A
Amelia
Hi there,
I recently purchased a flat that was built in 2016. The apartment is still under the NHBC 10yr warranty. Since moving in, I discovered that the rainwater pipe that runs through my winter garden balcony at one end of the property is connected to a combined water/sewage system with the terrace houses across the road. The smell is awful, like rotten eggs, and unfortunately, the winter garden balcony is the only way to get 'fresh' air into the property at that end of the flat - so this is a real issue.
The neighbours in the two flats below mine who have the same layout have also experienced this problem - they started a conversation with the building management company and the original builders in 2017. After much back and forth, we managed to get the builders to come, clean the pipe and add a non-return valve at the bottom of the pipe, which solved the issue for a short time, but now the smell is back with a vengeance. Another neighbour in the block next door, presumably with a different connection to the sewage system, has just also reported the smell entering his property.
My questions are:
1. Is it actually legal to have a combined rainwater/sewage pipe that runs through the main source of fresh air on the balcony? It Seems a bit insane - mainly because there wasn't a non-return valve added in the first place.
2. The builders are now trying to shift the blame back onto the management company, asking if they have maintenance reports. Surely this isn't a maintenance issue - it's something that requires further investigation into the pipe structure and the source of the smell.
We're getting to a point where we might need legal advice, as neither the builder nor the management company are willing to help.
Any advice would be much appreciated.
Thank you!!
I recently purchased a flat that was built in 2016. The apartment is still under the NHBC 10yr warranty. Since moving in, I discovered that the rainwater pipe that runs through my winter garden balcony at one end of the property is connected to a combined water/sewage system with the terrace houses across the road. The smell is awful, like rotten eggs, and unfortunately, the winter garden balcony is the only way to get 'fresh' air into the property at that end of the flat - so this is a real issue.
The neighbours in the two flats below mine who have the same layout have also experienced this problem - they started a conversation with the building management company and the original builders in 2017. After much back and forth, we managed to get the builders to come, clean the pipe and add a non-return valve at the bottom of the pipe, which solved the issue for a short time, but now the smell is back with a vengeance. Another neighbour in the block next door, presumably with a different connection to the sewage system, has just also reported the smell entering his property.
My questions are:
1. Is it actually legal to have a combined rainwater/sewage pipe that runs through the main source of fresh air on the balcony? It Seems a bit insane - mainly because there wasn't a non-return valve added in the first place.
2. The builders are now trying to shift the blame back onto the management company, asking if they have maintenance reports. Surely this isn't a maintenance issue - it's something that requires further investigation into the pipe structure and the source of the smell.
We're getting to a point where we might need legal advice, as neither the builder nor the management company are willing to help.
Any advice would be much appreciated.
Thank you!!
