Home >> council >> departments >> healthcommunity07/09/2008 10:57:41

Householders Guide to Drainage

The responsibilities of the property owner, Southern Water Service Ltd and Fareham Borough Council, and what to do if a problem occurs.

Introduction

Fareham Borough Council have put together this information to help you solve any problems with your drainage, problems which could occur in any household.

 

If you are the owner of your property, you have the responsibility for maintaining your private drains.

 

Public sewers are maintained and cleansed by Southern Water Services Ltd.

 

Fareham Borough Council have responsibility for:

  1. Council property drains or sewers,

  2. Overseeing the construction of some drains and sewers running from new buildings whilst houses are being constructed,

  3. Giving advice or a notice on property owners where necessary, if work on their drains needs to be done, and

  4. Making available Public Sewer records.

This information makes reference to private drains and private sewers. The difference between the two terms has been defined below in order to help your understanding of them later on.

Private Drain

A pipeline which drains away the waste water from your home. There are two kinds of waste water, foul sewage and surface water runoff, both are drained separately from a single property.

Private Sewer

A sewer is a pipeline serving two or more properties.

What is, and who is responsible for a private sewer?

Private Drains are usually connected together to form a private sewer. They remain private up to the point of connection with the public sewer, even though they may run under public pavements or highways.

 

Private drains are the responsibility of the property owners. However the overall ownership of a private sewer is with all property owners whose waste water flows through it, they are jointly and equally responsible for the maintenance and repair of the private sewer.

 

Any problems, such as blockages, have to be dealt with by all private owners upstream of the blockage, not just the owner of the property whose land bears the problem.

What is, and who is responsible for a public sewer?

If your house was sewered with more than one property before October 1937, then the sewer serving your property is a public sewer.

 

Some sewers built after that date are 'adopted' by the Water Company as a public sewer.

 

The large pipes that run under the highway are the most common type of public sewer. Smaller private drains or sewers are connected to the public sewer.

 

Public sewers are owned, maintained and cleansed by Southern Water Services Ltd. If your house and sewer was built before 1937 then Southern Water Services are responsible for unblocking your sewer.

 

Public sewer records are available within the Building Control Section at the Civic Offices, but cannot necessarily be relied upon for total accuracy.

Who is responsible for the private sewers serving a Council property?

If a problem, such as a blockage in a drain, serving a Council property, then the landlord, in this case the Council's Housing Business Unit, is responsible for the cost of clearing the problem.

Who is responsible for the private sewers of an ex-Council property?

Private sewers are the responsibility of all property owners equally.

 

If you live in an ex-Council property then you are responsible for maintaining the sewers equally with the other owners, including the Council, on a proportional basis.

 

The rights of the Council concerning drains and sewers can be found in the 'transfer of deeds' given when the house was purchased. They have a right to enter adjoining or adjacent properties of the Council for the purposes of repairing and cleansing the drains and sewers.

What are, and who is responsible for gullies?

A road gully is a smaller chamber covered by a metal grate, found on the edge of a highway. It is used to collect surface water from the highway, and may then lead to a public sewer.

 

The responsibility of a road gully is with the Highway Authority (Hampshire County Council). Fareham Borough Council carries out some maintenance work on road gullies for the County Council and if you need to let someone know of a problem please ring Tel: 01329 236100.

How to reduce the chance of a blocked drain

When items such as disposable nappies, cotton buds, food wastes, hot fats, etc are put down the drains and sewers, there is a risk that they can eventually cause blockages in the small pipes, which have to be paid for by the owner.

 

'Personal items' such as disposable nappies and sanitary products, should be wrapped up and placed in the bin, not flushed down the toilet. Household chemicals should not be poured into the sink. If they do not block your sewer they may eventually end up on our beaches or rivers, causing damage to the wildlife and could be a risk to the health of children or anyone else using the beach.

 

Just by placing such items in the bin you can decrease the risk of a blockage by at least 60%.

What you can do if a blockage occurs

If a blockage occurs, in a private drain or sewer, it may be cheaper and more convenient to do the work yourself, taking extra care not to put your health at risk.

 

A set of drain rods can clear most blockages, these can be hired or bought at a reasonable cost. If the blockage cannot be cleared with rods or will be a risk to your health, then a sewer cleansing specialist will be needed. However, if you do ring you will be charged for the work being done so it may be advisable to get the money or make arrangements with the other owners involved first.

 

To help find a blockage and identify the problem (examples may include tree roots, a cracked pipe, a dislodged junction etc) a camera survey can help the drainage contractor to examine the interior of the drainage system.

Who to contact when something goes wrong

If a problem with a public sewer occurs, then the Customer Services at Southern Water Services Ltd can be contacted on Tel: 01962 714585.

 

For a private drain or sewer then you should contact a drainage company to rectify the problem and it is recommended that you compare prices and services on offer.

 

Hire companies and drainage contractors can be found in the Yellow Pages. Contacts can be found under;

  • Drain and pipe cleaning
  • Drain and pipe cleaning equipment
  • Drainage Consultants
  • Sewage Consultants

Further information may be obtained from

If you cannot resolve the problem, the Environmental Health Service at Fareham Borough Council, may be able to help you with advice, e-mail regulatory@fareham.gov.uk us or telephone 01329 236100.