The main sewer line crosses my property with a manhole on it. Recently we replaced the line from our house (glazed pipes with rubber seals) to the sewer main with one continuous length of pvc pipe. Th e main sewer line is old (at least 60 years) and I assume it is also glazed piping. What I want to know is how is the actual connection between the pvc and the main sewer is made and sealed?
daryl14,
Aug 5, 11:50pm
Call a registered drain layer. You are not allowed to touch yours or councils sewerage.
biggal,
Aug 6, 2:55am
I don't want to touch it I can assure you. But I am thinking the drain layer who connected our new pvc pipe to the sewer main has stuffed up at the connection. Cost us $3000 btw.
jonners2013,
Aug 6, 3:07am
what makes you think they stuffed it up?
pico42,
Aug 6, 3:08am
Did your lateral connection go directly to the manhole or did it join the vitreous pipe directly?
biggal,
Aug 6, 3:30am
Watercares cctv working on blockages further down the main line has detected an impending root blockage at the pvc pipe junction. We are rather sensitive to raw sewage overflowing at the gully trap.
biggal,
Aug 6, 3:42am
pvc pipe joins main line square on 12 metres from a ,manhole
jonners2013,
Aug 6, 4:06am
Sounds like you're in the shit.
biggal,
Aug 6, 4:08am
Not if I can help it
biggal,
Aug 6, 9:42am
I still need info about joining into main sewer line. Might be heading to Fair Go
pico42,
Aug 6, 9:47am
Why do you think you might be heading to Fair Go? They might knock a hole in the main and grout the PVC into it. They might cut a section out of the main and fit a PVC joint into that. Presumably any method approved by Council inspector.
What is the problem you are finding that is prompting these questions?
johotech,
Aug 6, 10:16am
Unless the whole pipe was replaced, you are never going to get around that problem occurring in the old section of pipe.
The new pipes are usually attached to the old pipes with a type of rubber coupling, after cutting out a section of the old pipe.
It is unlikely that the camera guys can tell if the roots are getting into the PVC pipe (which is virtually impossible), or into a joint in the old pipe right next to where the new pipe section is.
biggal,
Aug 6, 10:29am
If the new pvc pipe (from main sewer to house) is not fully sealed then I want some redress for the $3000 spent in getting the new pvc pipe installed. I watched the guy connecting to the sewer main and even though he was working below ground I could see he took just minutes to connect up. We don't want another raw sewage overflow at our gully trap.
biggal,
Aug 6, 10:35am
btw I've seen the cctv pic and its plain to see that the offending root is entering ar the junction of the 2 pipes
biggal,
Aug 6, 10:52am
Sorry for the double entendre above. good night
mm12345,
Aug 6, 11:15am
I think I tend to agree with you - that the drainlayer may have stuffed up. Unless there's something else going on (large tree/roots) displacing the drain or something else going on (ground movement etc), then it shouldn't have failed. What does the drainlayer who did the work say? Instead of arguing about how they did the job, materials and methods used etc, then keep it simple. They're the experts, doing restricted work, and you've got a right to expect the work to be to a good standard (not telling them how to do the work). If they tell you to get lost, then without getting technical, send a complaint about sub-standard work to the council who issued the consent, to the plumbers gasfitters and drainlayers board, and to the contractor - demanding action. The Council and Board are there to maintain standards and protect you from cowboys - and if they ignore you, then you really do have something to take to Fair Go.
carter19,
Aug 6, 8:04pm
The first thing you should do is to show the DVD to the drainlayer who did the job. I hope he is a drainlayer as a plumber is not legally permitted to do the type of work you described. So show him the proof and request in writing that he repair his poor workmanship. If he refuses tell the PGDB.
biggal,
Aug 6, 10:12pm
Thank you mm12345 and carter19. Nice to get some helpful and sympathetic comment. I am waiting for the data to arrive from Watercare Then I will contact the Regd. Drainlaying Co. btw Watercare used dye to confirm the trouble spot.
hammer23,
Aug 6, 10:14pm
Get out your shovel and dig up the area where you pipe meets the main sewer. Remove the roots and push more grout around the connection. Your trees are the problem and tree roots can go through a pin hole looking for water. Best of luck taking on the drainlayer,they are usually big buggers with strong opinions and you aren't going to win this argument. Your tree's ,your problem.
biggal,
Aug 6, 10:36pm
Thank you hammer23. I might end up digging down in slow time . It will be slow time as I turned 80 last week
mm12345,
Aug 6, 11:09pm
The drainlayers might be big buggers with strong opinions, but the ones I've dealt with have also been reasonable. For goodness sake talk to them first before launching in to complaints with council or their registration board. Even if they feel it wasn't their fault, they might come to the party on cost. I'm just completely guessing here, that if they did only take a couple of minutes to connect the lateral to the main, then they slid a PVC o-ring coupling over the last bit of clay pipe which they left attached to the main as it looked okay - but perhaps it wasn't. If they grouted the new pipe in, then it would have taken longer than a couple of minutes. Digging it up again is is probably the biggest part of getting the problem sorted, once it's cleared it should be simple to fix, and probably not very expensive. I had a clay pipe sewer buggered by tree root fixed, it was in a difficult to get to location, about 1.5m below ground, under a rock wall, surrounded by tree roots 6 inches thick which were a bastard to cut out of the way, total cost for that was about $700. Of course that was $700 I'd have rather not have to have spent, but it wasn't in any way a rip-off. Hard yakka.
ETA Another random guess as to why they might have left the last bit of pipe in place is that if they were replacing the lateral without replacing the connection to the main - that last bit - then the job may have been consent exempt, but if they replaced that connection, then the job may have needed council consent = $$$. They may have been trying to save you money - and by bad luck, it backfired.
biggal,
Aug 8, 3:37am
Tnx for that mm12345
elect70,
Aug 9, 3:32am
PVC into concrete main use a fast setting grout there will be a bit of mess around but once burred wont be problem , ive helped my bro plumber drainlayer do mine . Some leave the origonal clay bit in the main & use a rubber sleeve & wire ties to the PVC
biggal,
Sep 2, 10:11pm
I have approached the drainage company who did the job and they sent round a sub-contractor who did a CCTV from the gulley trap to the main sewer line i.e. along the new PVC pipe. He found that the PVC pipe ended about one metre from the main sewer pipe, from where it was connected to the main line by a short length of the original glazed pipe which had a partially blocked root well on the way to a complete blockage and another raw sewage overflow. I can only assume the drainlayer did this because it was easier to do than to make a proper connection to the main line. Considering that there was a complete blockage among four root intrusions in the original glazed pipe, there was no way we would have settled for such a substandard job. Negotiations are under way.
budgel,
Sep 2, 10:17pm
biggal, keep us updated, Good Luck!
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