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Replaced gully - is it acceptable?
- Thread starter TheSalad
- Start date
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My feeling is that anything that would fit down the downpipe won't block the gully. You might get an accumulation of mush, but a burst of heavy rain should flush it through.
Those who have downpipes with a "shoe" on the end, i.e. an angle pointing outwards, should have a look when we get a heavy downpour. Mine were jetting straight across the grate onto the surrounding paving with only a minority actually going in.
Standard grate grids have marked cutouts already there for common pipe sizes...
The smaller red and green ones are for waste pipes, the larger purple one fits a round downpipe. Use a square to round adaptor if necessary.
I used a stack of couplers to extend the existing pipe that previously had a shoe. There's enough slack to squeeze them together, slide one out then remove the gully lid if ever needed.
Those who have downpipes with a "shoe" on the end, i.e. an angle pointing outwards, should have a look when we get a heavy downpour. Mine were jetting straight across the grate onto the surrounding paving with only a minority actually going in.
Standard grate grids have marked cutouts already there for common pipe sizes...
The smaller red and green ones are for waste pipes, the larger purple one fits a round downpipe. Use a square to round adaptor if necessary.
I used a stack of couplers to extend the existing pipe that previously had a shoe. There's enough slack to squeeze them together, slide one out then remove the gully lid if ever needed.
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Yes, that is my experience of many years. The only obstruction, or blockage here, has been a result of debris collected on top of, and by the grid.
Other designs of hopper, are even designed for outlet pipes, to bypass the grid completely. I have one of those serving our downstairs toilet washbasin.
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A very good idea if you have a soakaway, avoiding ruining it by silting it up with rubbish, after which the only fix involves a digger.
Not worth bothering if you have a combined system though. It will go wherever stuff goes, and will ultimately end up on a farmer's field somewhere along with the rest of the sewage solids.
I've seen a single large leaf block a grid, it was sitting directly under the downpipe spout and all the water was bouncing off it onto the suroundings.
Bottle gullies soon become blocked, no matter how hard you try and stop stuff going down them. I unblock mine two to three times per year. The snug fitting sleeve, only leaves a small amount of space for water and minor solids. Leaves and stuff gets trapped. It soon builds up. They are just good at doing their job, i.e. collecting the rubbish before it can harm the soakaway.
We had bother with one that was fed by the kitchen after we moved in. When I took it apart it was a block of cooking fat, presumably the previous occupants liked their pie and chips.
Also the shower has a long waste pipe, I plungered it and something resembling a rat fell into the drain, composed of hair. I did fish that out, but that was pretty unusual owing to the dodgy long waste pipe with no fall along it.
Haven't had much bother otherwise though. I put all ours in 4 years ago and haven't touched them since.
Leaves should break down pretty quickly when immersed in water. Twigs might be more of an issue though.
Also the shower has a long waste pipe, I plungered it and something resembling a rat fell into the drain, composed of hair. I did fish that out, but that was pretty unusual owing to the dodgy long waste pipe with no fall along it.
Haven't had much bother otherwise though. I put all ours in 4 years ago and haven't touched them since.
Leaves should break down pretty quickly when immersed in water. Twigs might be more of an issue though.
Nowt wrong with pie &chips, so far as drain are concerned, if the greasy remnants are put where they belong, in the bin. We drain our remnants, straight into the kitchen bin, on top of the bin contents, so it gets soaked up.
Old neighbour, sneakily poked their kitchen waste through the fence, and into the rain gutter. That used to regularly choke up with their grease, and overflow, flooding our garden.
Oak leaves don't.
Building Regs, Part H, section 1.13 'A branch pipe discharging to a gully should terminate between the grating or sealing plate and the top of the water seal.' This was done to allow the full force of the discharge to cleanse the Gully, and prevent build up of stinking residue on top of the grid, which often eventually blocked the grid.
Not the most pleasant of tasks, cleaning years worth of kitchen waste, soap and hair from a blocked gully grid.
If a bit of thought is put into the waste pipework installation, it's usually possible to allow enough movement to permit the grid to be lifted out, but the only time that should really need to be done is if the gully is blocked. Proper disposal of cooking oils and fats should negate the worst of that issue anyway. Metal grids can soon be replaced with a plastic equivalent to allow the grid to be cut to accept the pipework.
Rainwater is often better connected via the back inlet, this allows easy removal of the grid for cleaning when needed, but if going to a soakaway or surface water sewer, there is no need for a trap, so a Rainwater gully, designed to catch and collect detritus, is a better option in this instance.
Regarding the original question, no, that is not acceptable. Splashback from discharges is going to make a mess everywhere, and will likely cause damage and/or damp issues in the wall behind. Both pipes need to be extended to discharge below the grid to avoid unsanitary/damp issues. Get the installer back to sort it properly!
Not the most pleasant of tasks, cleaning years worth of kitchen waste, soap and hair from a blocked gully grid.
If a bit of thought is put into the waste pipework installation, it's usually possible to allow enough movement to permit the grid to be lifted out, but the only time that should really need to be done is if the gully is blocked. Proper disposal of cooking oils and fats should negate the worst of that issue anyway. Metal grids can soon be replaced with a plastic equivalent to allow the grid to be cut to accept the pipework.
Rainwater is often better connected via the back inlet, this allows easy removal of the grid for cleaning when needed, but if going to a soakaway or surface water sewer, there is no need for a trap, so a Rainwater gully, designed to catch and collect detritus, is a better option in this instance.
Regarding the original question, no, that is not acceptable. Splashback from discharges is going to make a mess everywhere, and will likely cause damage and/or damp issues in the wall behind. Both pipes need to be extended to discharge below the grid to avoid unsanitary/damp issues. Get the installer back to sort it properly!
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The regularity of blockages from gutters will depend on how many trees are close. Thankfully we live in the middle of a field so don't get much.
We did have a yew hedge, which dropped heaps of long needles that never broke down that would accumulate everywhere including the drains and even the scuttle trays under the car windscreens. I got rid and got some nice leafy mixed hedging instead.
We did have a yew hedge, which dropped heaps of long needles that never broke down that would accumulate everywhere including the drains and even the scuttle trays under the car windscreens. I got rid and got some nice leafy mixed hedging instead.
Our problem, was two massive weeping willows in the garden, when they dropped their leaves. I cut them down long ago. Now we just suffer a bit of general leaf litter, with most of it collecting at the side door, which is in a bit of a corner. Never much of a problem now, with blocked drains.
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