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How to divert overflow from overflow relief gully?

Hi everyone,

We've just been through Cyclone Alfred here in Brisbane, and with the heavy rain, our overflow relief gully started overflowing. This caused sewage water to pool around the side of the house (see picture below).

Screenshot 2025-03-14 at 11.12.20 PM.png

We've dug a trench as a temporary solution to help divert the overflow towards the front gate and onto the kerb (see pictures below).

Would love any advice on whether there are better ways to manage this issue (a more permanent solution that isn't an eye sore).

Cheers!

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Comments

JacobZ

Hi @ZaineC,

A warm welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community and thank you for your question.

If there is stormwater water pooling, then you can add drainage channel or subsurface drainage in the form of agi pipe and have it plumbed into your stormwater system.

Considering it is wastewater, this is likely something you should speak with a plumber about. There are things we can do in terms of drainage, but wastewater should never be diverted to the street.

Unfortunately, due to the circumstances, it is probably best that you speak with a plumber.

Allow me to tag @Dave-1 and @TedBear for their thoughts.

Let me know if you have any further questions.

Jacob

Dave-1

https://www.workshop.bunnings.com.au/discussion/comment/49965#Comment_49965

Good afternoon @ZaineC

Alfred dumped a LOAD of water in a very short period of time.

Sewage could have backed up from the street and then out of points about the house. Has it stopped? When my grease trap overflowed (relief gully) It has been because fatty solids were accidently poured down my sink 😕 Vegetable fat when warm looked like water and poured down the sink formed a nice little plug at the grease trap. I would suggest to have a plumber look at the pipes and potentially remove any built up blockages.

Stormwater should be seperate from sewage. The two different pipes should never connect. Have you got any points that look like they join the sewage?

With a drainage solution (I actually like sorting drainage out)

Some things to consider.

Future inundations.

Quantities of water and how to handle it.

Potentially streets backing up.

So with these type of things in mind, I am thinking of a dish drain to carry the water towards the street. You could put in the ground a new stormwater run of 100mm PVC pipe. However I like the idea of a grill drain or dish drain.

Everhard 1m EasyDRAIN Polymer Grate And Channel and there are 3m versions, plus ones with metal lids.

It comes down to how frequent, quantity of water you expect. With a dish drain (concrete or brick) Its open, easy to clean and viewable and carries a larger capacity. With the grill drain its tidier, can fill up with soil and carries a little less plus setting it up. hahahah I can feel the one I like being pushed harder 🙂

Dave

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