Drainage

[Westonp]

Sorry if this has been asked before or if I've posted this in the wrong section.

Every so often the kitchen drains start to smell. All the sinks train away with no problems. The house is just over two years old and all the plastic pipes are as clean as a whistle. I opened both outside inspection holes and found one to be blocked with god knows what, after scooping most of it out the rest disappeared with a good pressure hose down and then up each of the three pipes. However I then filled all the sinks in the house and let them empty at the same time expecting to see clear running water through the inspection holes. I did't but could hear the water running freely.

What am I missing?

 

[HERTS P&D]

You must be missing some other manholes, lift all covers and flush all toilets.

This way you can start to work out what goes where.

The covers you lifted could of being for rain water.

Andy

 

[Burnerman]

It sometimes seems to take an age for sink water to appear at the manhole - and when it does it can be just a tiny trickle....I guess if you can hear the water then you can't be far off!
Coloured dyes are available to track what goes where but I'd doubt if you'd need them.
John

 

[Westonp]

Thanks guys.

The issue I have is that the covers are only two feet from the house. One to the right hand side and one dead centre so there aren't any more to uncover.

Is there somewhere on the net that I can find a dummy diagram to house drainage. Is it simply one pipe from the various sinks that meet up to one main pipe or are there things in between?

Ta

 

[TicklyT]

As above, there are usually two completely independant systems for rain water and foul waste. Both systems usually use similar pipes and inspection chambers, and may run quite close together underground, but there is no link between the two.

There is no 'standard' layout as each site will have it's own peculiarities, which may include sloping ground, distance to public sewers, depth of the public sewer, proximity to other houses or outbuildings, etc, etc.

 

[Westonp]

Put the system will be just pipes not tanks etc?

 

[HERTS P&D]

Put the system will be just pipes not tanks etc?

????

 

[Westonp]

Sorry multi tasking was never my string suit!

Is the drainage all pipes or is there a settlement tank or something else?

 

[TicklyT]

The rainwater system may run to a soakaway in your garden, or, if the soil condoitions are unsuitable, it may run to a seperate 'public' drain.

Some sewage systems featured an 'interceptor trap' just before they joined the public sewer. The trap can get blocked, and the inspection chamber next to it filled with sewage. Sometimes this goes unnoticed, as the plug in the rodding eye for the trap can go missing, leaving an open outlet which stops the chamber overflowing.

There's usually an inspection chamber at each change in direction or junction of the underground pipe runs, but it is far from unusual for the covers to be 'landscaped' over, hiding all signs of their existence.

Older properties (pre 1930-something) may have a combined sewage and rainwater system, but nowadays rainwater should not be run into the sewage system without permission from the local water authority.

 

[HERTS P&D]

Depending how old the property is, metal manhole covers which have being covered by 'landscaping' can be found with a metal detector.

Andy