Help with blocked plumbing

[Jim]

Hi all

Our downstairs cloakroom has developed a blockage and I'm having trouble determining exactly where the problem is. The cloakroom has a WC, sink and shower cubicle and the first sign of a problem was the WC filling to the brim on flushing and taking a long while to drop back to the normal level. I tried plunging a few times and thought I'd sorted the problem but one day later and the same thing is happening. I suspected a blocked U bend so fished around with my hand but couldn't find anyhting. Next I left the sink taps running and eventually water started to bubble up through the shower drain so presumably definitely a blockage in the pipework somewhere.

Problem is I'm a bit confused by the plumbing arrangement. The shower and sink are obviously connected to the same drain and this runs out of the external wall and down into the ground. However on pulling out the WC the waste pipe makes an immediate 90 degree bend as soon as it is below ground level and then appears to run in the opposite direction to the waste ?? I've put a rough pic of the set up here

ideas on what might be happening underground and how the 2 might inter-connect ?

The upstairs bathroom and kitchen are at the back of the house (cloakroom is at the front) and there doesn't appear to be any problems there.

Thanks

Jim

[John]

Have you taken up the inspection cover in your garden?

[Jim]

Did lift it but didn't get a chance to rod it. The pipe does run in the general direction of the sink/shower waste but the cover is upstream of it. I'll do some explority poking tomorrow.

I did stick a drain rod down the WC waste, though I can only get 1 rod length before if gets stuck, however not sure if this is a blockage or a bend in the pipe. Still can't get my head round how the sink and WC are connected though if the wastes run in opposite directions ??

Jim

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[A.Lee]

Was it blocked then - I assume not?

They will be connected somwhere along the line, and being as they both seem to be blocked, then it is likely to be a blockage within 10 feet of the toilet. I'd suspect a blocakge somewhere between the manhole cover and the toilet. Get up all the manhole covers, and see what is there.If you've got a hosepipe long enough, turn it on full, and force it up the soil pipe, against the flow, from the manhole cover, as far as possible, then see what appears. IME, where there is a 'T' junction in the sewer pipe, then a manhole cover, or rodding point is also there, so if need be, you can rod the errant branch to clear it if the hosepipe doesnt work. Alan.

[Jim]

OK, turns out the neighbours WC was also blocked. We lifted a manhole in their garden and it was full of water so out with the rods and we're all OK now.

A big thanks to those that offered advice

Cheers

Jim

[Stuart Noble]

If you're on a shared drain, and the house is older than (1930?), the water company should clear it for free. Thames Water certainly do

[<me9]

There was talk of legislation being introduced so that all shared drains, not just those built before whenever, were to become the responsibility of the water co. Is this still in the pipeline, or has it been dumped?

[Stuart Noble]

It would certainly make sense. The system isn't really workable as it is. Either one poor sod gets lumbered with the bill or nobody does anything and it becomes a public health issue

[Andy Cap]

That's what happened to us. No one would understandably accept responsibility and so the Council took control and got the work done. They then added 33% to the bill, which was fortunately shared between the 18 properties concerned.

Andy