03 9888 2887
Lucinda had some issues with her ensuite drains taking time to completely drain. This had been occurring for some time, but Lucinda was not too concerned as it was just the ensuite, the remainder of the house was draining well. Lucinda put off contacting a plumber as she had never needed one before.
Lucinda looked at reviews on the internet at Product Review as well as Google Reviews, O’Shea Plumbing had very good reviews and was located close to her home. Lucinda organised our plumbers to attend the site and provide options to rectify the suspected sewer drain blockage.
Jay attended and suspected there was a blockage at a junction where the kitchen joined into the sewer which ran from the ensuite downstairs and then under the concrete slab of the home picking up the downstairs fixtures.
Jay advised Lucinda of his suspicions and provided an obligation-free quote which was approved. Jay very quickly realised that this blockage was more than just a paper blockage, as dirt and stones were being brought back out with the cable machine cutting head.
Again, Jay advised Lucinda that this blockage required more than the standard clearing. At no extra charge, Jay used the drain camera from downstream of the blockage and worked it upstream to find the drain was not blocked but broken at the suspected junction. Whilst the camera was in the drain at the break location Jay asked Lucinda to flush the ensuite toilet, only to find the wastewater slowly draining out of the pipe and escaping through the stabilising stones under the concrete slab. If you haven’t guessed already this is far from ideal.
Jay knew what the next step would entail and called in the cavalry. He requested an O’Shea Plumbing supervisor attend to confirm the best course of action. Steve and Jay discussed the plan and provided an option to open the floor and expose the break. Lucinda agreed to the work and the job proceeded.
Scott (senior O’Shea Plumbing team member) and Jay attended the following day, cut the floorboards out and cut open the concrete slab to find the plastic liner under the slab had ballooned out and resembled a waterbed. Again, this is far, far from ideal. Unfortunately, the liner had to be cut to expose the break to determine the best way to repair it.
Once the liner was cut a large amount of accumulated sewage was visible. This was bailed out, suspecting that the sewer had been broken and then concreted over. As Lucinda was a little stressed with the situation, she asked to postpone any rectification until a building assessment was completed by a structural engineer.
O’Shea Plumbing devised a plan to bypass the sewer out of the concrete slab and join it back to the existing sewer outside. This was approved and work started on the same day and finished the next.
The sewer issue has been rectified and Lucinda is now working with the structural engineer.
O’Shea Plumbing is experienced in all sorts of sewer-related issues and is happy to have a conversation with you about yours. If you would like a visit from our friendly drain experts, please request a quote on the Oshea Plumbing website www.osheaplumbing.com.au or call the office on 9888 2887.