Just browsing houses, and noticed that one i was interested in appears to have a manhole cover in the kitchen extension floor. Not sure when extension was done, but is this an acceptable thing, or a walk away from it bodge?

https://media.rightmove.co.uk/3k/2122/96614539/2122_YEO105280_IMG_13_0000.jpeg

Yeah it’s inspection chamber lid, is the kitchen an extension? Fairly common to see that when it’s been extended over existing drainage runs.

i think the kitchen was where it is but they’ve added the dining bit on as an extension. Is it a special sort of cover if its used internally, and anything i should ask / be aware of?

My neighbors have one in the kitchen after they went over the drain.
Only 2 houses on that drain us and them not my cup of tea

I’m guessing there’s no quick and easy way of knowing if it is just draining from this house of if it’s a shared drain? Need to decide tomorrow and put an offer in if it all looks ok!

The wall between the kitchen and the dining area looks like an external wall.
It’s not really my thing either. It would make me wonder why they didn’t move it.
It’s certainly not ideal!

My Dad’s house has a similar thing in his garage extension/workshop. It’s backed up a few times and flooded his workshop with actual shit before. Luckily one time I was away and the other time I had a broken leg so didn’t get involved but put me off anything like this!

There are sealed covers which supposedly prevent that so maybe it’s fine but I’d want some kind of survey or at least explanation or similar to confirm that

The inspection cover is ok if its a proper sealed and secured version, the graphics on the wall however, would put me off my food!

Obviously your solicitor will need to check that you have build-over permission if it’s a shared drain, and your surveyor needs to give you a view on what would happen if someone got a turdpedo stuck in a fatberg a bit further down the drain.

But there’s nothing to stop you putting an offer in unless you’re planning to skimp on your loo diligence.

The inspection cover is ok if its a proper sealed and secured version, the graphics on the wall however, would put me off my food!

But that one, odd-coloured, chair?

That’s for when you’ve got workshop clothes on and come in for curried beans on toast (with sultanas)?

The planning application for the extension should be held by the local authority and may have useful info. Some LAs put them online.

Surely that falls under building control rather than planning?

Sewer network specialist here.

TLDR – I wouldn’t want it.

If the house is otherwise ok then I would check if a build over agreement has been obtained from the local water company. I very much doubt it has been – only exception might be if it was built before 2011 when the water authority wouldn’t have cared and it would only have been down to planning or BR controls.

It’s not a good idea to have a manhole inside. Really bad idea. First you will get odours. Secondly you could get rats (surprisingly not that common). Most importantly the flooding issue is real. I could show you pictures of internal sewer flooding which would make you vomit and if it blocks downstream you will get sewage flooding. It’s an awful thing to happen.

If it’s a shared drain then the water company can come and unblock any problems but bear in mind they have a legal right to access their assets (if it’s shared it’s owned and controlled by them) and just think what would happen if they had to rip the sewer out and replace with new? Sometimes you can use fibreglass liners but not always.

What they should have done is rerouted the sewer around the extension when it was built. This clearly hasn’t happened.

We’re all assuming the lid is there to access the sewers. But it’s just a lid. There’s plenty of other possible explainations as to what could be under there

priest hole

Remotes operated trap door covering shark pit

Labyrinthine basement populated by an interbreeding population of the previous occupant’s now adult feral secret children who are mute, insane and have never seen the sun

wine cooler.

We have something that looks very similar to that in our kitchen. With us it is access to the rainwater cistern.  No odours and no chance of overflowing as there is a drain near the top.  Can be a bit noisy if it’s almost empty and it starts raining but I like it now

‘Loo diligence’ 👍🏼

We built an extension over a shared drain. Had to get a camera survey of it for Scottish Water, who then approved building over it but specified lintels, new access points etc.

When your too tight to pay to have the manhole moved ?/live in englandshire….

We had the same under our extension. We moved the manhole to outside…..

Being in Scotland this wasn’t an issue.

Based on the number of times I had to rod the drains due to number 3s love of wipes…….right move !

Saves you digging up the garden and laying a new patio for that ‘Louise’ moment in your life? 🤣

Secondly you could get rats

Friends of mine had this when moving onto what was otherwise their dream home. Big time. In the end drains were rerouted and the one under the dining extension to the kitchen filled with concrete (after routes to it sealed of with metal). It was either that or put up with living side by side with rats. All a bit of a nightmare really. Look into it properly before actually buying. Make an offer conditional on finding out what’s what. In that house it could just be the access to an under floor void rather than drains, don’t guess, find out.

How did the rats lift the man hole ?

Why would they need to?

forget rats, them ninja turtles are a rough lot.

Rafael is a party dude remember!

Also this doom and gloom of digging up and flooding etc… atleast it would get rid of that floor!

Our in laws had a 100k kitchen refurb plus extension built over an access cover. They now have water backing up to the sink plug hole and have to avoid running water for 24hrs to use the washing machine. Obviously there’s a block which can’t be found which is backing things up.

They’ve been told there’s no more options other than to lift the floor and investigate that access cover.

Well if the rats are in the drain and not lifting the man hole ….what’s the issue you’d be surprised where you’ll find rats near by…..

Surely they are 4 or 5 foot down even

Obviously there’s a block which can’t be found which is backing things up.

So the camera saw nothing and they still have issues ?

That personhole cover is quite far down the list of reasons why I wouldn’t put in an offer. 😉 😀

Based on the number of times I had to rod the drains due to number 3s

Now I’ve heard of number 1s and having a number 2, but what on earth is a number 3?
😳

I’d be more worried about Colin Furze turning up unexpectedly 🤣

How’s the rest of the house. Nasty floor, walls and a drain in the dining room aren’t very positive

I’ve found it on Rightmove – does that big area of grass at the side belong to the house?

If it does they could have moved the drains stuck the manhole out there. If not I’d be very concerned about another house being built on that and blocking all your windows.

Buy the house , put a rug over the cover, stop worrying😃

put a rug over the cover,

Could film your own version of Aladdin if the sewer backs up.

I’d be tempted to replace it with a see-through toughened glass panel so you can watch breakfast go by while you tuck into dinner.

I know of a property where the kitchen (original, not an extension) was over a Victorian era drain but with no access/cover. When there was a blockage or air pocket god knows how but the stench drifted up. I would run a mile.

forget rats, them ninja turtles are a rough lot.

Rafael is a party dude remember!

Almost…it was Michaelangelo 😛

We are planning an extension – we have an inspection chamber just outside the existing conservatory, which when the build is complete will be inside the extension – we are planning to move it just outside, however it is not always that easy depending on what you are looking to do. Our existing drains run under the garage and the slab, so moving the inspection chamber means moving the whole run about 4 meters further out and moving 2 existing inspection pits.

I forget how exactly I who I spoke, but I’m pretty certain the relevant water board can tell you if the drain is shared or not. I don’t remember paying for this. Ours isn’t shared with our neighbours.

Our drains are however both rainwater and grey water, which I’m told is no longer okay, and we need to build a soakaway for the rainwater now as well.

Nightmare when you start getting into this stuff

On the rats point, I cant see the relevance. If the rats are in the sewer, the only way they can get into your house from the drains is via the toilets, which you all have, they can’t get through a sealed cover. I will caveat, as we had rats in the garden, and digging them out, I found the nearby inspection chamber had a crack in it (its about 2m deep, right near the cover). So I filled with steel wool and concreted. No more rats. Till maybe they swim up the waste pipe….

I’d be tempted to replace it with a see-through toughened glass panel so you can watch breakfast go by while you tuck into dinner

Beat to it by 30 seconds!!

If they’ve ‘saved money’ by not moving the drain what else have they ‘saved money’ on – other than the crap oven setup!
Is that the microwave sat on top of the 5′ high oven unit? and what happened to the other half of the island unit (it’s not as if they were short of space) ….. sorry OP

The house looks top be on a new-build estate so plans of drainage routes should be easy to obtain.

If you like the house and there’s nothing else in the area which ticks the boxes just put an offer in and do your research after. You’re not committed in any way.

There are at least two others in that town I’d look at compared to that beige-fest though.

On the rats point, I cant see the relevance.

Just a thought, but I fail to believe that that cover is 100% soundproof.
Rats can be noisy buggers and have a high pitched squeek that can’t penetrate 4′ of soil and a concrete salb but could get through a comparatively thin cover.