Blocked downspout - appropriate tools to unblock?

[parakeet]

The short downspout from the lower bay roof is blocked. Evidence: water build-up and evident gunk at the opening of the pipe.

In this Victorian Terraced house, the pipe goes under the garden and exits onto the pavement. From out on the pavement, I have pushed five metres of drain rods in with no blockage, so the underground leg seems clear; it is just the vertical that seems blocked - or the intermediary bit at the bottom, which also turns.

The only thing is - due to the upper pipe dog-leg/kink, it's not possible to shove a straight poker down...

So what should I be thinking of using to unclog it? Will those flexi things with handles on the end (I believe they're called "augers") do the job, or are they mostly for internal pipes? https://www.amazon.co.uk/Amtech-S18...nsparent/dp/B01LYX9RRV/ref=asc_df_B01LYX9RRV/

I'm loathe to try loosening the dog-leg; we're talking very old ironwork here.
I'm also loathe to jet wash it, as the wall is newly painted... though this may happen with an auger, too.

 

[Deleted member 267285]

Had some success previously with some flexible plumbing pipe (15mm) or the curtain track stuff.

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

There is a possibility, that blocked perhaps with the likes of a tennis ball.

 

[conny]

Any trees in the area? Leaf blockage is a favourite at this time of the year even if you don't have trees in your own garden, (they can be blown a long distance and settle into guttering). Which leads on to the next question. Are your gutters relatively clear/clean? I have a problem with moss on my roof which tends to break away/get dislodged by birds, and this can easily clog up the gutters over time.
As mentioned, some 15mm plastic pipe can be tried to push the blockage down closer to the outlet. It may break it down into smaller pieces that will flow through with a good jet wash. You may need to ram the plastic pipe with some force to get it round the bends and break up the blockage.
Re: tennis ball. It's my experience they are too large to go down the pipe but can sit across the opening in the inlet pipe and act as a plug for a short time. Once the water level begins to rise they tend to float up and allow most water to escape before settling back down again.

 

[parakeet]

Had some success previously with some flexible plumbing pipe (15mm) or the curtain track stuff.

Thanks. I've bought this flexible unblocker and am going to give it ago - https://www.toolstation.com/drain-u...m_medium=feed&utm_campaign=googleshoppingfeed

I actually suspect that I won't be able to unblock it and I'lll need (get someone) to replace the pipework, ideally maybe routing the long one into the short one https://www.diynot.com/diy/threads/route-main-downspout-into-another.600110/

 

[Mr Chibs]

Think I'd take the unblocker back, and just replace the entire section with plastic.

You could run it separate or tie it in to the downpipe on the left.

 

[parakeet]

Think I'd take the unblocker back, and just replace the entire section with plastic.

You could run it separate or tie it in to the downpipe on the left.

How would you "tie it in"?
Currently, the long downspout from the top roof exits all that roof water out on to the garden.
I'd love to get it off the property. The shorter, blocked downspout theoretically exits underground and out on the road, through a channel in the pavement.
The shorter downspout is a bit narrower.

 

[Mr Chibs]

Are you saying the thin downpipe (RHS) goes into the ground?
Hard to make out, but it looks like it just discharges onto the paving.

So the long downpipe (LHS) is also discharging to the paving?

Are the neighbouring properties the same arrangement?

 

[parakeet]

Are you saying the thin downpipe (RHS) goes into the ground?
Hard to make out, but it looks like it just discharges onto the paving.

So the long downpipe (LHS) is also discharging to the paving?

Are the neighbouring properties the same arrangement?

RHS short pipe (from the small, single-storey bay roof) - pipe goes under the front pavers, out through the front wall, then there is a channel in the pavement, out to the street. Recent inspection made me aware it's blocked and leaking over onto the bay area, albeit marginally. The gutter is clear. I have shoved drain rods in from the pavement and they go all the way to the bottom of the downspout - or, rather, to where it kinks/doglegs into the ground... about six metres. In other words, the horizontal stretch is not blocked.



LHS long pipe (from the main roof) - pipe simply exits on to the pavers. I don't like this idea anymore - we do have damp issues in the bay.

House was refurbed in 2012, we took ownership in 2013. It is apparent from Google Maps Street View that, before that time, our neighbour on the left in the photo had a tall downspout (exit destination unclear) and our house did not, only one for the bay. Following the refurb, our side is the one with a tall downspout (exiting to pavers) and their side only has the short one for the bay. So, maybe my tall downspout is getting water from two rooves. The neighbour does have another neighbour on the other side who does have a downspout. I'm not sure if every house should have their own downspout, or if it's typically one-between-two.

All/most houses on the street have this system of water exiting through an under-garden pipe, through the pavement channel. I think it's a Victorian thing; the house is from circa 1885. I have no idea how many of them are in use, and I have no idea whether the original builders intended for all roof water to exit through this, or only the bay roof's. The main water I see exiting to the street is all the run-off from the drop-kerb driveways that have become to common here, which turn the roadside into a river - hard to tell how much of it is roof water.

Ultimately, I'd like to get all the water off the property. Question marks over a) whether this is allowed and b) whether the under-ground pipe is wide enough to take all roof water. Re: a) "allowed" - my cursory reading suggests that, in planning law, it's more likely that a brand-new system exiting to pavement would not be allowed, that a soakway should be used - but what I have is arguably more like an existing original system.

Anyway, IF I can reconfigure the pipework to get ALL water off the property, then unblocking the short pipe would just be a stop-gap. Chances are, this has may have been blocked since the refurb in 2012.

 

[Deleted member 267285]

Thanks. I've bought this flexible unblocker and am going to give it ago - https://www.toolstation.com/drain-u...m_medium=feed&utm_campaign=googleshoppingfeed

I don’t think that will work as it’s for waste pipes and unclogging hair.

 

[Mr Chibs]

You've a few choices, but not all are straight-forward.

If the RHS downpipe is plastic? chop the pipe above the dog leg and see if you can located the blockage, remove and seal back up again... not sure what diameter the pipework is, as it looks smaller than 'normal' downpipe.

You are not really allowed to just redirect the surface water wherever you want, but if you have damp, something will need doing at some point.
Soakaway would probably be the norm, but there are rules/regs for these, and minimum distances from buildings etc.

Perhaps it would be better for you to redirect water from LHS to meet under paving pipe, that way it will exit on the street gutter.

I would lift up the paving and replace the underpaving pipework with modern downpipe size, glued together and replace the RHS pipework to the gutter of the bay... also I would redirect LHS pipework to your 'new' pipework.

Its faff, but straight forward.