Overflow/waste pipes cut off but left in the wall

[Adam Funk]

Hi

We had a full bathroom renovation, and I noticed afterwards that the remains of the now-unused toilet overflow and bath/shower waste pipes are stil in the outside wall. (The new toilet overflows internally, and the new shower drains through a new pipe in a different position.) I assume the fitters cut these pipes off flush on the inside before plastering; they are obviously cut off flush on the outside.

Two photos:

Am I right or overcautious in thinking rain could get blown into the wall through these and cause problems later? (And asking them to mortar the holes flush with the wall?)

Thanks

[AlanC]

When we had our bathrooms and cloakroom refitted earlier this year, the fitter left all of the toilet overflow pipes in placed and just used a load of silicon sealant on the inside part of the pipe. He said it was simpler than making good the wall from the outside.

The pipes should have a slight downward slope so its unlikely water will make its way in.

[RJH]

You might get water (and insects) coming through - depends on the angle of the pipe, size of the hole/gaps, and aspect of the opening.

But in any event I would expect them to have pulled the old pipe through and made good the wall on both sides. Just for appearances if nothing else.

[The Natural Philosopher]

Just on aesthetic grounds they should be mortared up

[nothanks]

IMO they should be pulled-out and the wall made good, that's what I have done. OOI, since moving here a few years ago, we had recurrent problems of decomposing rodent smell in the en-suite bathroom. Traps under the floor caught the odd mouse and, after much looking around, I finally noticed that whoever created the bathroom (out of a bedroom) didn't mortar around where the soil pipe leaves the loo to get to the adjacent soil stack. Some mortar in the hole and no-more mice.

[The Natural Philosopher]

Yay!

[alan_m]

My mother had a mouse problem in the kitchen. One day whilst visiting I watched a mouse enter from outside through the small gap between the hole in the wall and the sink waste pipe. Sealing with cement based filler cured the problem. The mouse had climbed quite a distance up a vertical brick wall.

[Paul]

Climbing a brick wall, is nothing for mice. I've watched a pregnant female climb brick, as well as the "husband". Heading to their new home, inside my house :-/

That pipe looks like an "entrance".

Maybe a brickie would know how to fix that. If I did it, the brick piece would end up on some weird angle :-)

Paul

[Jeff Layman]

Yep. Oddly, the inside wall of our bathroom had been done with plaster and painted over, but the outside had been left. I forced expanded polystyrene into the pipe but left two or three cm on the outside. I filled that with mortar and smoothed over the outside. It's not perfect, but a lot tidier than it was.

[Brian Gaff]

Well, It depends on how waterproof the outer covering is now. I'd myself not be that worried about much other than the look of the finish left. I think trying to get the pipes out and fill the holes might have made more of a mess of the wall than what they actually did, I bet those pipes have been there for many years. Brian

[alan_m]

But not cut flush to the brick face.

An overflow pipe is long enough to try and direct any drips or flow of water away from the brick face and usually angled down. The chances of blown rainwater flowing back up the pipe is vanishing small - until you cut it flush to the brick face. Effectively now you just have a hole in the brick that can let water to the back of your plastered wall.

[fred]

We watched a small mouse scurry along the kitchen worktop one morning to hide in the cooker. I turned on the grill and after a few minutes he fled.

[Mike Clarke]

Making it simpler isn't necessarily doing it right.

Except that there's quite big gaps around the pipe in the first of the OPs photos so plenty of scope for unwanted things to enter. Well worth mortaring that one up.

[AlanC]

Leaving it as it was isnt making it any better or worse.

The gaps may have already been there before so he could argue that its nothing to do with him.

Personally, I think that he should have either left is as it was (sticking out) or completely removed it and filled in the hole.

[Adam Funk]

Thanks (and to everyone else who answered). I'm asking them to pull the pipe out and fill it in flat.

[Clive Arthur]

<snipped>

We had similar, though without the pipe for a few years. When I had some spare mortar I blocked it up, and got into trouble with SWMBO. House sparrows had been nesting there every year.

[SteveW]

Judging by the first photo, the wall is in need of repointing anyway. Just sort that pipe out at the same time.

[Harry Bloomfield Esq]

That's what I have done, here on my own home. Where a brick was cut to make an opening, I have removed the part brick, and mortared in a full brick, but perhaps that's me being fussy. I keep a stack of matching bricks, roof tiles, and etc. piled up at the back of the property, especially for such repairs.

[Harry Bloomfield Esq]

Not a brickie, but what I do, when an odd brick needs replacement...

Insert the brick, resting on timber lattes, steel rod or what ever hold it in place temporary, matching the mortar gaps/spacing, add a timber wedge at the top, to stop it moving. Then mortar round the brick, pushing it well into place, allow it to set up a little then, finally pull the supports out, fill the gaps, and point it up.

[Adam Funk]

What, no expanding foam?