Please help - Extension done over private drains

Lets_fly

Hi,
We are considering purchasing a property with an extension(kitchen) over a private drain. there is no access from the kitchen to drain but the manhole is in the garage  and I dont think it has been re-routed.
1)should the seller have written approval for this extension?( it was done in 2011). 
2)Is it something to worry about that drains are under the extended kitchen?
3) If the private manhole is in the garage then its something I need not worry if something goes wrong

I am a first-time buyer and am stressed about this

housebuyer143

Is it actually private or is it shared with the neighbours? So runs from their garden, into yours etc?

If you actually meant it's shared then when was it done in 2011? Do you know the month because I'm sure that's the year that the water board adopted the shared drains so it might have been private and therefore okay to build over when it was built, or they might have needed build over agreement. 

MikeJXE

I can't see what the problem is unless  there is actually a problem with the drain

Many years ago I worked in construction, new housing sites mainly

A house with bathroom or toilet at the back a main sewer at the front, the drain would run under the floor instead of going round the house. 

Section62

Lets_fly said:

We are considering purchasing a property with an extension(kitchen) over a private drain. there is no access from the kitchen to drain but the manhole is in the garage  and I dont think it has been re-routed.

Can you post some pictures, or else a sketch plan, showing the layout and where you think the drain and manhole are.

Albermarle

It is one of those issues that comes up during a survey, but once you move in you will probably never think about it again.

AlexMac

Agree; all our toilets, kitchen and bathroom waste decant into a chamber under an inspection hatch cover (in non PC language, a rectangular manhole!) in what used to be a garage. 

We converted this to a habitable room with an en suite, and ran a suspended floor topped with engineered wood planks over the (now newly fitted airtight) hatch. We could remove a couple of these and access the liftable hatch, but will probably never need to. The Council Building Control officer who supervised the conversion never even mentioned this as an issue. 

Like you, all this internal sub-floor waste water and soil runs a few metres to another inspection hatch in the garden; private not shared, so down to us. This has a 2 metre long narrow link pipe to the public sewer which is prone to block with wads of bog paper, and fill with unmentionable every couple of years but the insurer’s plumber can rod it clear in minutes… then the internal hatch empties too. 

So as your configuration seems similar to ours, I’d put your mind at rest and sleep (and 5h17) easy . But consider cheap home emergency cover with someone like AVIVA, who, for a few quid on our house insurance, offer brilliant service from a Company called Homeserve?

robatwork

You can get an insurance policy which covers this

Lets_fly

housebuyer143 said:

Is it actually private or is it shared with the neighbours? So runs from their garden, into yours etc?

If you actually meant it's shared then when was it done in 2011? Do you know the month because I'm sure that's the year that the water board adopted the shared drains so it might have been private and therefore okay to build over when it was built, or they might have needed build over agreement. 

Sorry for the late reply. Speaking to the house neighbours, they said that the manhole in the garage is private and they have their manhole in front of their garage.
So I guess its not shared.. 
The seller has not disclosed about the kitchen extension in the property information form. But I can clearly see comparing other houses which are build same that it has been extended. I assume they don't have planning permission .
Not sure what to do

Lets_fly

As you can see(Attached) the kitchen is built over the previous drains. After speaking to neighbours  they said that they have moved the drains to garden and built the kitchen extension and mentioned this house they did not move.

FreeBear

AlexMac said:

Agree; all our toilets, kitchen and bathroom waste decant into a chamber under an inspection hatch cover (in non PC language, a rectangular manhole!) in what used to be a garage. 

We converted this to a habitable room with an en suite, and ran a suspended floor topped with engineered wood planks over the (now newly fitted airtight) hatch. We could remove a couple of these and access the liftable hatch, but will probably never need to. The Council Building Control officer who supervised the conversion never even mentioned this as an issue.

I got one of them sealed manhole covers in my kitchen that was installed around 1976 when the extension was built. Had reason to lift a couple of years back (for the very first time). It wouldn't budge until I made some lifting bolts and fabricated a device to jack it up. If there was an easy way to get rid of the chamber & cover, I'd do it in an instant.

housebuyer143

Lets_fly said:

housebuyer143 said:

Is it actually private or is it shared with the neighbours? So runs from their garden, into yours etc?

If you actually meant it's shared then when was it done in 2011? Do you know the month because I'm sure that's the year that the water board adopted the shared drains so it might have been private and therefore okay to build over when it was built, or they might have needed build over agreement. 

Sorry for the late reply. Speaking to the house neighbours, they said that the manhole in the garage is private and they have their manhole in front of their garage.
So I guess its not shared.. 
The seller has not disclosed about the kitchen extension in the property information form. But I can clearly see comparing other houses which are build same that it has been extended. I assume they don't have planning permission .
Not sure what to do

It's not about where the manhole is but where the drains go. I imagine that the sewer pipe runs from your house, to your neighbours, to the next neighbour until it goes to the main sewer, but the searches will show you that. If that's the case, then they are shared. 

Assuming it's shared and private pre 2011, did you find out when the extension was built because that will make all the difference. Early 2011 means the water board accept the build over and there is no issue, and after means they might not. 

Normally it's not a big issue and your seller would just get an indemnity policy if they built over it without permission. Lots of houses are built over drains and it's no issue at all providing you can still access it through the manhole.