Drain problem?

[Guitar_man]

I have a drain which is cracked, see right side of picture. Looking down though the crack there is a pool of standing water through the crack.
Is this a problem? Is the water likely to be leaking away or is it likely to be self contained within the sewer? Do I need to repair this or is it ok. Thanks in advance.
View media item 72990

 

[noseall]

There may be concrete present below the drain channel which would meant hat once the crack and void are flooded the liquids will pass through the drain regardless.

If you are worried then it is a case of plugging the inlets and pouring or pointing grout into the void. Grout as in a strong cement based mortar.

 

[KenGMac]

Jimbo320, Hi.

A repair is needed.

As noseal has posted a grout based "filler" should work.

A couple of points?
1/. How did you locate the cracked pipe? after all it is not every day that a home owner lifts a man Hole cover?
2/.Was there an overflow from the man hole?

As for repair?

Your Home Insurance "should" cover it? especially if you have opted to take out "accidental Cover"

Or if you have any "cover" for your utilities? for example boiler cover that incorporates electrics, white goods and, drains.

If so then that form of cover could be a route to explore?

As far as Insurance cover under your House Policy is concerned. Drains are "generally covered" because you can not repair damage that you are not aware of, drains being buried you cannot see their condition.

Down side of a claim to your insurer is that your premium WILL RISE?

On balance a fairly simple repair as noted by noseal should be effective.

Having had a second look @ the picture the next joint up the line "Appears" to be missing mortar as well? this could require the same treatment?

As for repair material? how about you "consider" an Epoxy type mortar, advantage is it sets FAST, down side is it costs more ?

Food for thought?

Bottom line is in needs to be fixed, if not sorted you could end up [worst case scenario] with Subsidence.

Ken

 

[Guitar_man]

Thanks noseall/ken,
So what is usually below the pipe? I'm not sure how they are. Made. Are the areas made by shuttering concrete? Then you lay the pipes on top, of the void, what I'm getting at is there is just a pool of water sitting in a concrete void.
I have put a a screwdriver into the void which hits something hard. Is this concrete or rock foundations, it's not soft. Shouldn't the area below the pipe of been filled with mortar when the drain was built?
As Ken says my worry is subsidence!
As repair goes, I'm not sure the the mortar would hold, it would just fall into the void as the gap is about 1/2 inch.
As you observed, there is also another crack higher up.
What other options have I got, can I replace the crack porcelain drain?
I was just checking my drains as I've just bought the place. Of course my surveyor missed it.
Thanks for the comments.

 

[Hugh Jaleak]

That type of chamber would have been built by setting the channel sections into wet concrete, then once the base had gone off, the walls built and the bottom benched to finish. Should be a reasonable depth of concrete under the channel, unlikely any quantity of water is escaping.

Go with Noseall's suggestion, mix a bit of strong mortar (plenty of cement and just enough water to bind it), and really pack that into the gap. Provided the drain is kept dry for long enough to give the mortar chance to set, the problem should be sorted. The channel sections would probably have been jointed in a similar manner when the chamber was originally built, but ensure your joint is finished flush with the edges of the channel so not to provide a 'lip' for waste to catch.

 

[stuart45]

This is an old favorite for drain repairs.

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• stuart45
• 8 Feb 2014
• 1

 

[Guitar_man]

Thanks guys, will give it a try.
Does anyone have any ideas about the possible date of this chamber?

 

[stuart45]

How old is your house?

 

[Hugh Jaleak]

As above, but my guess from the pic circa 70's.

 

[Guitar_man]

70s would be my guess as there were some renovations done about this time. The house is about 1880. Thanks.

I spoke to a local builder and he recommended knocking out the clay pipe and filling the void with concrete. He said that the drain should of been filled with concrete and the pipes laid on the top, so the fact there is a void, indicates something not right. He said that sometimes the void can stretch under the property.

Does this sound correct to you guys?
Thanks.