Manhole cover replacement

hoping24

Hi we have a rectangular manhole cover in our garage that is rusty on top and needs replacement. Shops sell these & water sewage company suggest doing this ourself or private company. 

Has anyone replaced theirs? 

How easy is it & whats the risk of further problems once the lid is lifted? 

FreeBear

Depending on the age of the cover, it might be as simple as taking the old one to a builders merchant and walking out with an exact match. If it is an old cast iron one, you may need to purchase a cover and frame (they usually come as a pair), cut out the old frame, and cement the new one in place. Not an easy task if you don't have the tools..

Eldi_Dos

I was going to suggest a trench cover plate as a stopgap solution till I saw the price of them.

Best to take old one to builders merchants as FB advises.

Belenus

Does it need replacing?

Can you scrape off the worst of the rust and then paint it with Hammerite direct to rust metal paint or something similar.

A small tin should cost no more than about £13 if you shop around.

hoping24

It’s got holes where the rust is. I tried to lift with the very tiny handles but some more rust fell in so could be a tricky job. 

stuart45

If it's really rusty, it may hard to remove. As the cover and frame are sold together, you might as well replace both. Worth cutting a piece of timber to go over the benching while cutting out the frame and bedding in the new one with sand/cement.
Grease up the frame before fitting the cover.

subjecttocontract

My new manhole covers came with black plastic frames so that they dont rust in place and become difficult to open.

Vannaa

I bought one off Amazon for £29, it came with a plastic surround that presumably gets cemented in. This was for a property I was renting so I just dropped the new cover in the old, very rusted metal surround.