Have you ever heard of drain mapping? If not, this article is for you. When purchasing or buying a new home, we usually ensure we know the condition of a home’s structure, if there is dampness present, wall damage, or a faulty boiler. One thing that often goes left unchecked by homeowners and quantity surveyors is a home’s drainage system. Just because our home’s drainage system is out of sight, hidden underground in a myriad of pipes, doesn’t mean drainage systems are any less important. Every second of every day, our drains pump water around our homes, ensuring we have hot or cold water when we want it, and we can flush our toilets. For a system that is an essential part of comfortably living in your home, it needs to be shown a bit of love and care every so often. Especially if you are undertaking building work, drain mapping is an essential part of preparing your home for structural change.
What Is Drain Mapping?
Drain mapping is pretty much exactly what it sounds like, a detailed and comprehensive map of your drains. Using CCTV drain mapping cameras that are fed through pipes, engineers can map an image of your drainage infrastructure. This makes drain mapping quick to perform and causes no disruption to your home as there is no need to excavate. In a drain mapping survey, engineers will also include where manholes lie, gullies, and where your system links up to main pipes and sewers.
Why Would Someone Get a Drain Survey?
A drainage survey is a great test of the condition of your drainage system, letting you gauge the health and condition of your pipes. With water and waste matter running through pipes all day every day, over time they will degrade as fixtures loosen and bolts begin to wear away. Drain mapping can act as a great yearly health check-up for your drainage system, helping prevent future maintenance issues by spotting weak areas or small cracks early. Through drain mapping, engineers will be able to tell you the condition of your pipes, if they have any cracks or defects, and the size, depth, and material of your pipes. This gives you detailed knowledge of your pipe system and gives context to future drainage issues.
Drain mapping can also help spot if you have tree roots growing into your pipes. Tree roots in pipes are a big issue that if not spotted early can be very expensive to fix. Tree roots grow toward moisture, and as pipes are often full of hot water they will gradually grow toward pipes. The weight of tree roots can puncture pipes, as the roots try to reach the water. This can cause a loss of pressure throughout the whole drainage system, excess water around your pipes, and a worsening leak, and in serious cases, the foundations of your home could become unstable.
How Can You Get a Drain Mapping Survey?
Drain mapping specialists from Aspect can provide this essential service that can be sometimes overlooked when carrying out building work on your property. Especially when undertaking building work on your home, booking a drain mapping test can let you know if you will encounter any drainage issues along the way, or if your home is fit for building work. Drain mapping provides the essential information you can then share with a builder, architect, or surveyor, so they know your drainage system is healthy and can withstand building work. If engineers find a serious issue that will need immediate work, Aspect engineers are equipped to diagnose this problem and carry out any repairs in a quick, timely fashion.
