Since my last post on here quite a bit has happened. We complained to the Victorian Building Authority about the height of the pipes. I was expecting them to simply send a letter to the plumbers smacking them over the fingers but they actually contacted them and ordered them to rectify the work. I was pleasantly surprised but that didn't last long. The plumbers came and took a look and told me to raise the rainwater tank! They also took photos and argued to the VBA that we had changed the ground levels. Several months of arguing back and forth and I finally managed to supply the VBA with enough evidence to refute the plumbers. In the meantime we found more pipes at the wrong height as anyone who has read the Damp Proof Course thread would know.
Yesterday the plumbers came out to do some work. It had been agreed that the pipe on the NW corner of the house feeding the rainwater tank would be disconnected from the wet system and connected to the stormwater drainage. We were happy with this and here it is:
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It was also agreed that the tank outlet pipe would no longer run around the back of the house but would go to the stormwater drain outside the garage.
What I didn't understand had been decided was that the charged system was going altogether. The argument was that we only need 50 square metres of roof draining to the tank but more importantly, we don't even need that, since the estate has recycled water. There are a few issues to argue about here but, at the end of the day, we were happy to see the charged system go because there is a much better alternative for us which we will implement later after we move the rainwater tank.
Here are some photos of the works for plumbing enthusiasts:
Downpipe outside garage now going to stormwater and vertical riser on drain which now looks like this:
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New tank outlet pipe with inspection opening outside laundry door- the house is going to subside but at least the stormwater drainage is okay:
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Vertical riser at tank gone:
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They still buried the ball valve but I've uncovered it somewhat:
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And they gave us a bonus drain for our hot water system which was draining into a piece of pipe stuck in the ground - or not draining actually; it had been full of water since it had been installed.
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