Lilydale
Blocked, burst or leaking in Lilydale?
Blocked drains, burst pipes and leaks in Lilydale, from the old town near the station to the Kinley estate, passed to a licensed plumber day and night.
Plumbing in Lilydale
Pressure sewer, limestone and new estates
Yarra Valley Water says Lilydale is served by a hybrid system of gravity and pressure sewerage systems, with a connection point just inside each boundary. A septic to sewer job starts by finding out which kind the lot has, since a pressure lot needs a pump unit and control panel and a gravity lot does not.
Under parts of the town, steeply dipping siltstone and sandstone carry the Early Devonian Lilydale Limestone. Rock can sit close to the surface, so deepening a line may need a breaker, and shallow clay over it cracks rigid joints as it moves.
The former Lilydale Quarry (Kinley) is becoming a large residential estate with shared sewers and stormwater built to the developer's plan. On a townhouse lot there, the estate drainage plans and owners corporation papers settle who owns a common branch.
Jobs in Lilydale
Old town lines and new estate branches
Blocked drains
Clay and galvanised lines in the older streets near the station, and shared branches in new estates.
CCTV drain inspection
A camera along a line before rock or a heritage site turns a dig into a longer job.
Gutters and downpipes
Roof water routed to a kerb connection that still falls to the creek.
What it costs: hot water replacement cost, gutter replacement cost, toilet installation cost
Lilydale questions
Ponding, full council pits and quarry ground
Is ponding near Melba Park a blocked drain?
Often the trouble is the road, not the property. Yarra Ranges is rebuilding a low point near Melba Park as a clear overland flow path that directs stormwater safely towards Olinda Creek, so the house outfall and kerb connection are checked for fall before pipes are relaid.
Can my drain back up when nothing is wrong with it?
Yes. On one Lilydale street the council found flooding from surcharging within Council's drainage network, as well as overland flows from neighbouring roads, so a sound private line can still back up. The private drain is tested to the point of discharge and a full council pit is reported to council.
Does digging near the old quarry kilns need a permit?
It can. The Cave Hill Limestone Quarry is on the Victorian Heritage Register, so drain, sewer or roof plumbing work on the registered land needs a Heritage Victoria permit or exemption, and trenches near the kilns may carry archaeological conditions.
What is needed to put a tank or slab over an easement?
Yarra Ranges asks for approval from Council and Yarra Valley Water before anything is built over a drainage easement. Pipe locations come from the council's stormwater engineers first, which adds time before a line is moved.
