Help - Drain outside kitchen overflowing.

[masrs]

Hi all,

The drain (drain 1) outside the kitchen is overflowing, I've taken a photo to show you what I mean, this is just after washing the dishes -



The layout of the house/drains is like this -


I bought this piece of drain snake kit and tried to plunge drain 1 and 2 with no affect. Drain 1 it goes straight down, just fitting the kit inside perfectly and drain 2 it wouldn't fit down with the plunging end.

Only drain 1 has an issue all other drains seem to be fine.

I'm tempted to open drain 3 on the driveway which is one of those big square drains found on streets but would need to buy the right keys and lift it aside to see.

drain 2 -


drain 3 -


drain 4 may not be a drain at all, it's the one next to drain 3 as shown in photo above.

Please could anyone advise anything further I can try before I call the professionals in?

edit: added some photos of drain 2 and 3.

 

[JohnD]

has anyone been putting cooking fat down the sink?

Photos of all the drains and any "manhole covers" would help.

Also photos of any visible drain pipes or soil poipes.

Is the bathroom above the kitchen? Does that drain overflow when you flush the WC?

 

[masrs]

Hi John, thanks for the quick response. Not in our ownership, we have always put it in a container and bined it once cooled but we've only been here 2 years so it's possible.

 

[JohnD]

I edited my post with some more Q's

Drain grilles in paving will probably lift out with an old screwdriver, and there will be a trap like a sink trap underneath, use a long spoon to lift out any mud and grit.

It will probably be constructed like one of these
http://www.screwfix.com/search?search=gulley
but if old will be made of brown glazed pottery (clay) with an iron grille.

 

[masrs]

Hi John, edited 1st post with photos of drains 2 and 3, I think drain 4 is not a drain now. Drain 1 overflows when using the sink in the bathroom which is above the kitchen.

In the drain that's overflowing, it's pretty far down, I think it goes about 1.5m down when I put the drain snake in. Didn't manage to poke right or left as the drain snake was too rigid and there was a pool of water so I couldn't see where it went!

 

[masrs]

I found this product so going to go pick this up and use it with some boiling water down drain 1 and see how it goes!

 

[Hugh Jaleak]

Use a garden spade to prise up the edge of the square manhole cover, (drain 3), then slip a screwdriver or something underneath to support it, whilst you then get (gloved!) fingers under it and it'll lift. See if that's free flowing for starters. I doubt boiling water or chemicals will have much effect as they will be too dilute by the time they reach the problem.

Worth checking if your neighbours have a problem too, but ring the Water Company first rather than a drain cleaning company. The Water Company will do it for free if its a shared drain or the problem is under a neighbouring property.

 

[masrs]

Hugh - I think you're right, I bought the bottle of chemicals and tipped the lot down, has had no effect. I'll need to get the cover lifted to have a look sometime, likely to be next weekend unfortunately as by the time I get back on a week day it's dark already.