Stormwater Drain & Root Repairs Marrickville

CCTV Drain Inspection & High-Pressure Jet Blasting in Marrickville

Our plumbers were called to Marrickville after the homeowner began experiencing serious stormwater overflow issues at the back of their property after heavy rains. Our team had recently replaced and upgraded the gutters on the northern and eastern sides of the house. While the new guttering had improved the roof's ability to collect water, it also exposed an existing weakness within the older stormwater drainage system.

During periods of heavy rain and thunderstorms, the rear downpipe was dumping water into an old clay stormwater line and had begun to flood the back garden instead of carrying water away from the home. Older clay pipes are particularly susceptible to cracking due to ground movement and intrusive tree roots, so time was of the essence with this job. Once tree roots infiltrate the pipes, they continue expanding and trap sediments and debris, restricting stormwater flow and becoming a major problem.

As well as the intrusive tree roots, the homeowners were preparing to build a new deck in their backyard, so diagnosing the condition of their underground drainage system was a top priority before construction could begin.

High-Pressure Jet Blasting and CCTV Drain Diagnostics

To identify the root cause of the blocked gutter, our plumbers carried out a combined CCTV drain inspection and high-pressure jet-blasting service.

High-pressure water jetting is commonly used in older stormwater systems because it can safely remove:

• Tree root intrusion
• Built-up mud and sediment
• Organic debris
• Sludge accumulation
• Foreign objects restricting the water flow

Once the line was cleared safely, our plumbers confirmed via the CCTV drain cameras that there was significant root intrusion within the old clay drainage line. The tree had already been removed from the Marrickville property, but its large roots remained active underground, impacting the pipework.

Excavation and Stormwater Drainage Repairs

Due to the significant tree root damage, our team decided that excavation work was required to properly access and repair the stormwater pipes and lines.

The drainage works included:

• Excavation approximinately 1m x 1m in size
• Excavation to 1 metre in depth
• Access beneath the property's partition fence line
• Further water jetting and CCTV  inspections while the damaged pipe was exposed
• Installation of a new inspection point for future maintenance access

Installing a new inspection point is an important factor in long-term drainage solutions as it allows our plumbers to access the stormwater lines more easily in the future for maintenance, cleaning and other diagnostic work.

As well as this extensive stormwater works, our team also assessed general maintenance plumbing issues throughout the Marrickville home, including servicing taps, bath and shower repairs, cistern connection replacements and external tap washer maintenance.

While this project had a lot of moving parts and got messy and complicated in areas, our plumbers delivered long-term drainage solutions for the homeowner. Great work, guys!