If you’ve got a problem with an outdoor drain or pipe, a drainage specialist is likely to recommend a CCTV drain survey. This can be a powerful tool in identifying and diagnosing drainage problems, acting as the first step towards finding an effective solution.
But if you’re unfamiliar with how CCTV drain surveys work, you’re bound to have some questions. For example, how long does a CCTV drain survey take, is it invasive, and what kinds of things does it show?
We’ll answer all of these questions and more, starting with what a typical drain survey involves.
What a CCTV drain survey involves – step-by-step
If your water is draining slowly, you’ve noticed pooling water in the garden, or there are unpleasant odours coming from the pipes, this could be a sign of a blockage or damage in your drains.
The difficulty is pinpointing the problem, as you can’t actually see inside the drain. This is where CCTV cameras come in. These are flexible hoses with a specialist CCTV drain camera on one end, which can be carefully fed into the pipes. A professional can carry out a CCTV drain survey to identify damage, cracks, holes, leaks, or blockages via this live camera feed, as well as seeing exactly what’s causing them.
This information makes it much easier to diagnose the cause of drainage problems. And once you know the cause, you can choose the most effective solution – whether that’s using high-powered jet washers, drain lining, replacing pipework or another technique.
Here are the steps involved in a typical CCTV drain survey
- Initial consultation – you can explain the problems you’ve been having (i.e. slow-draining water, bad smells from the drain, pooling water) to your drainage specialist. They’ll note this information and carry out an initial assessment, just in case there’s an easy solution without the need for a drain survey.
- Inserting the camera – a high-resolution CCTV camera is inserted into the pipe through an access point. It is gently moved along the drain until it reaches the end or encounters a blockage.
- Real-time monitoring – as the camera is maneuvered through the system, drainage specialists will carefully watch the live feed. They’ll look for any signs of damage or obstruction, making detailed notes about their findings. The footage is also recorded.
- Reporting – after the survey, you’ll get a full report about the findings of the survey and the expert’s recommendations on how to fix the problem.
How long does a CCTV drain survey take?
Although it may involve specialist skills and equipment, a drain survey can be much quicker to carry out than you may think. It’s a non-invasive technique, so this means no time spent digging trenches or carrying out other works to gain access.
In some cases, a CCTV drain survey can take as little as 30 minutes. But to allow for preparation and especially for larger systems, you should expect it to take 2 hours as a maximum. This is for residential properties – drain surveys for commercial sites can be much more complex, so they usually take much longer.
The results: what a CCTV drain survey shows
So, what can the results of a CCTV drain survey actually tell you? Here are just a few of the things your report may show:
- In-growing tree roots, which penetrate the drain and continue to expand, causing further problems
- Installation problems, leading to leaks
- Fractures and cracks, corrosion and disconnections
- Collapsed drains, where the structure of the drain has completely fallen in on itself
- A build-up of pipe scale, restricting the flow of water
- Minor and major blockages
- Animal infestations.
Comments are closed.