What shapes a plumbing job in Ashfield
Seven in ten homes are units
At the 2021 Census, 69.9% of the suburb's occupied homes were flats or apartments and only 22.1% were separate houses. Across NSW it's close to the reverse: 65.6% houses.
Half the homes are rented
50.5% of Ashfield's occupied dwellings were rented in 2021, against 32.6% statewide. Renters should report a fault to the landlord or agent before booking anyone.
Dobroyd Canal catchment
Inner West Council lists Ashfield, with Haberfield, in the Dobroyd Canal catchment. It is finalising a flood risk management study and plan for the Dobroyd and Hawthorne canals.
The kerb outlet is yours
Council puts the stormwater outlet from your property to the kerb and gutter on the owner. Seepage water is the owner's problem too.
In a unit block, read the strata plan first
NSW strata rules split the plumbing, in most cases, by where the pipe runs. Pipes inside internal walls, plus fixtures like the toilet, basin and shower, are usually the lot owner's. Pipes in boundary walls and under the floor usually belong to the owners corporation. The strata plan and by-laws settle anything in between.
Below ground, the building's private wastewater pipes are the owners' right up to the point where they join Sydney Water's system, and that connection point is theirs too. Sydney Water owns the junction on its main. Where several owners share one private service, each of them is responsible for it.
Flash flooding and an older drainage system
Inner West Council describes most flooding in its area as flash flooding: sudden, and usually within 6 hours of heavy rain. It puts that partly down to the age of the stormwater system and how heavily built-up the area is.
On a sloping block, Council expects owners to put in their own surface water controls unless a man-made structure or faulty roof drainage is sending water their way and causing damage. It won't act on blocked private inter-allotment drains. Planning a drainage upgrade? A flood certificate from Council gives the 1% AEP and PMF flood levels near your property.
Before the plumber arrives
- Work out whether the leaking pipe is inside your lot or in common property.
- Tell the strata manager if water is coming from another unit.
- Take dated photos of the leak or overflow.
- Ask the plumber for written details of the fault and the repair.
Other Sydney help
For a slow or overflowing drain, see blocked drains in Sydney. Water stains with no obvious source are a job for leak detection, and renovations start at bathroom plumbing.
What we'd do in Ashfield
If water is coming through a ceiling, call the strata manager and a plumber at the same time. The strata rules decide who pays, but the leak won't wait for that. Keep the photos and the plumber's written notes: if the fault turns out to be in common property, they're what the owners corporation will ask for. Then let us match you with a plumber who specialises in finding leaks in unit blocks.