Who should change the sewer riser in the apartment

In case of emergency or a breakthrough of a riser in a multi-storey building, you must contact the management company to replace it. Renovation work is carried out free of charge. Responsibilities of housing and communal services to replace sewer risers in an apartment are spelled out in Russian legislation. Specific articles of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation and the rules for the use of joint municipal property of non-privatized apartments can be referred to when submitting an application to the management company.

When is it necessary to replace the riser

Typically, apartment buildings are equipped with cast iron risers and water pipes. They are usually over 50-60 years old. During this time, the metal becomes unusable. Fistulas appear on the pipes, leaks are possible. Housing and communal services are required to change risers in such situations:

• emergency state of the collector;
• high wall loads due to metal weighted with corrosion;
• pressure on plastic pipes installed downstairs on the ground floors or upstairs from a neighbor.

It is advisable to change the sewer riser on all floors at once. So communication will turn out to be integral from one material.

Who should change the riser in the apartment

Before you go with a statement to the housing office, and this must be done without fail, even if you decide to change the pipes yourself, you should familiarize yourself with some excerpts from the rules and laws. They clearly define whose responsibility it is to repair the risers in homes.

• Article of the Civil Code No. 290 (excerpt). "As a common shared property, the owners of housing in apartment buildings own the sanitary networks inside and outside the premises, serving more than one living space." That is, a sewer riser on any of the floors (upper / middle / lower) in any case serves several apartments. The collector belongs to the category of common property, which means that it is in the department of housing and communal services.
• Government Decree No. 491 of 13.08.2006, clause 5 (excerpt). "... the drainage system in the house / apartment is also considered a public property." That is, the sewerage system is not the direct property of the homeowner.
• Rules for the technical operation of the housing stock (extract). "... the current repair includes, among other things, the replacement of the sewer riser in the apartment."

Thus, the management company is responsible for the state of the water supply / sanitation communication. This is evidenced by the footnote in the invoices for payment of services, in which there is a column "maintenance and repair of the house." Residents with each rent make a contribution to future repair work on the common property.

When an apartment owner is refused pipe replacement

The refusal of the management company to repair work to change the drainage system is justified only if the owner of the apartment had already carried out any work with the riser himself or the pipes were intentionally damaged. Regardless of whether clamps were simply put on the fistulas or the pipe was completely replaced, this will be indicated in the communication inspection report. In this case, all repair costs are borne by the homeowner. The housing office only replaces the primary cast-iron sewer riser with a plastic one, but does not change previously repaired / specially damaged communications.

If the housing and communal services refuse to carry out repair work unreasonably, the owner of the apartment must ask for a written refusal. It should state the reasons why the company does not agree to perform pipe replacement. With this refusal, the owner has the right to go to court or write a complaint against the head of the management company. It is also necessary to ask for repair work on the riser in writing. Better collectively. Then utilities react faster.

Materials and tools for self-replacement of the riser

If independent work is coming up to replace communications, prepare such a list of tools and materials:

• pipe cutter or grinder for cutting cast iron;
• chisel and screwdriver to remove the remnants of old pipes;
• a hammer;
• perforator for removing cement residues;
• grinder (for installing cast iron pipes);
• protective glasses and gloves;
• pipes from the selected material;
• silicone fluid sealant and / or seals;
• tees, crosses, adapters, toilet bend;
• an expansion pipe if a polymer / polypropylene pipe is connected at the top with a cast iron pipe;
• clamps for fixing pipes to walls;
• vertical level.

Depending on the complexity of the work performed, additional tools may be required in the form of a soldering iron for plastic pipes. It is used when replacing a cast-iron water supply system with a polymer one.

Preparation for dismantling old pipes

Before installing a new riser, you need to remove the old communications. For this, it is necessary to carry out a number of preparatory measures:

• Contact the housing office to call a locksmith. He must shut off the water in the riser.
• Notify all neighbors about the impossibility to use the water supply and sewerage system for a certain period of time.
• Remove all unnecessary things (furniture, textiles, household chemicals) in the plumbing room / toilet.
• If possible, cover the toilet, sink, bathtub with an old cloth to avoid contamination with metal crumbs.

During the dismantling of old pipes, they act very carefully. It is desirable that two masters work. One should always insure against accidental falling of old cast iron pipe pieces.

Stages of work

First of all, dismantle (disassemble) the old collector. To do this, at a distance of about 20 cm from the floor and ceiling, a horizontal cut is made with a grinder on cast iron. Then part of the collector is knocked out with a hammer. The cast iron bursts from the shock load. If the riser is not changed from the neighbor on top (partial replacement of pipes is carried out), the hole in the ceiling is still covered with a film. The cut off old pipe is taken out of the apartment and the tees are dismantled.

• It is necessary to loosen the attachment point of the cast-iron branch. The tee is removed with a nail puller or a puncher.
• All cement residues are removed from the hole with a chisel.
• The next step is sanding the edges of the plastic / cast iron pipe and its subsequent installation.
• The polymer tube is inserted into the hole and parallel to the tee in the floor area.
• All joints are laid with seals and additionally coated with sealant.
• The gaps between the ceilings remaining around the pipes are blown out with polyurethane foam.

The assembled manifold is checked for tightness. For this, water is drained from the upper floor and from the apartment. If everything is functioning normally, the water is opened in the riser, and the neighbors are notified of the end of the work.

The cost of replacing a sewer riser in an apartment

Repair costs:

• If the riser is changed on all floors and through the efforts of the management company, the tenants do not owe anything to the craftsmen. The work is carried out free of charge, which means that replacing the riser will not cost a penny.
• If the riser is changed in one apartment on its own, the costs are approximately 250-400 rubles. for the purchase of material depending on its price. The cost of the work depends on the type of pipes.If cast iron are installed, and work with welding will have to pay from 15,000 rubles. and higher depending on the region. When working with polymer pipes, masters in Moscow ask for from 4,500 rubles.

In accordance with the law, the replacement of communications in the house (water supply, sewerage, heating), housing and communal services must be carried out at least once every 25-30 years. This applies to non-privatized housing.

Interfering with communication networks is a responsible business. It can only be carried out with the permission of the management company. It is strictly forbidden to change the location of the riser and its configuration. It is better to invite a professional to carry out repair work. At the end of the replacement of pipes, it is better to leave access to them through inspection hatches in the form of doors. It will be needed when carrying out planned repair or preventive work around the house.