that to always be filled with water and that it’s to stop smells. Is this true? The drain was never full before. The guy said ‘it’s the same as a toilet with a U-bend’ but this is just a rainwater drain from the guttering. 

For the last few weeks, there has also been water appearing at the back of the house beside the pipe for the bathroom. I don’t know what it’s called so I took a photo. It happens every time I flush the loo or have a bath. Could these two drain problems be linked? I’ve also noticed that the humidity inside the house has increased dramatically since these drainage problems started. Any advice would be appreciated. I know nothing about these things and I’m not sure what to do. 

FreeBear

With the manhole cover so close to all three pipes, I'd guess that they are all connected. You need to lift the cover and see how much water has collected in the chamber (it will smell, so clothes peg on the nose).

Flush the loo and check to see if the water runs away quickly in the channels at the bottom of the chamber. If it doesn't, then you have a blockage down there and the (underground) pipes will need "rodding" or jetting - A job for a drainage contractor.

stuart45

The front gulley should have water in the trap, but not overflow.
The back one from the toilet is worse as it's more of a health issue. You could lift the manhole cover and have a look what's going on. Definitely shouldn't be leaking like that.

ripplyuk

Thank you both. I really don’t want to lift that manhole cover. I feel ill at the thought of it. There could be raw sewage or a dead rat down there. The overflowing rainwater drain is at the front of the house and this bathroom drain is at the back but it seems a bit of a coincidence that they are both now overflowing so I think they must be connected somehow. 

How much is a drainage contractor likely to cost? 

stuart45

There could be a connection if it's a combined sewer and it's blocked further down the line. However you could get on to enviromental health about the sewer pipe, if the council won't fix it.

NSG666

Phone the council and tell them the soil pipe is leaking - see what they say to that. Don't get involved with the rainwater pipe at this stage as the soil pipe (poop) is far more serious and important than rain water.

ripplyuk

@NSG666 I already have. Several times. They keep hanging up on me and ignoring my emails. 

Environmental health says they don’t deal with council houses. I’m pretty sure that’s not true but they aren’t interested either. 

NSG666

ripplyuk said:

@NSG666 I already have. Several times. They keep hanging up on me and ignoring my emails. 

Environmental health says they don’t deal with council houses. I’m pretty sure that’s not true but they aren’t interested either. 

Try contacting your Ward Councillor for help - they tend to know the right people.

stuart45

Can you get into the council office to see them face to face. Tell if you have to pay someone they will get the bill stopped from your rent. 
Enviromental health have got the power to put pressure on any home owner to repair a faulty sewer pipe. It can affect neighbours as well, as it soaks into the ground over time.