Downpipe blocked? How to check and flush it from the ground

Steps

1. Watch the bottom in rain. Water flowing out of the downpipe outlet means it's working. A dry outlet while the gutter above it overflows means it's blocked.
2. Tap your way up. Tap along the downpipe from the bottom up with your knuckle or a screwdriver handle. A hollow sound means it's clear; a dull, solid sound shows where leaves are packed.
3. Clear what's at the bottom. If the downpipe runs into a grated pit, lift the grate and scoop out the leaves. If it feeds a rainwater tank, clean the leaf strainer on the tank inlet. A clogged strainer backs water up the downpipe.
4. Open the cleaning eye if there is one. Some downpipes have a screw-off cap or clip-on cover near the bottom. Put a bucket underneath first: a blocked pipe lets go of water and sludge in a rush. Pull out what you can reach with a gloved hand or a bent piece of wire.
5. Flush it. With the cleaning eye open, feed a garden hose up the downpipe and turn it on gently to loosen packed leaves, then let it drain. If your hose has a telescopic wand that reaches the gutter from the ground, run water into the gutter at the downpipe and watch it come out the bottom.
6. Work out whether it's above or below ground. If water runs freely out of the downpipe but backs up once it's connected to the pipe in the ground, the blockage is in the underground stormwater drain.

If that didn't help

• The blockage is right at the top, where the gutter drains into the pipe? That needs someone at the gutter. Read the ladder safety guide first, or book.
• Water backs up from underground, or there's a soggy patch or sinkhole along the drain line? That's often tree roots or a broken stormwater pipe, and it's drainage plumbing. Call a licensed plumber; you can check their licence with the Building and Plumbing Commission.
• Downpipe cracked, split, or pulled away from the wall? Repairs are licensed plumbing work in Victoria. A plumber fixes it.