One fixture or every fixture?
Council's test is a good one. If one fixture is blocked, a single toilet or a shower, the problem is yours and you'll need a licensed plumber. If every fixture is backing up, there could be a blockage between the Boundary Riser and Council's main, which Council repairs if it's responsible.
Get the order right. Council says that if you hire a plumber for a fault in its area, it won't be held accountable for the costs. When everything is backing up, call Council first.
Keep the sewer clear
- Don't bury manholes, lamp holes or boundary risers under gardens, driveways or lawns.
- Don't plant trees over sewer pipes: Council lists tree roots in property pipes as a cause of blockages.
- Watch for yard gully traps that overflow when a toilet is flushed or a bath empties.
- If sewage overflows, keep away and use fixtures as little as possible until it's fixed.
Highlands weather and homes
Hard frosts
Bowral (Parry Drive) averaged 51.6 days a year at or below 2°C and 24.7 at or below 0°C, between 1965 and 2015. Its lowest reading was -11.2°C.
Meters need covers
Council says meter protection covers help prevent damage, condensation and potential freezing in cold conditions. If yours is missing, a replacement cover is the owner's to buy.
Houses, few renters
At the 2021 Census, 90.4% of occupied homes in Wingecarribee Shire Council's area were separate houses. Only 19.3% were rented, and 44.6% were owned outright.
Your water service
Council provides and maintains the whole water network up to and including your meter, and repairs or replaces a faulty meter. Everything after the meter is yours, so a leak in the yard or under the house is a plumber's job. Its Wingecarribee treatment plant supplies Robertson, Moss Vale, Berrima, Bowral, Mittagong, Colo Vale, Hill Top and Yerrinbool, and the Bundanoon plant supplies Bundanoon, Exeter and Sutton Forest.
Hot water and licences in a cold climate
Highlands winters are hard on outdoor pipework, including at the hot water unit. In NSW, any hot water heater replacement needs a temperature control device. Moving to a heat pump may earn an Energy Savings Scheme discount through an accredited installer, with a minimum payment from you; ask how the unit copes with frost. See hot water, heat pump hot water and NSW hot water discounts.
NSW requires a contractor licence for plumbing, drainage and gasfitting of any value. Search the Public Register before work starts, and ask for your copy of the Certificate of Compliance. More on our NSW page; for urgent jobs, see burst pipes, blocked drains or an emergency plumber.
What we would do
When drains back up, count the fixtures. One blocked: book a drain plumber. All of them: ring Council before anyone touches the boundary riser, or you may wear the bill. Then, before winter, check the meter has its cover and that outdoor pipes are lagged.