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Hints & Tips

August 2020

How to stop autumn leaves blocking your drains

How to stop autumn leaves blocking your drains

This week marks the beginning of autumn and while we’re very excited to see the leaves change from green to beautiful autumnal colours of orange, red and gold, we’re not so thrilled to see them clog up our outdoor drains.

We’ve been unblocking drains for 25 years and know how frustrating (and costly) this time of year can be for wreaking havoc on your drains, pipes and gutters. Luckily, Drain Doctor are here to share our four easy preventative steps you can take to stop autumn leaves blocking your drains.

Check your drains

Take advantage of crisp autumnal mornings and head outdoors so you can inspect your drains for any foliage that may have made its way in there. Simply slip on a pair of gloves and scoop up any leaves that have blown into the drain or gutter.

If you notice leaves beginning to build up in your garden, best way to protect your outdoor drains is to rake up any fallen leaves and either put them in your green bin or add them to your compost heap!

Purchase some drain guards

A drain guard is a convenient attachment that covers your drain to prevent anything other than water from entering the drain. They essentially function like a sieve by catching debris, intercepting autumn leaves from blocking drains.

However, you will need to regularly clean out your drain guards and collect the debris they catch. While your drains will be protected, a build-up of leaves may result in the drain guard itself becoming blocked which could potentially risk flooding the surrounding area.

Use a wet-dry vacuum

A nifty wet-dry vacuum is the ultimate tool to have about the house during the autumn period! Not only are they great at hoovering dry dust and dirt, they are also designed to hoover up liquids, making clearing soggy leaves from drains and gutters a walk in the park.

Invest in Planned Preventative Maintenance (PPM)

At Drain Doctor, we offer regular planned preventative maintenance (PPM) plans to suit you. Rather than waiting for drains to become blocked or guttering to become damaged, we pre-empt any problems and put a fix in place at the first opportunity.

Having PPM reduces the risk of problems caused by adverse weather conditions, giving you peace of mind that your drains are well maintained and will give you no trouble this Autumn.

If all else fails, Drain Doctor are on hand to provide 24/7 drainage support across the UK. Our skilled technicians use the latest advanced clearing equipment to remove blockages efficiently and provide a long-lasting solution. To find out more about our services, contact our expert drainage technicians at Drain Doctor on 0800 707172.