How to unblock a rainwater soak away.?

Question

I usually have rainwater overflowing from the down drain pipe, where it meets the drain to the buried soakaway about 20 feet away .This only happens on a heavy downpour and pours over the concrete footpath on to the garden.The concrete cover that seals the pipe to the drain has broke up and been missing for years and therefore does not stop leaves etc from entering and I have tried a small power washer down it to no avail.I do not know if it is just silted up or blocked.Any tips to avoid major expense of digging the garden up would be appreciated, as if I leave it too long it might affect the foundations.

Answer 1

Providing you can get access to the pipe you need a high pressure jet from a specialist contractor. (eg Dynarod) The head has jets which propel the head forward and when the head is pulled back with the high pressure water running any debris is flushed back. The contractor will bring a tanker water supply as the domestic supply is insufficient

Answer 2

Rainwater Soakaway

Answer 3

There is a little gadget that screws onto the end of a hose ( I call it a blowbag) that you insert into the drain pipe.When the water is turned on, the bag swells up inside of the pipe and forces a jet of water out the front. Since it swells up to the diameter of the inside of the pipe, it doesn't allow water to come back and forces out the blockage at the other end. This only works if the pipe is in good condition (by that I mean the joints are tight).If the pipe isn't tight , it won't work very well. Another alternative would be to run an electric sewer cable into the drainpipe to clean it out. You should seal up any areas in the system that allows leaves and other debris to enter.Also, if the pipe has been there awhile it may have roots growing into it somewhere along the way-the sewer cable will cut them out temporarily, but the long term solution (unfortunately) will be to dig it up and either replace the piping or repair it.

Answer 4

Under building regulations you must stipulate how you will dispose of your drainage a soakaway is one option, but if you are in a built up area with mains drainage, then building control would usually expect you to put a new gully connected to the existing system. I think your difficulty is that if you haven't had any structural work done your builder wouldn't need to apply for building regulation approval. As I see it you have two choices:- Firstly take pictures of how the builder has left things then write to him complaining and asking him to put right what he has left with a timescale, also explain that if he doesn't put it right you will employ a second builder to rectify the problem and pursue him for the monies owed. Your second option is to just pay a builder to alter your gutter so it discharges over the grating and then only employ builders which have been recommended to you and NEVER EVER pay everything you owe the builder until you are completely satisfied (Keep 10% aside until he's complete) Good luck and chalk this one up to experience.

Answer 5

so, a soak away need to be gravel with air holes around it that fill up with rain and drain away naturally.

Not usre if its you pipe that blocked - easy to clear as described in other answers. However, the actually gravel drain could be clogged and there is no way to clean that, you'll need to dig up the garden and get the gravel out to seperate all the sludge thats built up over the years.

If water backs up during heavy rain then that suggests the soak away itself is silted up. Better now than in the winter.

Not expensive...just get your spade out and invite your mates around !

Answer 6

The time and expense of digging this up and rerunning it is NOTHING compared to what you will encounter if you don't get this fixed. Foundation issues are the biggest nightmare that you will ever have to deal with. Don't take a shortcut on this one, my friend. Or you will be kicking yourself in a year. You can't have this area saturated like this every time it rains...you will have big trouble.

Answer 7

Blocked Soakaway

Answer 8

Wait till everything has dried out completely.
Then use a Leaf Vacuum, or rent a larger version, from your local rent-all yard. When cleaned out, pour a new cement pad.

Answer 9

there's no easy answer i had the same problem a few years ago i did manage to unblock it with drain rods but it still overflows sometimes. the long term answer is to relay the drain or rerun it good luck !!!!!!!

Answer 10

help my soackaway is blocked I think water pouring out of gutter despite being proffesionally cleaned,not sure what to do a renovation that was was done badly (no pride in his work I would name and shame if I could only bring myself to