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REPAIRS AND MAINTENANCE

DIY, Builder, Tradesman or Specialist?

• Wash down the wood with warm water containing a small amount of washing-up liquid and rinse with clean water.
• Rub down with sandpaper wrapped around a small block of wood and make sure that you remove all loose paint.
• Paint stripper- if the paint comes off in long strips or is cracked you should use paint remover to get down to bare wood - details of how to use it will be on the bottle or tin. Follow these instructions carefully. Remember to protect your eyes and skin.
• Filling - scrape out any areas of rotten wood. Softened wood can be strengthened by painting with a proprietary wood hardener. Fill any holes or cracks with putty or wood filler. For greater amounts of damage, consider repair or replacement of the affected timber.
• Prime use wood primer paint to paint any areas of bare wood.
• Undercoat - paint throughout with undercoat paint and, when it's dry, sandpaper lightly so that you just scratch the surface of the undercoat.
• Top coat - paint with two coats of gloss paint remembering not to put too much paint on the brush. Use special exterior 'microporous' paint outside as this will last longer.
• Brush care - to save brushes from hardening when you take a break put them in a plastic bag and seal it by folding the opening, to keep air out. When you have finished all your painting, scrape off the excess paint using the back of an old knife or a scraper. For water based paints, rinse in cold or warm water, following the instructions on the paint can. For oil based paints, rinse out in white spirit or turpentine, following the instructions on the paint can. Do not dispose of white spirit or turpentine through your drains. Put it in a sealed container and bin it.

Repair leaking gutters before rainwater causes extensive damage to bricks, rots windows and causes damp. Most gutter leaks are caused by one of four problems: blockages, holes or cracks in them, leaking or sagging:

Use a small brush and clean along the gutter. You may find it easier to have a bucket tied to the ladder to put waste in. Putting a piece of gauze or chicken wire over the downpipe outlet should stop leaves getting into the downpipe. Flush blocked downpipes out with a hose.

These can be repaired provided they are not too large. On plastic, use a plastic sealing compound; while on cast iron use a metal putty or fibreglass.

Joints between lengths of guttering can sometimes leak because the rubber seal is worn or has dirt underneath. To clean under or to change the seal in plastic guttering you unclip the gutter. With some types of gutter you buy new seals, but with others you replace the joints. Apply some

If the gutter is sagging or sloping the wrong way water will not flow to the downpipe properly. You will need to fit extra brackets. As there are different ways of fixing them look to see how the others have been done.

Sinks, drains and gullies

To carry water away underground there are gulleys and drains. They take water from gutters, sinks, baths, showers, washbasins and waste from the toilet.

To keep your gullies and drains working properly make sure that there are metal grates over the gulleys, that the grates are not blocked with leaves. Every three months you should put three large cups of washing soda crystals or half a bottle of strong bleach down the gulleys. Leave it overnight and then rinse by pouring down some buckets of water. Do not breath in any fumes given off from the bleach or crystals and protect your skin.

To clear a blocked sink, block the overflow and other connections such as second sinks and washing machine connections with a cloth, then holding the cloth in place, push a plunger up and down quickly over the plughole. If this does not work, unscrew the bottle trap or plastic fitting under the sink and clean it and also clean the pipe with wire from both sides. Reassemble the system and flush through with clean water. There are several aerosol and chemical drain unblockers available. Follow the instructions carefully if these are used.

Drains and sewers

Who is responsible?

You are normally responsible for all drains that serve your property. This means keeping them clean and in good repair. Neither the Council nor Anglian Water are responsible for private drains. Your responsibility does not stop at the boundary of your property. Drains that serve your property are usually your responsibility until they connect with a main sewer in the road. So, too, are sewers built after 1937, although this responsibility is shared with the owners of other properties also using the sewer. An exception to this rule is any shared sewer built before 1937 to take waste from more than one property. Anglian Water is responsible for all of these older shared sewers and will unblock or repair them free of charge. If you need to report a problem with a sewer of this type contact this department.

Ways to keep drains clear

Most drainage problems are caused by simple blockages in the pipes. Occasionally more serious problems can be caused by damaged pipes, which are more expensive to put right. People flushing large items down the toilet, such as nappies, cause many blockages. Oil and fat from cooking also causes a lot of problems if it is poured down the sink or outside gulley because the fat becomes solid in the drain and blocks the pipe. You should bag and bin all these things. Tree roots can also block drains. Roots cause clay soil to shrink in places and drains running through it may crack allowing roots to grow in. When you plant trees make sure the minimum planting distance is equal to the expected height of the tree when fully grown. Finally, remember that in addition to large bulky items, never use a drain to dispose of any inflammable material or liquid.

Repairing brick walls

Mortar joints hold bricks together and stop rain getting in. If they are soft, crumbling, cracked or are badly worn, they need to be repaired to prevent damp and strengthen the wall.