Plumber in Redland, Bristol

Redland's mature street trees and garden trees are part of its character, but roots look for water and get into the joints of old clay drains. The first signs are slow drains, gurgling and repeat blockages. A CCTV drain survey shows whether roots, a crack or a sunken joint is to blame, and whether the problem is on your private drain or a shared pipe that belongs to Wessex Water.

Wessex Water says pipes serving only your home, up to your boundary, are yours, while most shared pipes serving two or more homes are theirs. In converted villas, the drain often serves every flat in the building, which can make it shared.

A single family Redland house with two bathrooms is often better on a system boiler and unvented cylinder than a combi, because two showers at once can be too much for one combi. The catch is flow. An unvented cylinder needs good incoming mains flow, and an old lead or narrow supply can limit it. We test flow and pressure at the kitchen tap before recommending anything.

Flats in converted villas are usually fine on a combi, as long as the flue can go somewhere sensible. Our combi vs system guide goes into more detail.

Many Redland houses have cellars where the incoming main, the inside stop tap and old pipe runs are found. Cellars are cooler and sometimes damp, so pipes there can freeze in a hard snap and corrode over time. It is worth knowing where your stop tap is before you need it. If it is an old brass tap that will not turn, have it replaced on a calm day rather than in an emergency.

Redland also has a lot of rented flats and shared houses. Gas appliances in rented homes need a safety check every 12 months by a Gas Safe registered engineer. Nearby Cotham ward has been under Bristol City Council's selective licensing scheme since August 2024, so some streets close to Redland are covered.