Earlier this week, I posted some lessons learned in the operation of a second hand pressure washer to clear my drain.
Today Severn Trent came out and completed what I could not manage by myself.
Wednesday night saw me with freshly purchased nitrile gloves and wellies, trying to clear the blockage by lifting the inspection cover outisde the kitchen door and using drain rods to clear the shared sewer under the kitchen extension. The cavity was filled to the brim with brown smelly water (why is it the sweetcorn floats to the top?) and by probing gently with a rod, it seemed a couple of feet deep.
Things didn’t go well. With six rods duly screwed together and the rods well into the pipe, the connection between rods six and seven snapped at the cast metal thread. The end of the rod six dropped out of view into the void of murky water. Now the rods were screwed in an altogether different way. There was no way I could reach the rods without dipping my hands in the muck. My gloves don’t reach to the elbow. A tactical retreat was called for and I left the cover off in case the water level dropped overnight.
By Thursday morning the muck had settled a bit and the top few inches of water were relatively transparent. I phoned Severn Trent water at lunch to ask them to send out a van. By this point I really didn’t care how much they would charge.
Thursday night I wrapped my arm in a bin liner and retrieved the rods. All but two of the connections snapped as I pulled them round the bend and up out of the inspection chamber. Cheap castings. Meh.
Severn Trent turned up this morning. It had rained heavily and the whole patio was an inch deep in mercifully fresh rainwater although the occasionaly floater could be seen.
In an act devoid of any euphemism whatsoever they opened the hatch round the back, got our their superior hose (bigger and more powerful than mine) stuck it up the waste pipe and cleared the blockage in seconds. They relieved an immense amount of pent up pressure. The drain was fairly clear as well. Assemble your own jokes. My colleagues at work have. Most of them are unrepeatable. Feel free to leave yours in the comments.
This afternoon when I returned from work, the clean up operation began with a vengeanace. At least the soapy water has somewhere to drain now.
Andrew Clayton 
Did they charge you?
No. Shared sewer. Under “recent” legislation ST told me they assume responsibility. To be fair, some of the stuff that streamed out was definitely not from our household. It was definitely a joint op.
So glad you’ve finally got it sorted. Those men that do that job should get medals although I found the back office staff severely lacking in brain cells!
Real live Richard III’s floating down the patio. Horrid. Glad you’re sorted. Funny, we never think about what happens to shit once we flush. Moral in there somewhere…
Best wishes
Bob
I must admit I didn’t check what kind of floaters they were in the end. Assuming the worst was simply my way of anticipating horrible surprises. As to what happens after, I can now draw you a diagram. With the right crayon I could pretty much colour it in as well. ;o)