Drain under outside tap not connected to anything

MumOfOneInTown123 · 2023-12-04T11:17:51+00:00

Hi all, I am no expert on this so wanted to get other opinions/thoughts. We have just moved into a 60s house that's been renovated and extended at the back and side. On the side of the house where its been extended there is an outside water tap with an orange/brown plastic drain underneath it and a black grid above it next to the house foundation/wall, presumably to collect any spilt water from the tap. We noticed when it rains however, water pools in it but slowly absorbs away into the soil inside it. We thought it was blocked with soil so got someone to look at it and clear it. Instead he said the drain isn't connected to anything as he could pull the orange/brown part out and its just soil underneath. He advised building a pipe from there to the mains/manhole water drain next to it. This would cost about £620 or so. However after speaking to other people they said it may just be a soakaway leading to somewhere but doesnt that still require pipes connected to something to go somewhere? Would be great to hear other thoughts on this.

lesdeluges · 04/12/2023 11:22

Mine is similar to yours, just a soakaway thinggy. However I only use it for the garden hose which is permanently affixed and the tap is under the kitchen window. Not much help I know, but there we are!

Original poster

MumOfOneInTown123 · 04/12/2023 11:31

lesdeluges · 04/12/2023 11:22

Mine is similar to yours, just a soakaway thinggy. However I only use it for the garden hose which is permanently affixed and the tap is under the kitchen window. Not much help I know, but there we are!

Ah yes that's what we'd end up doing, just having the hose connected to it! Does rainwater end up collecting in yours as well though before eventually soaking away?

The drain person just worried me a bit suggesting we could get damp near the house foundations but other people seem to say its fine.

OP posts:

lesdeluges · 04/12/2023 12:14

No water collects because the hose has a "gun handle" and the water sprays only when I press the handle. Sometimes my aim is bad though and it ends up on the patio! The rainwater doesn't collect much either, unless it's a very wet few days, and it does soak away anyway.

Never had a damp wall since the water is not pooling.

CasperGutman · 04/12/2023 13:14

If all the water from the paving is draining into this 'soakaway' then I'd consider connecting it to the drain. But If it's just catching the occasional drip from the tap then personally I wouldn't worry.

The house foundations below the damp-proof course should be fine with sitting in moist soil. I'd expect issues if there was paving right up to the wall with water splashing above the DPC, or if you had such a flow of water that there was a risk of soil around the foundations being washed out, but not from the occasional drip from filling a watering can.

Original poster

MumOfOneInTown123 · 04/12/2023 14:36

Thanks @CasperGutman we haven’t used the tap yet and probably won’t much apart from when we use a hose.

See pictures attached of the drain. When it rains heavily water does pool on top of the soil inside it for a few hours or so whilst it very slowly soaks away. Today though its been lightly raining and seems ok.

Drain under outside tap not connected to anything

OP posts:

Tessasanderson · 04/12/2023 15:48

We have an outside tap with nothing underneath. Kind of seems pointless to have any kind of drain tbh. Whats it supposed to collect? The water from your tap? If your tap is working correctly there is no water to collect.

Sounds like at best its collecting surface water from your paved area which is right up to your brickwork and letting it dissapate. Maybe it was put in when the paving was done as a way of getting rid of surface water. We had that in our last house where we had indian sandstone fitted right upto the brickwork. They put a similar drain in but they also connected the drain to our drains (We saw them do it).

If there is another drain for surface water then i wouldnt bother doing anything for the tap water. If there isnt another drain for the surface water then i think the cost might be worthwhile

Original poster

MumOfOneInTown123 · 04/12/2023 20:05

Tessasanderson · 04/12/2023 15:48

We have an outside tap with nothing underneath. Kind of seems pointless to have any kind of drain tbh. Whats it supposed to collect? The water from your tap? If your tap is working correctly there is no water to collect.

Sounds like at best its collecting surface water from your paved area which is right up to your brickwork and letting it dissapate. Maybe it was put in when the paving was done as a way of getting rid of surface water. We had that in our last house where we had indian sandstone fitted right upto the brickwork. They put a similar drain in but they also connected the drain to our drains (We saw them do it).

If there is another drain for surface water then i wouldnt bother doing anything for the tap water. If there isnt another drain for the surface water then i think the cost might be worthwhile

Thanks @Tessasanderson thats our thoughts when we were told it wasn't connected to anything, seems pointless. Its below the tap so just assumed this would be the reason but not entirely sure.

We don't have the same drain elsewhere in our paved areas, just this one spot. Just wondering if we should be concerned if it collects heavy rain water that sits on top of the soil whilst slowly absorbing into the ground next to our foundations. Like you say maybe the cost is worthwhile to have it connected to the mains drain next to it. Just strange the previous owners didn't have that done originally?!

OP posts:

Tessasanderson · 11/12/2023 14:22

MumOfOneInTown123 · 04/12/2023 20:05

Thanks @Tessasanderson thats our thoughts when we were told it wasn't connected to anything, seems pointless. Its below the tap so just assumed this would be the reason but not entirely sure.

We don't have the same drain elsewhere in our paved areas, just this one spot. Just wondering if we should be concerned if it collects heavy rain water that sits on top of the soil whilst slowly absorbing into the ground next to our foundations. Like you say maybe the cost is worthwhile to have it connected to the mains drain next to it. Just strange the previous owners didn't have that done originally?!

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If you havent got any other drains then i think the benefits of getting it connected up are two fold then. Water that collects in the unconnected drain will no longer seep into your foundations. But also i would suspect at present, once that drain fills up the rest of the surface water is slowly seeping into your brickwork too. Is the paving below your damp proof membrain?