Hi all. Ive got a 1930s house but most of the drains are new due to work we've done over the last few years. We occasionally get drain smells in the utility room and some of the bathrooms. The drains used to block up quite regularly- 2 or 3 times a year. The blockages seem to have stopped now.
About a year ago I had someone out to take a look, wash the drains out and advise on what was causing the smell. He said it was likely the interceptor- the cap is missing so he said it was allowing smells to come up from the sewer into the house; and to replace it with a non return valve.
We are about to have work done on the driveway so it's the perfect time to sort the interceptor. But the plumber who is doing the drainage for the drive said as I have u bends throughout the house, the interceptor isn't the problem and he'd never fit a non return valve as it will cause more trouble than it's worth. He said he can take out the interceptor and replace with a straight run to the main sewer. He said the smell likely means there is a crack somewhere; and/or when we flush an upstairs loo it pushes air down the soil stack and that "sucks" water out of some of the traps allowing smells into the house. He told me to get a CCTv survey done to find the crack.
So I did. And there is nothing wrong with the drains- no breaks, they are working fine. But we found a rat. The CCTV guy said that the rat was the problem and causing smells. His advice flip flopped between replacing the cap on the interceptor, to installing a non-return valve, to doing nothing (but to check all of the plumbing inside the house and go have it cleaned out)
So I'm confused, and only have a week to work out what to do as the work on the drive starts next week.
Any guidance/education would be appreciated:
- I don't like the idea of a rat in my drain, but is it actually going to cause a smell? Not really sure how that works. I understand new builds don't have any interceptorso or non return valves - do they therefore just accept that rats will be in their drains?
- i assume that the right thing to do is to stop the rats getting into my drains. What's the best way to do that?
- if the rats aren't causing the smell and the drains are working fine then what do I do? If the plumber is right and water is getting sucked out of traps- what do I do?
Any guidance appreciated.
About a year ago I had someone out to take a look, wash the drains out and advise on what was causing the smell. He said it was likely the interceptor- the cap is missing so he said it was allowing smells to come up from the sewer into the house; and to replace it with a non return valve.
We are about to have work done on the driveway so it's the perfect time to sort the interceptor. But the plumber who is doing the drainage for the drive said as I have u bends throughout the house, the interceptor isn't the problem and he'd never fit a non return valve as it will cause more trouble than it's worth. He said he can take out the interceptor and replace with a straight run to the main sewer. He said the smell likely means there is a crack somewhere; and/or when we flush an upstairs loo it pushes air down the soil stack and that "sucks" water out of some of the traps allowing smells into the house. He told me to get a CCTv survey done to find the crack.
So I did. And there is nothing wrong with the drains- no breaks, they are working fine. But we found a rat. The CCTV guy said that the rat was the problem and causing smells. His advice flip flopped between replacing the cap on the interceptor, to installing a non-return valve, to doing nothing (but to check all of the plumbing inside the house and go have it cleaned out)
So I'm confused, and only have a week to work out what to do as the work on the drive starts next week.
Any guidance/education would be appreciated:
- I don't like the idea of a rat in my drain, but is it actually going to cause a smell? Not really sure how that works. I understand new builds don't have any interceptorso or non return valves - do they therefore just accept that rats will be in their drains?
- i assume that the right thing to do is to stop the rats getting into my drains. What's the best way to do that?
- if the rats aren't causing the smell and the drains are working fine then what do I do? If the plumber is right and water is getting sucked out of traps- what do I do?
Any guidance appreciated.