What’s involved in a CCTV drain survey?
Drain survey reports are a very useful process for prospective homeowners and long-term tenants alike. Despite their importance to all buildings, drains aren’t often at the top of people’s lists when it comes to checking over their houses. However, by arranging for a professional to visit your property and survey your drain system, any issues can be caught and repaired before they cause serious issues.
But what does a drain survey tell us? Here, we will detail what’s included in a drain survey report, so you can have a full understanding of what goes on when you order a drain survey.
The process
When you contact us regarding a drainage survey, we will discuss your requirements with you, from the type of property the survey is required for to the type of package you want to purchase. From there, an appointment will be arranged and the engineer will be dispatched to you to carry out the survey at the most convenient possible time. Once the engineer has arrived at your property, they will then begin the inspection.
Equipment used
Our engineers have access to a wealth of state of the art equipment, designed to make drain surveys as efficient and effective as possible. We’re going to detail what exactly each piece of equipment does and why they play such a huge part in our drain surveys.
Drain cameras
These waterproof cameras are able to withstand heavy pressure; a key quality needed during these inspections, when they will be put down drains full of flowing water. The camera itself can tilt and pan, allowing for full scoping of the drain and any potential issues.
Using CCTV drain cameras, engineers can view all parts of the drain that would be otherwise very awkward or even impossible to reach. These cameras can identify a range of issues, including:
- Root ingress
- Pipe scale
- Incorrect installation
- Displaced joints
- Collapsed drains
- Causes of leaks
- Blockages
Access rods – In order to help the aforementioned cameras move along the drain, we can use access rods to push the camera along the pipes. These flexible rods can navigate bends or corners in the drains easily, and the self-righting nature of some cameras means that any twisting or rotation caused by the rods can be corrected.
Crawlers – Crawlers are remote-controlled devices that are used in pipes with diameters of 150-200mm. These devices are are able to transport the cameras to areas of the drain for inspection, and there are also many accessories available to make this access even easier.
Sonar units – Used in the same way as the aforementioned cameras, sonar units can use acoustic profiling on liquid-filled pipes. The scanning unit utilises a pressure-balanced transducer combined with pitch and roll sensors to ascertain the orientation of the units. From here, data is sent to a connected laptop and software is used for analysis. The main benefit of sonar units is that pipes can be surveyed without having to be drained.
Drain survey reports
Once the engineer has finished inspecting your drains, they will either discuss their findings face to face, else compile a report detailing exactly what they found and what the next course of action is. Depending on the type of survey package you have purchased from us, there is a wealth of information that you will receive within the report. Our Look & See package will include a face to face discussion with our engineer regarding their findings, as well as recommendations for further action and fixes.
Our Comprehensive drainage package includes a face to face discussion with recommendations, as well as a full written report on the survey, DVD footage of the work that has been carried out, imagery from the process and CAD drawings displaying the connections of the pipework, as well as the type of pipes and their diameter.
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Express Drainage Surveys are proud to provide comprehensive drainage surveys for domestic and commercial customers alike. To find out more, please get in touch with us today and we will be more than happy to help you with anything you need.