Is anyone or their dh a plumber?

[CountessDracula]

I have a problem and I am not sure if I need a plumber, a drain specialist or something else

I need to talk to someone about it who does not have the sole intent of getting me to pay £100 to come out and say "oh no luv you need someone else"

pleeeeeeease!!!

Not a plumber but know a bit about drains/sewers (or used to before children anyway!)

squarer likes her drains

I know more about drains than I'd like to

Would it be possible to ask the following q?

My house has a loft conversion done a few years ago before I bought it. They put a bathroom up there with a loo with a macerator thingy on it.

When you look at the back of the house, it does not have one of those stink pipe things that goes above the top of the house (all other houses seem to have them). This was pointed out in the survey so I was going to get it done.

The other bathroom has a loo which is forever blocking. I have had plumbers round and there is no blockage at all. I keep one of those plungers on a long stick, and as long as I plunge it right down so that air gets into the pipe it then unblocks fine.

DD is a bit scared of it when the water comes up so I want to get it fixed.

Various people have suggested the following:

1. That it is because of the lack of stink pipe thing

2. That stink pipe makes no difference and it is a problem with teh drains

3. That some ventilation thing needs to be done in order to get air into the drain to prevent it blocking

I really don't know what is the best course of action. I spoke to a plumber today who said I need a drain person. I spoke to a drain person who said I needed a plumber! The plumber also said that with modern plumbing you may not need the stink pipe thing and they could have ventilated it another way

I obv have no idea about this. It is so boring it makes me want to scream. I just want to know who I need to sort it out!!

Thanks and sorry about the dull dull dullness of post

I think you are not a million miles from me CD & I have a really lovely plumber. If no one can give you any advice or you would like to ask him anyway, I can give you his number. I don't have it on me at the mo, but could post it later or tomorrow.

Bugsy LOL he is the one I called! I got it off a post you did a while ago. He has moved to Kent and said that i need a drain man!

if you ring indipendant plumber/drain men, they quite often dont charge for looking at prob..ask when you ring them..or explain prob on phone

Unless there is a blockage in the drains under your garden (and you would probably know all about it if there was - see Franny's recent thread!) I would say the problem is a "plumbing" one. The "stink pipe thing" is known as a soil stack - when you say there isn't one, do you mean there is no pipe at all taking the waste from the bathroom or that the couple of feet sticking up above the eaves are missing? The top bit is only for ventilation so should not be causing the problem if that is all that is missing.

My guess is that the macerator loo in the loft is causing the problem (would never install one myself tbh) - either because it is causing small blockages or causing a siphon effect (kind of like an air lock). You need a plumber but one who knos a good bit about drainage (not just central heating) which is not always easy to find...

Blimey, that's bad news about Martin Bellamy. He is my plumbing saviour. He is usually pretty good about plumbing advice, so he could be right about a drain person. I guess they'd still have to be a plumber but specialise in drains.
I looked on the Wandsworth Netmums but there was only one recommendation & it looked like a wife recommending her husband.

Thanks all

I wonder how I go about finding a plumber who knows a lot about drainage?

google or check yellow pages for drains, there should be a header for man with a van?!

put some caustic soda down the toilet that keeps blocking up and leave it over night.could it be that someone has put a sanitary pad down it my mistake or maybe a kids toy?
im not sure if you need a ventilated 'stink pipe' on your loft toilet, the whole idea of a macerator is that it can be situated where you would not usually be able to put a loo.we havn't got one in our downstairs cloakroom, the waste pipe is quite narrow.i bet your surveyor did'nt even notice you had a macerator,in my humble experience ive found they point out everything and anything in order to cover their backs....sorry surveyors out there not a dig honestly

bubblepop I have already had it checked and it is not blockedc

No advice on how to find a good plumber really - just avoid the AAAAAdrain clearance types

hey i was a plumber in a former life

You don't have this by any chance home care , we had a plumbing problem upgraded from heating to plumbing cover aswell then called them in a couple of weeks later

Sounds like you don't have a soil stack.Is there one for the other toilet or are both sani flo?

No there is not

I am still not clear if that is the prob though!

one of my best mates is a plumber

really Lou? Does he/she do SW London by any chance? And know lots about drains?

i know another man who does only drains as well

i can ask them both