News

Cosmetics companies are very good at promoting their products as wholesome and natural, going to great lengths to make claims as to the exotic origins of the ingredients. Kelp from the southern oceans. Salts from desiccated seas. Oils extracts from Peruvian leaves. Tiny plastic beads that get ingested by marine life. OK, they don’t usually mention that one, but they do like to talk about the beads, which are there to offer a little abrasiveness to facial scrubs and assist exfoliation. You might have tried such a product yourself.

Consumers are largely unaware that these beads are made of plastic. You might assume they were some kind of sand or crushed seed, especially given the marketing that surrounds the products. But for presumably economic reasons, plastic is the most viable option.

And because these products are generally used over the bathroom sink or in the bath or shower, there’s only one place they’re going – down the drain and into the water system. At 0.01–0.5 mm in size, they can get through initial sewage treatment and make it out into the rivers and oceans.

There has been a campaign for several years to ban microbeads, but things have come to head with the Attorney General of New York State suggesting that he would be pushing for an all-out ban of the product after huge concentrations were discovered in the Great Lakes.

Pressure is now being placed on cosmetics manufacturers to change the materials they use for microbeads. However the noises coming from the industry is that they don’t see it as an urgent problem but will have a look at more environmentally friendly alternatives. If awareness of the issue grows, however, change might not be in their hands; boycotts by consumers or retailers would give them the hurry-up.

As a drainage consultancy we often advise people on what not to pour down the drain, but sometimes the problems aren’t immediately obvious. It’s probably only a matter of time before plastic microbeads go the way of CFCs in aerosol bottles. And we seem to have managed perfectly well without those.

Summer is nearly upon us, so many of us will be heading out to the garden to do a spot of titivating. It’s also a time when drain cleaners see a small peak in the number of drains blocked by soil.

Part of the problem comes during dry weather, when topsoil can turn to dust and get blown around on the breezes. Much of the soil dust that lands on the concrete of patios and paths will get washed down the drains when it rains. The small amounts will be carried away by the water and in some circumstances, especially when there’s only light rain for prolonged periods, the soil can settle as silt in the interceptor traps or areas with slow flow. This is how the blockages start. Even large municipal storm drains can get blocked during dry spells as there’s no regular flow to prevent build-ups.

Take care as well if you’re venturing out back for the first time since last autumn. You might want to give paths, yards and patios a good brush, but make sure you put any detritus in the bin or return it to the soil – it certainly shouldn’t be brushed into the surface water drain!

Another time you need to take care is when you’re hosing your borders. You can cause a large amount of splashing, and these dirty, clumpy soil particles full of roots, leaves, sand, pebbles and dust can quickly turn into a blockage in your drain, especially if they have been partially blocked by autumn leaves. A hose head with multiple settings can help here. Use a spray setting, not a soak or jet setting – this will minimise splash. If you have borders around a lawn, making sure there’s a drop of about 10–15 cm (4–6 inches) between the lawn edge and the soil. This will help keep run-off topsoil within the borders. Physical barriers can be bought to make sure there’s no collapse of the lawn edges.

Drain covers can be a useful way of keeping most of the soil, leaves and other detritus out of your surface water drains while allowing water through. They can be bought from all DIY stores for a few pounds, which is a sound investment in our book.

Last week a Hull schoolboy became yet another victim of a global crime spree. Joshua Star-Harris never met his assailant, but the scars, the broken nose and the lost tooth point to the seriousness of the incident. The crime? Drain cover theft. Joshua was happily riding his scooter near his home when he came to an abrupt stop after his front wheel dropped into the coverless drain.

In some ways, perhaps, Joshua can count himself lucky. The crime of drain cover theft is so widespread that there have inevitably been a significant number of deaths over the past decade. There’s one tragic story from Bogota, Colombia, of a two-year old falling down a drain while chasing birds – her body was found a mile downstream. There are reports of vans in Colombia being equipped with heavy lifting equipment and having a hole cut in the floor, so they merely have to stop over a cover, lift it off and drive away, a procedure that can be completed in moments. It’s a highly organised crime, and just like those in Hull, the criminals don’t care much for the potential victims who are suffering death, injury and damage to their vehicles as a result of their actions.

In China, where there is also an epidemic, the maximum penalty for manhole cover theft is the death sentence. In the build-up to the Winter Olympics in Sochi, there were reports that more than 30 manhole covers were being stolen every day – when each one could collect £100, it’s no wonder.

Stealing drain and manhole covers isn’t a new phenomenon, but it has undergone a huge increase since the mid-00s when the price of ferrous scrap metals started to rise. To a criminal mind, manhole and grid covers are just like cash lying around, and as long as there are uninquisitive or collaborating scrap dealers, there has been an outlet for their ill-gotten drain covers. Ferrous metals have therefore become the new lead, which has been stolen from roofs for decades. While there could be legitimate reasons for selling scrap lead – builders putting a new roof on a house, for example – to sell grid and manhole covers can only be a criminal act, unless it’s a local authority or the Highways Agency doing the selling.

The Scrap Metal Dealers Act 2013 was an attempt to legislate the problem away. It included measures such as the requirement that scrap dealers do not pay for their goods in cash to make transactions more traceable, and that records are kept of all transactions and the names and addresses of sellers. While this might have put some criminals off, the story from Hull – and countless others around the country – proves that some people will still try their luck.

One solution has been to make manhole covers out of materials that have little or no scrap value, such as non-recyclable plastics. But this is not always an appropriate solution, particularly when the covers are for busy roads; it’s usual for covers on such hhighways to be group 4 (which can withstand 40 tonnes) or group 5 (60 tonnes). Another way of preventing theft is to use anti-theft covers, although nothing is truly immune to the actions of a determined thief.

As long as ferrous metal is valuable enough to risk a spell behind bars, and as long as there are unscrupulous scrap metal merchants willing to buy it, this crime will probably continue to exist. The best defence for the motorist is vigilance and timely reporting of missing covers – and alerting road users and pedestrians to the danger as soon as possible.

We’ve all done it – tried to fish our mobile phones out of storm drain inlets on public streets and then become viral sensations when we got stuck. To be fair to the hapless Ella Birchenough, she seems to have laughed off her close encounter with Dover’s sewerage system. The 16-year-old has already done a few interviews with the press and has even been on Daybreak to talk about her experience.

Fortunately she has the support of her family. In a touching statement on the ordeal, her mother said, “I was really worried. My face went white and I was in a panic. I was scared she might sink. I ran out the house, turned the corner - but as soon as I saw her I burst out laughing.” Thanks, mum.

If you’ve not seen the story and are wondering how she ended up waist deep in a drain, Ella had figured that the best way to retrieve her phone would be to lower herself down and grab the stricken phone with her feet, then un-lower herself out again, dab any water off the phone then go back to school. A career in the Cirque du Soleil would have awaited Ms Birchenough had she pulled that stunt off.

As for the phone, well, it was a write off. Whether it was a written-off BlackBerry or a written-off iPhone depends on which paper you read, but she ended up with a brand new iPhone anyway courtesy of the lovely people at ITV. So after she’s sold the old one on eBay, it’ll turn out to have been a good day at the office for Ella.

So what is the best thing to do when you drop something valuable down a storm drain? Well, first, do a quick visual. Can you see the item or is it submerged (or too dark to see)? If it’s a phone, time is of the essence as every second of seepage increases the likelihood of the phone – and most importantly all its data – being lost. If it’s something really valuable like jewellery, it’s probably best calling for help and standing watch over the drain in case someone else’s prying eyes have seen the whole thing happening. If it’s a valueless but irreplaceable item of sentimental importance, then you’ll have to make a judgement call on getting professional help in.

The overriding rule is SAFETY FIRST. Don’t step out onto a main road and don’t remove grid covers unsupervised. Side streets are safer, but don’t lift a grille and leave it off – that’s dangerous.

You might be able to reach down with your hand and retrieve objects – drains aren’t always as deep as you might think, and often have traps in them too. A child’s fishing net or a hook taped to a cane might be enough to lift it out.

If this all fails and you really want the item back, get in touch with you local authority in the area and see if they can help. It’s possible they won’t be able to or will charge for their services, in which case you could try local domestic drainage companies. Obviously, the amount you’re willing to pay will depend on how deep your pockets are and how much you want the thing, but they will have the tools to do the job.

That’s what the average person should do, anyway; but the average person won’t get on Celebrity Big Brother. It’s your call

The local press has been in something of a fever over the past week or two about the perils of pouring cooking oil down the drain. And when we say local, we mean all those free local newspapers that pop through British people’s doors – and their related websites. They all refer to a YouGov report (which we’ve not been able to track down) that says something along the lines of: “X per cent of [insert local town] residents pour their cooking oil down the drain and Y per cent don’t know that they will have to pay for damage.” Here are a few examples for your delectation, from as far afield as Blackpool and Gloucestershire.

While we suspect this might be more of a PR exercise than actual news (there are plenty of mentions of one particular company, let’s just say), at the core of the story is a truth that we in the drain cleaning industry have long known: people do dispose of too much fat down the drains.

Now let’s get one thing clear – it’s impossible to never let any oil go down the drain. Every time you wash a frying pan or a plate that’s had food on it, it’s inevitable that oil and grease will be washed away. Householders and businesses might mitigate the effects by using detergents that break the oils down, and the amounts are often rather small too, but even if we think we’re being careful, it’s not impossible for a build-up to start.

We all know that butter, sandwich spread and lard are solids when they’re in the fridge, but melt at quite low temperatures – and that many oils and fats will return to solid form when they cool down to room temperature after being heated up. Well that’s exactly what happens to oils when we put them down the sink, where they can go from being liquid on the pan or plate to solid as soon as they hit the cool waste water underground. While we need to be mindful, under normal circumstances this won’t be a problem, largely thanks to the washing-up liquids and dishwasher tablets we use.

The real danger comes when people pour used oil straight down the sink, for example when they have been sautéing or doing a Sunday roast. We might even forget just how much oil or butter there is in gravy or béchamel sauce and pour any excess down the sink. But worst of all are those who will empty their deep-fat fryers straight down the kitchen sink. It’s only a matter of time before this practice will result in a blockage.

The “report” is also correct to point out that blockages are not always the responsibility of the local authorities or water companies –quite often it’s the householder who has to foot the bill. Landlords are particularly susceptible to unexpected unblocking bills because they might own several properties and with a high turnover of tenants in each, it would be difficult (and unfair) to pin the blame for a blockage on the current resident. At the very least, landlords should include a line about disposing of oil in their contracts. They might also consider installing grease traps, too.

So we say to the good people of Blackpool, Halifax, Gloucestershire, Hucknall, Swindon ... “Stop and think – not down the sink” (the official mantra, apparently). It’s much better to get an old cooking oil bottle and a funnel and use it to keep your used oils. Many local authority recycling yards will now take it, and it can be burnt as a clean source of energy, so you’ll not only be avoiding blocked drains – you’ll be helping the planet too.

Consumer group Which? has revealed that many customers are unaware that when they sign up for water pipe insurance that it only covers basic servicing, which could leave them open to expensive sewer drainage issues further down the line.

It is costing consumers £100million a year in “unnecessary” cover when free pipe repair schemes are often available from these water companies.

The repair work is not altogether thorough either, according to the CEO at Drain Claim, David Hayes, who said:

“On a daily basis we are seeing the home insurance industry wriggling out of countless drainage insurance claims by using the term ‘serviceable’, a term that we have yet to find a definition for in any home insurance policy documents.

“As far as the innocent insurance customer is concerned the word ‘serviceable’ does not exist when they take out their policies and yet it is being wielded more and more by insurers to convince customers that serious drainage problems can be resolved with a cheap sticking plaster style repair.

“This risky solution leaves customers vulnerable to even greater sewage problems in the future.”

When it comes to sewer problems, it is always worth speaking to the specialists as a reputable drainage contractor will be able to tell you exactly what solution is needed, and perform the right level of repair to prevent any costly situations in the near future.

Local firms in West Didsbury can now get on with their trading again after regional water company United Utilities announced the end of large scale drainage maintenance works as part of their River Mersey improvements scheme.

Since the start of January Burton Road had been closed to allow for the building of a new sewer overflow chamber. Last Wednesday the road was made accessible again, meaning relief for those using the busy junction with Lapwing Lane and Cavendish Road.

The water company has made a point of praising local traders for their understanding while the £1.4 million project was being carried out by the drainage engineers.

Project manager at United Utilities, Gary Marsh, said:

“It’s great news for everyone in West Didsbury that we’ve got Burton Road open again, in time for the Easter weekend.

“We had to overcome some hurdles, including redesigning parts of our work to avoid gas pipes and telephone cables. But the team have really pulled out all the stops, working weekends, to make sure we finished on time.

“We know the work has been disruptive, and I’d like to say a big thank you to local people for their patience.”

You may have read recently about how water company Yorkshire Water have been making use of an unusual method to take on the problems they have been having with sewer blockages in the region. We will now consider how this works in practice.

The bacillus bacteria, which can be found in the gut of humans, is organically grown to feed on the fat, greases and oils accumulating in the sewerage system. Before it is poured into the sewer, it is first mixed with non-chlorinated water.

These fat-busting bugs, as they have come to be known, were originally used in a trial by the water company but after a number of successes during the festive period, they have been deployed in a wider programme within the city of York.

A new approach to the growing issue of sewer blockages was required, with this solution now seeming to be working on an on-going basis.

Yorkshire Water’s stakeholder engagement manager, Simon Young, said:

“The deployment of fat-busting bugs in our sewer network is an example of this, with these ‘good’ bacteria literally feasting on solidified fat in our sewer. And because these bacteria constantly multiply in the right environment, we can leave them to get on with their job in our sewers, seven days a week, 24 hours a day, without the need for regular dosing.”

Yorkshire Water has revealed that in the past six months alone, their teams have had to take on over 100 sewer blockage jobs in the seaside resort of Bridlington.

This just goes to show the issue at a local level, with nearly 19,000 blockages having to be attended in the region last year. With 54,000 kilometres of sewer pipes to look after, this just goes to show that the water company certainly has its work cut out.

Their statistics show that around 38 per cent of these blockages were due to grease, oil and fat being poured sown the sink or nappies, sanitary items and baby wipes being flushed down the toilet.

As well as proving to be costly to remove the build up of these products from the sewers it can also cause inconvenience to householders too. Home flooding is just one result of this being allowed to happen.

However, in order to combat this growing problem, the water company has started rolling out an innovative new sewer clearing method of using fat-busting bugs in addition to common practices such as drain jetting.

Patrick Killgallon, pollution manager at Yorkshire Water, said:

“The deployment of fat-busting bugs in our sewer network is an example of this, with these ‘good’ bacteria literally feasting on solidified fat in our sewer. And because these bacteria constantly multiply in the right environment, we can leave them to get on with their job in our sewers, seven days a week, 24 hours a day, without the need for regular dosing.

“Consequently, we’re confident their introduction will significantly help to reduce fat, oils and grease blockages in the region, ensuring waste water from local homes and businesses can flow freely to our sewage works where we can recycle it properly before returning it to the environment.”

Water company Yorkshire Water have taken the unusual step to deploy fat-busting bugs in the sewers of Bridlington to remove blockages from the system.

This treatment process is completely environmentally-friendly and involves trillions of the bacteria being mixed with non-chlorinated water before being allowed to feed on the grease, oils and fat in the sewer.

Well-known problem areas at Lancaster Road and South Marine Drive were the location for this innovative solution.

These blockages are caused by the fat reaching the sewer from private drains, normally through the kitchen sink as well as from appliances like the dishwasher. The flow capacity of pipes is severely reduced by this practice and often results in home flooding and pollution of the environment.

Pollution manager at the water company, Patrick Killgallon, said:

“Having your home filled with waste from your toilet is a very unpleasant experience which no one should ever have to suffer, which is why we work hard to encourage people to think twice before they pour left over fat down the plug hole or flush the odd make-up wipe down the toilet.

“This said, we’ve already carried out almost 700 jobs to remove blockages in our Hull sewers so far this year, which shows the sheer scale of the issue we all face.”

Major re-surfacing works and a drainage system upgrade are due to start in Bedford, the local borough council has revealed this week.

Traffic around Dame Alice Street will be affected by road closures for the seven-week project.

Bedford Borough Council has revealed that the signalling equipment was in desperate need of replacement, while drainage improvements were also necessary to ensure road safety in the area.

New cycleways will also be put in place as well as the resurfacing works and other improvements.

Businesses and local residents have been informed of the imminent disruptions while the work is being carried out. It has been organised so that it will all be completed in time for the Diamond Jubilee celebrations at the start of June.

Councillor Charles Royden, said:

“These are vital works which will significantly improve this important road to ensure it can continue to be used for many years to come.

“Surveys have also shown the drainage beneath Dame Alice Street is in serious need of repair and if left to deteriorate further it will affect the structure of the road.

“This work will also improve surface drainage from the road itself and prevent localised flooding. We are already working with Anglian Water to correct these issues as promptly as possible.”

The next stop for Yorkshire Water’s ‘Doing The Dirty’ tour was the town of Rotherham in South Yorkshire. On Saturday local residents were given the chance to obtain free sink strainers from the water company as part of their campaign to highlight sewer issues.

Yorkshire Water organised the event to show the community that sewerage systems can be damaged by the simple act of pouring fat down the sink in the kitchen.

As well as the goodies on offer, the water company provided interested residents with free advice on how best to dispose of cooking fats and oils, instead of getting rid of it in this popular way.

People flocked to the Old Town Hall to see what the organisation had to say, with many surprised to hear how engineers from the company had to clear 18,000 blockages last year throughout the region. Even in Rotherham there were 143 blockages related to fat deposits, with 81 of them being avoidable.

Pollution manager at the water company, Patrick Killgallon, said:

“Having your home filled with waste from your toilet and indeed your sink is a very unpleasant experience, which is why we are encouraging people to think twice before they pour left over fat down the plug hole or flush the odd make-up wipe down the toilet.

“We hope that by taking our road show on tour around the region we can really show people what the consequences look like.”