Frozen Toilet/Drains or badly fitted back to the wall toilet

[lands]

In the recent very cold weather our back to the wall with floor soil pipe toilet develpoed a leak round the base when it was flushed on the second use. We had dynorod out (plumbing section) who said it was a blocked drain (they didn't turn up) eventually got another drain company out who got a camera to soil pipe and said tree roots had frozen and expanded, causing the problem, he said it was pointless and waste of money to do anything with the weather so bad and to have the job done (roots cut out - £250) when a thaw comes. Cynical me wonders does anyone know what they are doing?
My question is this, why is the problem still happening and the weather has thawed and why is the loo leaking from the base?
I do not want to spend money on a blocked drain if it is a toilet problem and vice versa.

 

[Hugh Jaleak]

If they did a CCTV survey of the pipe, ask for a DVD copy of the survey, this will show any roots or other problems with the drain. Roots can be a problem, trees roots are looking for water and any weak point in a drain is easy prey for them. However roots freezing/expanding in a drain sounds strange, unless the drain is above the ground or at a shallow depth, even then rather unlikely IMO.

The fact the W.C. leaks on the second flush could be an indication of a blockage though. 1st flush fills the pipe, 2nd flush cant get away so starts to leak out wherever it can. However, unless the leak is so bad it allows ALL the water from the flush to leak out, the pan should start to fill with water if there's a blockage. Try tipping a bucket of water down whilst flushing, if pan fills then its a drain/blockage problem.

If roots are present they can form a ball in the pipe as they keep growing. Paper etc will catch forming a 'plug' of waste and roots that fills the drain. Cutting the roots out will give you a temporary fix, however they will simply grow back. Only long term solution is to fix the drain and possibly even to remove the offending trees. I would also be concerned about possible damage to the property itself!

 

[HERTS P&D]

The reason they didn't jet the drain was because their jetter was frozen. I know mine took an hour every morning to de-frost. Dyno Rod were just putting jobs off until the weather improved.

The roots go down to find water, there was a crack or broken/loose joint on your drain line and the roots have entered the drain. You will need to replace the drain line or have it re-lined.

A drain company can jet your drains out and then jet them with a root cutter, it will be clear for about 6 months.

Hope that helps.

Andy