Drain cameras and Melbourne's rules
The camera isn't repaid
South East Water's owner-pays list includes work where CCTV was used to find a blockage, and Greater Western Water excludes CCTV costs to locate one. Yarra Valley Water won't reimburse internal pipe repairs.
Simpler checks come first
South East Water's best practice is to rod from your boundary trap to its point, judged by cable length. On Greater Western Water's pages, an inspection shaft holding water points to a blockage in its own network.
Footage plus a plan
All three companies supply plans of property sewer pipes: South East Water through online requests, Yarra Valley Water through its portal, and Greater Western Water as an internal property sewerage plan.
Building near a sewer
South East Water's approval is needed to build over its easements or within one metre of its assets. Yarra Valley Water sells a plan of its sewer's depth and offset from your boundary.
Getting the most from an inspection
Rule out the network
If the drain is blocked now, the plumber should check whether the blockage is on the water company's side before filming. If it is, the company deals with it.
Clear the access points
Greater Western Water expects owners to keep the inspection shaft and its marker above ground. Some older homes have no shaft, so the plumber may go in through the gully or a fixture.
Film and measure
Ask for footage with the distance from the access point shown on screen at each fault.
Lay it over the plan
Compare those distances with your property sewerage plan to see which faults sit in your pipe.
Keep the file
Footage is evidence if the water company gets involved, and the next plumber can compare against it.
When a camera earns its keep
Before an extension or a new slab. The camera shows where your drains really run, and the water company's plan shows its sewer. If the work comes within one metre of a South East Water asset, or over its easement, get its approval before building.
Before choosing between relining and digging. Footage shows whether the pipe still holds its shape. If digging would happen near a big tree, Clause 52.37 and council local laws can come into it; our Melbourne pipe relining page covers that.
When a drain keeps blocking. Clearing it a third time without knowing why rarely ends well. The national CCTV drain inspection page lists what the footage can reveal.
Questions to ask before and after filming
- Did you check the water company's side before putting the camera in?
- Can I have the full video, with distances shown?
- How do these distances line up with my sewerage plan?
- Which faults need fixing now, and which can wait?
What we would do
If the drain is blocked right now, let the plumber rule out the water company's side first, with the inspection shaft check or by rodding to the company's point. Film your own pipe after that, because neither South East Water nor Greater Western Water repays CCTV used to find a blockage. Order your sewerage plan, keep the footage, and choose a drain specialist who will go through it with you on screen. We can match you with one.