Blocked Drains Ferntree Gully

Warning signs

Drains usually give notice. Look for slow showers and basins, a toilet that gurgles when the washing machine empties, sewage smells inside or in the yard, water rising in floor wastes or the overflow relief gully outside lifting and spilling. If several fixtures are slow at once, the blockage is in the main sewer line rather than one waste.

Why Ferntree Gully drains block

Trees are the big one. The suburb's gums, oaks, liquidambars and ornamental trees send roots a long way for water, and most homes built before the 1980s have earthenware sewer pipe in short lengths. On sloping ground the pipe settles and the joints open slightly over time. Roots find those gaps, grow inside and build a dense mat that catches toilet paper and wipes until the line stops.

Newer homes with PVC drains suffer less from roots, but blockages still happen. Wipes, including those sold as flushable, grease from kitchens and builders' debris left in pipes are common causes. Where trenches were not compacted well, the pipe can sag and hold waste.

Kitchen drains block with fat and food scraps, laundry drains with lint and sand, and showers with hair and soap. Stormwater drains fill with gum leaves, bark and silt washing off steep gardens.

How we clear them

We start by working out where the blockage is: which fixtures are affected, where the inspection openings and overflow gully are and where the line runs down the block. For blockages close to a fixture, an electric eel or hand auger may be enough.

For sewer blockages, especially roots, we use a high-pressure jetter. Its nozzle fires water backwards and forwards at high pressure, cutting roots back to the pipe wall and flushing debris to the main. Jetting cleans the full bore of the pipe rather than punching a small hole through the blockage, so it stays clear longer.

Camera inspection

Once the line flows, we run a drain camera through it. You see what we see: where roots are entering, cracked or offset joints, sags, or a clean pipe. A locator on the camera head lets us mark the spot and depth on the ground, so any repair is targeted rather than a long trench across the garden.

Lasting fixes

If the camera shows a broken section or a joint that will keep letting roots in, we explain the choices. One or two damaged spots in open ground can be dug up and replaced with PVC. Long runs under driveways, decks, paving or established gardens can be relined from the inside, leaving a seamless pipe that roots cannot penetrate. You get a fixed price for each option.

Overflow relief gullies

Most homes have an overflow relief gully outside, a small grated outlet set a little lower than the floor wastes inside. When the sewer blocks, it is designed to overflow first so sewage spills in the yard rather than the bathroom. Keep it clear of mulch, soil and pavers, and never seal it.

Who looks after which pipe

In Victoria the owner is responsible for the sewer drain from the house to the connection with the water corporation's main. Depending on your street, Yarra Valley Water or South East Water looks after the main. If our camera shows the blockage is in the main, we will show you so you can report it.

Steep sites and long runs

Sewer lines on foothills blocks can be long and steep, sometimes running down through bush gardens to a connection at the back boundary. We carry long jetter hoses and cameras and can reach most lines without disturbing the garden.

Avoiding the next blockage

Keep wipes, sanitary products and fat out of the drains, use strainers in kitchen sinks and showers and keep thirsty trees away from the sewer line. If the camera showed root entries but no broken pipe, a scheduled jet every year or two keeps them under control. We can let you know when it is due.

Kitchen drains and fat

Kitchen sinks block more than any other fixture, and the main culprit is fat. Cooking oil, butter, dripping and even the film from washing greasy pans cool and harden inside the pipe, catching food scraps and coffee grounds until the water stops running. Hot water and detergent only push the fat a little further down the line, where it sets again. We clear kitchen blockages with a cable machine or jetter, which scours the pipe walls clean rather than just poking a hole through the middle.

To keep a kitchen drain flowing, wipe greasy pans with a paper towel before washing, scrape plates into the bin or compost, and use a sink strainer. If your kitchen has a waste disposal unit, run plenty of cold water while it is working and never put fibrous peelings or fat down it.

Toilet blockages

Toilets block when something goes down that should not. Wet wipes, even those labelled flushable, do not break down like toilet paper. Sanitary products, cotton buds, dental floss, paper towels and children's toys are other common causes. In older Ferntree Gully homes, a toilet that blocks repeatedly despite careful use often points to roots or a sag further down the line. We clear the blockage and check the drain with a camera to find the real cause.

Shower and bathroom drains

Hair and soap scum are behind most blocked showers and basins. A slow shower usually has a clump of hair caught just under the grate or in the trap. We remove it, clean the trap and check that the waste pipe beyond is clear. If several fixtures in the bathroom are slow at once, the blockage is further down the line, often where the bathroom drain joins the main sewer.

Stormwater blockages

Blocked stormwater drains do not cause sewage problems, but they can cause flooding. When gutters, downpipes, pits and stormwater pipes are full of leaves, silt and roots, water backs up and overflows around the house. In Ferntree Gully, with so many trees and so much water coming off the hills, stormwater blockages are common after autumn leaf fall and big storms. We clear pits and pipes with a jetter, check them with a camera and repair any broken sections.

High-pressure jetting

A high-pressure jetter fires water through a special nozzle at very high pressure. Some jets face backwards, pulling the hose along the pipe, while others face forwards to break up blockages. Jetting cuts through roots, fat and silt and leaves the inside of the pipe clean, which helps prevent the next blockage. It is safe for most pipes in reasonable condition, and we check the pipe with a camera first if we have any doubt.

Electric eels and root cutters

For heavy root blockages, an electric eel with a cutting head is often the first step. It spins a steel cable with blades on the end through the pipe, cutting roots away from the walls. We follow up with a jetter to flush out the cut roots, then a camera to see what is left. Roots will grow back in time if the pipe is not repaired, so we talk about lasting options if that is what the camera shows.

Locating your drains

Many Ferntree Gully homes have no plan of where their drains run, especially if the house has been extended or the block subdivided. We use a locator that picks up a signal from the camera head to trace the line from above ground and mark it on the surface. That tells you where the pipe runs, how deep it is and where any problem sits, which is useful for repairs, renovations and planning a new garden bed or driveway.

Repeat blockages

If you have had the same drain cleared several times, something is causing the blockage to return. It may be roots in a cracked joint, a sag where waste collects, a pipe laid with too little fall, or a broken section that catches debris. Clearing the drain again only buys time. A camera inspection shows the cause, and a targeted repair or relining stops the cycle.

Units and shared drains

Ferntree Gully has plenty of subdivided blocks where two or three units share a sewer line before it meets the main. When the shared section blocks, the lowest unit usually floods first even if its residents did nothing to cause it. We find the blockage with a camera and locator, clear it, and write a short report showing exactly where it was and what caused it. That helps owners and the owners corporation sort out who is responsible and plan any repair together.

Blocked drains in rentals

If you rent and a drain is blocked, report it to your agent or landlord straight away. A blocked or broken toilet, when it is the only one, and a sewer backing up are urgent repairs under Victorian rental rules. We work with agents and landlords regularly and send photos, camera footage and clear invoices so everyone can see what was found and fixed.

Before you call

A few simple checks help us arrive prepared. Note which fixtures are slow or blocked, whether water is rising in the overflow gully outside, and whether it happened suddenly or gradually. If you know roughly where the sewer runs or where the inspection openings are, tell us. Do not pour caustic drain cleaners into a blocked drain; they rarely clear a serious blockage and they make the water dangerous for anyone who has to work on the pipe afterwards.

Overflow gully care

Every house should have an overflow relief gully outside, usually near the laundry or kitchen. Its grate is designed to pop up and let sewage escape outside if the drain blocks, rather than inside the house. Keep the grate at least 150 mm below the floor level and 75 mm above the surrounding ground, and never cover it with pavers, soil or mulch. If yours is buried or missing, we can raise or replace it.

Ferntree Gully ground and pipes

Ferntree Gully's ground changes as you climb towards the ranges: clay and silty loam on the lower streets, rockier, steeper ground near Upper Ferntree Gully and The Basin. Most homes built before the 1980s were connected with earthenware sewer pipe, and on a slope every joint moves a little over the years and lets roots in. Water service lines from the meter are often long and run through rocky ground or under established gardens. Stormwater has to be carried down the block and away from the house. We use cameras, locators and pressure tests to see what is happening before we dig.

How we approach the job

From your call to the finished job