Blocked Outside Drains across Edinburgh
We cover Edinburgh every day of the year for blocked outside drains, with no call-out charge and a local team that knows the area's drainage. Access, parking and chamber location get sorted on the call, before we set off for Edinburgh.
Bottom line: one call gets a local engineer to Edinburgh, day or night, with the kit to finish most blocked outside drains visits in one go. Commercial premises in Edinburgh can be booked outside trading hours.
- 1You ring and speak to an engineer, not an answering service.
- 2We tell you honestly when we can be with you in Edinburgh and what it is likely to cost.
- 3We jet or rod the drain, clear it, then show you the cause on camera before we leave.
Edinburgh drainage, in plain terms
Edinburgh tenements share soil stacks and back-court drainage between multiple flats, so we jet and camera the full shared run rather than clearing one property and leaving the cause in place.
Dense commercial frontage means grease from food premises often loads the same run as residential waste. Knowing that before we arrive in Edinburgh saves guessing on site.
On shared tenement stacks and Victorian back-court drainage the access chambers are usually where you would expect; on city-centre licensed premises they very often are not. It is one of the reasons Edinburgh work is rarely a straight rod-and-go.
Property managers, flat owners, factors, restaurants, pubs — the reporting we provide in Edinburgh is written for whoever has to sign it off. Kerbside space is the only thing we ever really need in Edinburgh.
Because the M8 skirts Edinburgh, night call-outs get an almost clear road. Edinburgh sits in the round we cover daily, so this is routine rather than a special trip.
Edinburgh is our largest coverage area and we work across it daily, from EH1–EH17 addresses in the centre out to the ring-road suburbs. Nothing about the location changes the rate you are quoted.
An outside drain that holds water is telling you the run below it is not taking flow away. We clear the chamber, jet the run and confirm where the water is actually going.
We lift covers along the run to find the last flowing chamber, which tells us exactly which length of pipe to jet. We see the same sequence often enough in Edinburgh to know what to look for.
When Edinburgh customers call us
- An out-of-hours emergency where waste is backing up inside the property
- A victorian back-court drainage still under warranty where fault liability matters
- Roots suspected after a mature hedge or tree was planted near the run
- Persistent smells with no visible blockage anywhere on the property
- A landlord needing blocked outside drains between tenancies in EH1–EH17
- A repeat blockage that has been cleared before but keeps returning
Common causes we find in Edinburgh
- Silt, grit and leaf litter packing a gully pot
- Rainwater downpipes discharging into a blocked run
- Driveway channels laid with too little fall
- Root ingress in older clay pipework outside
- Surcharging chambers after prolonged heavy rain
Why Edinburgh customers trust us
- Rated 4.9 out of 5 across 27 MyBuilder reviews at the time of writing. None of that adds to the price of the visit.
- Confined Spaces certified for deep chambers and interceptors. Catching it at that stage is the difference between a clearance and a repair.
- No call-out charge anywhere in Edinburgh, including nights, weekends and public holidays. None of that adds to the price of the visit.
- Confined Spaces certified for deep chambers and interceptors. The camera settles it either way, and the footage is yours to keep.
How a Edinburgh job runs
- 1
Trace
Covers lifted along the run to find where flow stops and where it still moves.
- 2
Empty
Standing water and silt removed so the pipe can be worked on properly.
- 3
Jet
High-pressure jetting to strip the bore rather than punch a hole through the debris.
- 4
Prove
Water run through from the highest point so you can see the whole run take it.
How we do the work in Edinburgh
Everything is left flushed through and tested with running water before we pack the van. We would rather spend ten more minutes proving it than guess.
Full relining is an option on longer Edinburgh runs — a felt liner inverted through the pipe and cured to form a new wall inside the old one. We load the van for the job described, not a generic call-out.
What's included
- Yard, garden and driveway gullies
- External manholes and inspection chambers
- Rainwater and surface water runs
- Silt, leaf and grit removal
- Camera check where blockages repeat
- Domestic and commercial external drainage
Every Edinburgh job is quoted before we start, and there is no charge for turning up. Ring 07427 195142 and describe what the drain is doing — that alone usually narrows the Edinburgh job down.
Nearby areas we also cover
Edinburgh sits inside our core City of Edinburgh patch, so the same van covers these neighbouring areas on the same run:
Edinburgh drainage FAQs
Is the drain my responsibility or Scottish Water's?
Anything inside your boundary is normally yours; the shared sewer beyond it is not. On Edinburgh jobs we camera the run so you can see exactly where the fault sits before anyone pays for it. We are happy to talk it through on the phone first.
Can you attend out of hours in Edinburgh?
Yes, and at no extra rate. Nights, weekends and public holidays are charged the same as a Tuesday morning in EH1–EH17. Ring 07427 195142 if you want that checked before booking.
Do you provide a written report for Edinburgh landlords and factors?
We do — photographs, camera footage and a plain-English summary of the cause, which is usually what a factor or insurer needs before agreeing a City of Edinburgh shared cost. We are happy to talk it through on the phone first.
Will you need to dig up my garden or driveway?
Only as a last resort. In Edinburgh we survey first and use patch lining or relining wherever the pipe allows, which avoids excavation entirely on most jobs. We are happy to talk it through on the phone first.
Why does my outside drain only overflow when it rains?
The run is coping with everyday flow but not storm flow, which usually means a partial blockage or a length of pipe that has lost its fall.
Can I clear a gully myself?
Lifting the grate and scooping out the silt is safe enough and sometimes enough. If the pot refills and holds water afterwards, the blockage is beyond the gully and needs jetting.
Is an outside drain my responsibility?
Pipework serving only your property is normally yours to maintain. Once it joins a shared or public sewer, responsibility usually passes on, and Scottish Water can confirm the position for your address.
Get a Edinburgh quote today
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Professional drainage services designed to resolve drainage issues quickly and efficiently. From emergency drain unblocking and blocked drains to CCTV surveys, drain repairs, and commercial drainage services, Curran Drainage Services provides dependable support for homes and businesses throughout Central Scotland.