Bellfield
Blocked, burst or leaking in Bellfield?
Blocked drains, burst pipes and leaks in Bellfield, from the old Commission streets to Darebin Creek, passed to a licensed plumber day and night.
Plumbing in Bellfield
Commission houses, renters and the creek edge
Until it was gazetted on its own, Bellfield was part of the State Housing Commission estate in Heidelberg West through the fifties, with only scattered houses before. Homes built in quantity to standard plans are likely to share original earthenware sewers and galvanised water pipe, so a fault in one house is often repeated next door.
On the former Banksia La Trobe Secondary College site, which Banyule bought and rezoned, apartments and townhouses are going up beside social housing and the new community hub. Those homes will share sewer and stormwater lines under an owners corporation, and their PVC drains fail differently from the older estate.
Bellfield lies east of Darebin Creek, and one of its two big parks is a linear reserve along the creek. Lots on the western side tend to sit lower and catch runoff from the streets above, so a blocked stormwater drain there is likely to back up first.
Jobs in Bellfield
Standard plans and shared new lines
Blocked drains
Earthenware sewers in the Commission streets, where the same fault tends to show up house after house.
Burst pipes
Old galvanised water pipe repaired on the property side, with the landlord's go ahead sorted first.
Blocked toilets
A toilet backing up in a unit or townhouse, traced to the fixture or the shared line.
What it costs: hot water replacement cost, gutter replacement cost, toilet installation cost
Bellfield questions
Landlord approval, common property and the street main
Can a tenant call a plumber for a blocked drain?
A tenant can report it, but rented homes make up more than four in ten in Bellfield, so most jobs need the landlord, agent or housing provider to authorise the work. The tenant's account of what happened is often the clearest description the plumber gets.
Who agrees to clear a drain in the new townhouses?
The owners corporation, because the shared lines are common property. Its consent, and a way in for the gear, are arranged before any work starts.
Who fixes a burst water main outside the house?
Yarra Valley Water, which owns the mains. A leak on the owner's side of the meter is a job for the plumber, and the landlord usually signs off on it in a rental.
