My Mentone townhouse shares a drain with the neighbours. Who fixes a blockage?

Not South East Water, which takes no responsibility for shared private pipes inside an owners' corporation. Check your owners corporation rules or plan, then book a drain specialist through whoever is responsible.

Water from my yard won't drain to the street. Whose pipe is it?

Kingston says the stormwater outlet from your property boundary to the kerb and channel is the owner's, along with drainage inside the property. A blocked Council drain or pit in the street is Council's to fix.

Mentone plumbers: townhouse drains, stormwater and trees

Plumbers in Mentone Townhouses, drains and trees.

More than a third of Mentone's homes are townhouses, terraces or semis, so it pays to know which pipes are shared before a plumber arrives. South East Water runs the sewer here and Kingston City Council the stormwater drains. Send us the job and we match it with a licence-checked plumber who specialises in it.

Mentone facts that matter

A townhouse suburb

At the 2021 Census, the suburb of Mentone was 44.0% separate houses, 37.2% townhouses, terraces or semis and 18.2% flats. 32.2% of homes were rented.

South East Water

Kingston names South East Water as the operator of the south-east's sewerage system, and Mentone is on South East Water's supply list.

The outlet to the kerb is yours

Kingston's flooding page puts internal drainage, and the stormwater outlet from your boundary to the kerb and channel, with the property owner.

Groundwater stays out of drains

Council isn't required to accept groundwater into the stormwater system. Southern Rural Water is responsible for groundwater.

Where South East Water's part ends

South East Water's sewer stops at the inspection opening, the connection point on your property that is often close to the boundary. From there towards the house, the pipes and fittings belong to the owner.

Townhouse owners need one more check: in an owners' corporation, shared private water and sewer pipes fall outside South East Water's responsibility. Ask the owners corporation who maintains a common drain before you book anyone.

If a blockage does turn out to be in its sewer, South East Water reimburses fair and reasonable costs, but only if the plumber referred the blockage to it. Using CCTV or a high-pressure water jet, or clearing tree roots, rules the claim out. Our guide to sewer pipe ownership compares the rules.

Stormwater, trees and frost

Kingston maintains about 798 km of stormwater drains, but the pipe from your boundary to the kerb is yours. Planning a basement or a sump? Council doesn't have to take groundwater into its drains, so ask before you design one around them.

Most trees in Kingston are protected under the Planning Scheme or its Community Local Law. If roots are damaging your pipes, a report from a qualified person such as a plumber can support a permit on property damage grounds. The local law exempts trees under 110 cm around, but Clause 52.37 can still apply.

Frost is uncommon. Moorabbin Airport, a Bureau of Meteorology station in the City of Kingston, averaged 1.9 days a year at or below 0°C over 1971 to 2026. For a burst pipe, turn off the stop tap first, then call.

What we would do

Before the plumber comes, find your inspection opening and keep it clear: it shows quickly whether the blockage is on your side or South East Water's. If it looks like theirs, ask the plumber to refer it rather than clear it, or the costs won't be reimbursed. In a townhouse, ask the owners corporation for any drainage plan first. For the job itself, see blocked drains in Melbourne.