Hi, we were having work done before the lockdown, which has now stopped. In that time we have noticed a damp patch around our soil pipe. Please see picture. Does anyone know what might be causing this and how to fix it? We’re not keen on getting someone round at the moment for obvious reasons so any help would be much appreciated. The pipe going into the ground is bone dry so we don’t think there’s a leak there. Many thanks in advance
Soil Pipe leaking?
- Thread starter Tadek
- Start date
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Well first thing is to establish where the water is coming from. If the exposed waste pipe is dry then it's time to dig down and check out the salt glaze pipe that's in that piece of ground.
Only issue with that is you could expose a bigger issue if the salt glaze is cracked as it may be the hard packed ground around the pipe that's holding it all together just now.
May be an idea to hold off until you can get someone in that would be able to make good if a bigger issue is found.
Only issue with that is you could expose a bigger issue if the salt glaze is cracked as it may be the hard packed ground around the pipe that's holding it all together just now.
May be an idea to hold off until you can get someone in that would be able to make good if a bigger issue is found.
Thanks for the response, much appreciated and certainly don’t want to make anything worse! Just wanted to see if there was a chance we could fix it and then set about levelling the floor so we can think about having a kitchen. Quick question - do you know why there only appears to be mud and sand around the pipe and not concrete? Is it just the concrete has collapsed due to damp? Thanks again for your time, much appreciated
If the house is 100 years old or so, it is likely to have been built with lime mortar. Long term drain leaks will erode this. I've commonly seen the mortar missing between bricks close to broken clay gullies and drains. You can hose out the mud and re-point them when you dig it out.
It is absolutely normal (but undesirable) for the clay to crack, break and leak, especially at the point where there is a trap or bend, close to the joint with the iron pipe above. Sooner or later it will need to be dug out and replaced, so don't lay any concrete or walls or floors that will be in the way later. It will be unhygienic and cause further damage until repaired. The leak washes away the ground and this causes it to sink. You often find several (unsuccessful) attempts to repair or patch the concrete or paving without fixing the leak.
Absence of concrete is helpful to you as it will be easier to dig the hole.
The leak is also likely to cause damp.
Digging up and renewing drains is not complicated work if you can handle a spade. Summer is the best time to do it.
As Madrab says, when you dig up a clay pipe you may find the damage is more extensive than you thought.
It is absolutely normal (but undesirable) for the clay to crack, break and leak, especially at the point where there is a trap or bend, close to the joint with the iron pipe above. Sooner or later it will need to be dug out and replaced, so don't lay any concrete or walls or floors that will be in the way later. It will be unhygienic and cause further damage until repaired. The leak washes away the ground and this causes it to sink. You often find several (unsuccessful) attempts to repair or patch the concrete or paving without fixing the leak.
Absence of concrete is helpful to you as it will be easier to dig the hole.
The leak is also likely to cause damp.
Digging up and renewing drains is not complicated work if you can handle a spade. Summer is the best time to do it.
As Madrab says, when you dig up a clay pipe you may find the damage is more extensive than you thought.
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Best thing you can do right now is to clean up all of the stack and check it all over to see if you can spot a leak above ground. If all is dry then you "may" want to carefully excavate the ground around the clay to inspect!
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