Decision guides
Use these practical starting points to recognize urgency, collect useful information, and understand what may happen next. They are general guidance. They do not replace an onsite assessment.
Understand the problem and prepare for the next step.
Immediate actions, gas warnings, phone routing, and what to report.
Read guide →HOME DRAINSRecognize the difference between one fixture, several fixtures, and an active sewage backup.
Read guide →HOT WATERSafe observations, active-risk checks, and the equipment details that make service more useful.
Read guide →LEAK DIAGNOSISSeparate supply, drainage, rain, groundwater, and equipment patterns before opening the property.
Read guide →DRAIN METHODSChoose the method based on the cause, pipe condition, access, and evidence.
Read guide →STRATA BACKUPImmediate safety, access, authorization, communication, and a useful service record.
Read guide →STRATA MAINTENANCEPlanned checks, service records, resident impact, and follow-up priorities.
Read guide →SEWER INSPECTIONSCamera diagnostics, clearing decisions, visible pipe condition, and the next repair question.
Read guide →SUMP PUMPSSafe diagnosis, pump behaviour, drainage paths, and flood-response decisions.
Read guide →PREVENTIVE MAINTENANCEEquipment records, planned service, observed conditions, and follow-up priorities.
Read guide →Explore the work, assessment and repair options.
Local clogs, main-line patterns, camera inspection, clearing, and repair decisions.
Explore service →LEAKSSupply, drainage, groundwater, concealed piping, and service-line responsibility.
Explore service →STORMSurface drains, sumps, pumps, storm piping, grading, and downstream capacity.
Explore service →MAINTENANCECondition, service history, immediate defects, operating impact, and longer-term repair or replacement planning.
Explore service →BURIED SERVICESEvidence, utility locating, access, excavation, repair, testing, backfill, and restoration responsibility.
Explore service →HYDRO JETTINGWhen high-pressure cleaning is useful, when to inspect first, and what to confirm after clearing.
Explore service →SEWER REPAIRCamera evidence, targeted access, repair scope, testing, and restoration planning.
Explore service →Plan access, authorization and communication.
Practical answers
These guides help you protect the property, describe the problem clearly, and avoid approving work before the cause is understood.
Keep people away from sewage and water near electrical equipment. If you can safely identify the correct water valve, isolate only the affected supply. Move vulnerable belongings without entering an unsafe area. Then call and report where the water appears, whether it is still moving, what has been shut off, and how the technician can enter the property.
Read the complete emergency guide →Clearing can restore flow without correcting the condition that created the blockage. Grease, scale, roots, poor slope, offsets, damaged pipe, foreign material, or an affected building drain can produce similar symptoms. Record which fixtures are affected and whether another fixture changes the problem. That pattern helps determine whether clearing or further diagnosis makes sense.
Understand drain diagnosis →Start by separating pressurized supply water from drainage, groundwater, rainwater, and equipment discharge. Note whether the meter moves with fixtures off, whether pressure changed, when the wet area appears, and what sits above or beside it. Thermal or acoustic tools may narrow the area, but confirming and repairing a concealed failure can still require physical access.
See the leak investigation process →Record the time reported, affected units and common areas, active water or sewage condition, shutoff status, resident impact, site contact, access method, and authorization limit. Keep photographs, previous invoices, camera files, and technician findings together. A complete record makes repair, insurance, responsibility, and recurrence decisions easier after the emergency is controlled.
Plan for a shared-property response →Identify the equipment, location, observed condition, work completed, measurements or tests, immediate defects, and future recommendations. Separate safety or reliability concerns from optional improvements. A dated record with photographs helps the next technician, manager, and owner understand what changed and why a future expense may be needed.
Build a clearer maintenance path →Define the likely failed service, its route and depth, utility conflicts, site access, soil and water conditions, shutdown needs, and the surface that must be restored. Diagnosis cannot remove every hidden condition, but it should make the excavation target and responsibilities more defensible before the site is opened.
Understand the excavation process →