What to execute when managing sewage or pipe fixes and fitting by yourself
What to execute when managing sewage or pipe fixes and fitting by yourself
Before executing any DIY plumbing and sewage, you should first take into consideration the rules issued by your Local Authority.
You need to explain your work plan in detail to the authority if you wish to install a new sewage system or alter an existing one, the officials will then go through the plan to check if it is in accordance with the rules. However you do not require authority approval for replacement of failed joints or cracked plumbing and drains pipes.
Surface water is basically rain. An earlier method was to directly discharge this surface water into the sewage drains, but modern homes use a surface water sewer or watercourse or soakaway to drain or absorb rainwater. In a system combining both functions, the rainwater pipes clear out into the dirty water drains through the gully traps that prevent fetid air from sneaking out of the drains. However with the new sewage systems, the foul and the surface water can be kept apart. It’s absolutely crucial that you keep the dirty water sewage system apart from the one for surface water. The Building Regulation Department will be able to guide you on any details or procedures you may require for repairs or replacement of your sewage.
Before starting your work, finalise the routes the waste pipes would take. Sewage pipes must be aligned as straight as possible, with inspection chambers at short intervals. You should not make your pipe runs very steep although some slope is needed. You can calculate the fall of a drain over a distance using a surveyors site level. In case you don’t have a surveyors site level, choose a datum point and then a water filled hosepipe can be used to calculate the fall from there.
You need to ascertain that the foundations and structure of the building is safe when digging to install your drain ditch. If you are laying a drain run parallel to the building, you must ensure that any foundations are not undermined.
If you try to dig all the trenches before you start pipe fixing, there is a chance of some trenches collapsing. Excavate a part of the sewage system, install and test the pipework, and then back fill and compact the earth before moving on to the next part.
Depending on the depth and soil conditions, the trench may require support. It is advisable to take proper precautions. If you have any worries, you should support to the trench to reduce any risk of collapsing side walls during the building phase. You must make the trench as narrow as possible while leaving enough room to work inside it. The base of the ditch should be clean and even and free from protruding stones or bricks etc. If the existing soil is too weak or clayey, you should place and compact a layer of firmer soil at the base of the trench to prevent later sinking.
Never use bricks and/or other hard materials to support the pipe in the ditch. This should not be used as support for the short or the long run because it will damage the pipe, the pipe needs to be fully supported over its full lenght. The material used for bedding should be firmly compacted down with a depression created to allow the joints in the pipes to fit easily. You will need to provide a continuous and uniform support for the complete length of the pipe.
An important criteria for pipe layout is that you should be able to access any point with a drain rod to clear blockages. Thus, a drain route must be as straight as possible between any two points. Inspection chambers have to be provided at any abrupt changes of direction or level, so that drain rods can be inserted easily.
If you are keen on DIY and follow some basic rules then you will be able to do plumbing and sewage on your own.