Information

Drainage is full of jargon, and most people only encounter it when something has already gone wrong. These pages exist so you can work out what you are dealing with before you ring anyone — including us.

Drainage glossary — plain-English explanations of the terms that turn up on survey reports and quotes: lateral drain, soakaway, MSCC coding, patch lining, interceptor, surcharge. Useful if you have been handed a report and cannot tell how serious it is.

Septic tank discharge regulations — what the 2020 General Binding Rules actually require, who they apply to, and what has to change if your tank discharges to a watercourse. This catches a lot of people buying or selling a rural property.

Example survey reports — real examples of what a homebuyer drainage survey looks like when it lands, so you know what you are paying for before you commission one.

Two things worth knowing that save people money more often than anything else on this site:

A drain shared by more than one property is usually not yours to fix. Where a run serves several homes it is generally a public lateral drain and South West Water is responsible for it. If we find that, we will tell you and give you the evidence to pass on rather than invoice you for it.

A tank that keeps needing emptying usually has a failed soakaway, not a full tank. Emptying it again every few months treats the symptom and costs a fortune over a season.

If you would rather just ask someone, ring 0800 328 6655. We would rather spend two minutes on the phone telling you it is nothing than send a van you did not need.