Plumber fixed an issue but created another

johnny182

Hi all. Apologies if this is not the right forum to post my question.

I recently purchased a house which had water leaking from the shower tray into the room below. It wasn't too bad but I could see the water marks in the ceiling. Since I'm not from the area, I got a few plumber recommendations from the local Facebook group. Anyway, the plumber came over and diagnosed that the issue was with the waste pipe - basically he had to cut a hole in the ceiling to be able to replace it. I had to wait until the day after to test the shower as the new seal had to be dry. This is when I noticed that the shower tray was getting flooded a few seconds after turning on the shower. By the way, this wasn't an issue before the new waste pipe was fitted.

I sent him a message and he came to check the problem. He told me it was a blockage in the flexible waste pipe - he tried using a powerful vacuum/blower and a plunger but neither fixed the problem. He then said I'd need to use a pipe unblocker fluid which I bought off Amazon (HG Drain and Plug Unblocker). I ended up using a whole bottle, leaving it overnight and it did not work at all. 

I've messaged him again and he's still adamant that the blockage is in the ridges of the flexible waste but it's hard to understand why if it wasn't there before. He's now become difficult to contact and says he will come back to check it out once he 'has spare time to get down' and not providing a specific date.

I'm just looking for advice on what to do next, please. I'm obviously not a plumber so I can't tell if he did something wrong or not but the fact is that I still don't have a working shower. I can't shake the feeling that the plumber must have done something wrong when installing the waste pipe which is why the water is no longer draining as it was before. The baths drains less than a meter from the shower tray and it works just fine.

Any ideas?

Thanks!

Aylesbury_Duck

Have I got this right - he replaced the waste pipe and it now has a blockage?  I'd have thought the most likely cause is that the way he's fitted it means it's kinked/pinched.  How else could a brand new waste pipe be instantly blocked?

Write to him asking him to make arrangements to fix it within the next 14 days, and if he doesn't, you'll engage another plumber and pass the costs onto him if it turns out that the blockage problem is a result of his faulty workmanship.

bris

He fixed the waste pipe to stop a leak, so there is no more leak and the job is done. The blockage was obviously another problem as changing a fitting doesn't cause a blockage.

Get a specialist like dyno rod, out they have cameras to find the problem. You will find a local company cheaper than them though, The one I use is a local guy and he charges £80 for the first hour with no more fees if it's fixed in that time, the £40 per hour after that. 

Never had it go over an hour though. Dyno rod charge about £150 for the first hour.

johnny182

bris said:

He fixed the waste pipe to stop a leak, so there is no more leak and the job is done. The blockage was obviously another problem as changing a fitting doesn't cause a blockage.

Get a specialist like dyno rod, out they have cameras to find the problem. You will find a local company cheaper than them though, The one I use is a local guy and he charges £80 for the first hour with no more fees if it's fixed in that time, the £40 per hour after that. 

Never had it go over an hour though. Dyno rod charge about £150 for the first hour.

bris, what if there is no blockage? I'm beginning to think the waste trap he installed is rubbish and it's not allowing enough water to flow through. There was no blockage before he fitted the new waste trap so why would I suddenly have one now?

Aylesbury_Duck

There clearly is a blockage, but whether it's "user error", i.e. something that was already in your pipework and has 'shifted downstream' to block the pipework between the new waste pipe and the soil stack, or a kink/pinch in the new waste, is what needs to be determined.  Is the ceiling fixed?  Can you see the new waste pipe?

johnny182

Aylesbury_Duck said:

There clearly is a blockage, but whether it's "user error", i.e. something that was already in your pipework and has 'shifted downstream' to block the pipework between the new waste pipe and the soil stack, or a kink/pinch in the new waste, is what needs to be determined.  Is the ceiling fixed?  Can you see the new waste pipe?

Yes, he already patched up the ceiling so I'd have to open it again and unfortunately I don't have the expertise or the tools to do it.

m0bov

Did he test it? Did he show you it working? I'd say he's just gunked it in plumber mait or its fitted badly. He could have just blocked it up and done a runner....who knows.

You'd need to get another plumber in. Telling you to use sink unblocker AFTER he had tried to fix it sounds bad,

Once another plumber has fixed it, send him the bill if it was his fault. Make sure you take pics and the plumber can put in writing what he's found.

The ceiling shouldn't have been repaired until the drainage was tested.