Most Frequently Asked Questions - Metro Rod Southampton
When it comes to blocked drains, drain maintenance and drain repair Metro Rod Southampton is your local drainage company providing expert drainage services 24-hours a day, 365 days a year! Covering areas in Andover, Salisbury, Winchester, Southampton, Lymington and Whiteley our engineers are the most professional, trusted specialists around.
We are regularly asked different questions regarding blocked drains, how we unblock drains and prevention of blockages.
From guttering to pre-planned maintenance, find our answers below to the top 5 questions.
1. How do I know if I have blocked drains?
Blocked drains are a nightmare. Blocked drains can cause so much stress and high unwanted costs, so it’s best to spot it as early as possible to prevent further damage. There are multiple early signs of a blocked drain that can prevent such damage to any pipes, drains or general surroundings.
Below, we have put a list together of possible signs associated with blocked drains:
Smelly Drains: Blocked drains can give off very unpleasant odours. Smelly drains can be caused by blockages created by food debris. With the food slowly decomposing it creates noticeable bad smelly drains which can seem even worse when the taps are turned on.
Slow Drainage: Blocked drains can slow any passing water through pipes. The water must make its way around the blockage or filter through it to pass. If your water is draining slowly, it is likely you have a blocked drain.
Raised Water Levels: If you have a blocked toilet, the easiest way to detect a blockage is if the water rises higher than normal when you flush the toilet. If the water rises extremely higher, this could be more serious than just a simple blocked drain.
Strange Sounds: If you can hear ‘gurgling sounds’ from you drains, this could also be a sign of blocked drains. The gurgling sound is created from trapped air in the drain that is escaping when you run water.
If you find yourself stuck with a blocked drain, we can help!
If your drain is blocked, it is necessary for you to call a professional to unblock your blocked drain. Give Metro Rod Southampton a call today and let our professionals unblock your blocked drain safely and effectively so that you can get on with your life without any the extra stress!
2. What if the engineer doesn’t know what is causing the drainage issue?
Unfortunately, a high percentage of your drains are not visible, making it difficult for our engineers to find the problem with your drains if the issue is not obvious. A CCTV survey allows our drainage experts to take a closer look at your underground drain pipes.
If you’re facing reoccurring blocked drains or need to inspect your drains for any other reasons a CCTV survey is the answer. A CCTV Survey can accurately diagnose any underlying issues, which is critical for cost effective maintenance. Here at Metro Rod Southampton we are industry-leading experts in CCTV Surveys, pre-planned maintenance and drain repair, with innovative technologies. The iTouch Live CCTV System, for example, allows us to provide completely transparent and virtual, real-time reports directly to you. Using iTouch Live, the data collected from the site is streamed in real time to the local office for processing. In most cases, your inspection report has already progressed to the next step before our engineer has finished packing up his tools. With geography no longer a factor, our team of technical support managers are also able to provide instant technical assistance to each of our local offices, ensuring that even the most complex of cases is analysed efficiently. All of this means that we can conclude each of our inspection reports far more quickly than before, allowing us to closely evaluate the problem and report back to you on the most effective solutions to your problem. Each report can be delivered instantly through our live web portal to your email address.
3. Why is my toilet overflowing?
If you have a blocked toilet, the toilet will likely overflow. Most likely tissue or waste is causing the blockage. The higher the water seems, the more extreme the situation could be and could be more serious than just a simple blocked drain. Remember, Paper, Pee & Poo, flush it down the loo!
Here are some top tips for unblocking the toilet yourself:
Firstly, Protect yourself! You don’t want to come in contact with all the germs in your blocked toilet. So, before you start make sure you’re all geared up with: Protective goggles (glasses will do), long rubber gloves – the water can be deep, a strong bag with no holes & the mighty plunger.
Secondly, protect the area! Rather than using towels nearest to you (they will most likely get ruined) place down plastic bags, newspaper to protect your bathroom floor.
Stop flushing! Majority of the time, if you flush a blocked toilet, this will just make the situation worse. The toilet bowl will fill up with dirty wastewater and if this overflows, you could end up with it all over the bathroom floor!
Don’t plunge yet! If something has fallen into the toilet, be brave, feel around and try and remove with your hands (in gloves of course).
Grab the plunge! Firstly, lift the toilet seat and place the plunger down at the bottom of the bowl. Make sure the plunger is completely covering the hole and entirely submerged. Slowly begin to push and pull the plunger to loosen the blockage – gently, of course, save yourself any mess!
Dispose of the waste: Once the blockage is loose, pull out the waste and place it in your strong bag with no holes that you prepared earlier. Once, finished remove this out of the house.
Test your work! With the blockage removed, your toilet should now run like normal. To check, place some toilet roll down the toilet and flush, making sure it clears.Whether you decide to tackle toilet unblocking yourself or call us at Metro Rod Southampton we understand this will depend on time, cost and urgency. If you try to unblock your toilet but find you still have a blocked toilet that just won’t go away, give us a call and we will send one of our engineers out to you right away.
4. Why is there waste coming up from my drains?
We don’t like waste emerging from our sinks, residential or commercial, the site is horrifying. Usually, blocked sinks are caused by FOG: Fats, oils and grease. Nearly half a million tonnes of FOG enters the UK sewerage system every year and cause blocked drains. The grease sticks to the walls of our pipes and builds up, eventually leading to blocked drains. Fats and oils then damage wastewater equipment which generates costly repairs. If FOG reaches a natural watercourse, they can cause damage to the environment. This could mean a blocked sink in your commercial kitchen – We suggest:
Residential – Use a fat trap (a lined, disposable container) to pour your waste grease and fats into. Or keep a kitchen caddy for food waste – it’s healthy for your drains and pipes as well as the planet!
Commercial – Install a new grease trap in your kitchen or if you already have one, replace or maintain this efficiently. Grease Traps are designed to intercept FOG and solids before they enter a wastewater system.
Here at Metro Rod Southampton we can organise a pre planned maintenance to empty the grease trap. This will help prevent blocked drains and protect your pipes.
5. How do I prevent my drains getting blocked?
There are very simple ways of protecting your pipes and preventing blocked drains. Simple steps such as using a plug hole strainer and removing food waste from plates before washing.
Here are our Do’s and Don’ts:
Bin it, don’t block it!
Toilets are only designed to remove human waste and toilet roll. You can buy wipes that say they’re ‘flushable’ on the packaging, but most people don’t realise, they can actually take years to break down and are a major cause of blocked pipes. Other items like sanitary products, condoms, cotton buds, nappies and hair can block your pipes too and could result in a flooded bathroom.
Keep sinks fat free!
Don’t wash away leftover fat, oil and greasy sauces down your sink. It can solidify in your pipes like a block of lard, creating a blockage that stops waste water draining away, meaning it could come back up through your plug hole. Let leftover fat, oil and grease cool, then pour into a suitable container and put it in the bin. Wipe pots and pans out with kitchen roll before washing up or placing in a dishwasher. Sink strainers are a great idea for catching stray greasy food scraps too.
Do you have any more questions?
If you feel we have not answered your questions above, please don’t hesitate to give us a call on:
02380 600 017 or drop us an email at southampton@metrorod.co.uk.
You can call us to unblock your blocked drains and provide drain repair, toilet unblocking, gutter cleaning or drain clearing. We also provide PPMs (Pre-planned Maintenance), CCTV Surveys and emergency tanker services. If you need any of our services, please see the areas Metro Rod Southampton cover & give us a call!
Areas We Cover:
Southampton Andover Warsash
Winchester Romsey Totton
Eastleigh Lymington Alresford
Salisbury Whiteley Stockbridge
Call us on 02380 600 017 or visit www.metrorod.co.uk/southampton
Find us on Twitter @MetroRodSouth, Instagram @MetroRodSouthampton & Facebook - Metro Rod Southampton, too!
Talk to your local Metro Rod specialist
We are always happy to arrange a free site assessment and no obligation quotations for any work you might need. Alternatively, you can call our emergency hotline number on 0800 66 88 00
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