Discover how planned drain maintenance for commercial buildings can prevent blockages, odours, and costly repairs. Keep your drainage system reliable and efficient.
What is planned drain maintenance?
Planned drain maintenance is a scheduled service designed to keep a property’s drainage system clean, clear and in good working order. Instead of waiting for blockages, leaks, or unpleasant smells to appear, a drain expert carries out plenty of thorough inspections and cleaning at agreed intervals, often using tools such as CCTV cameras to detect hidden problems like cracks, root growth, or build-ups inside pipes.
This more forward-thinking approach helps to avoid any costly repairs, reduce the risk of sudden failures and maintain a hygienic, professional environment. For businesses, it can be made to the level of use and past issues, ensuring drains remain efficient, odour-free and reliable without the need for frequent emergency call-outs.
Why regular drain checks are important
Regular drain checks are essential for keeping a drainage system working efficiently and avoiding unexpected problems. Over time, even the most well-maintained pipes can develop issues such as small blockages, grease build-up, hair clogs, scale deposits or root intrusion. Without frequent inspection, these can worsen, eventually causing slow drainage, unpleasant odours, leaks or even complete system failure.
A routine check by a drain expert allows problems to be spotted early, before they turn into costly repairs or disrupt business operations.
Using specialist tools such as CCTV cameras, they can inspect hidden parts of the system, identify developing issues and carry out any necessary cleaning or minor repairs on the spot. This proactive approach not only helps maintain hygiene and prevent unpleasant smells but also extends the life of the drainage system.
For business premises, where downtime or hygiene concerns can affect customer satisfaction and staff productivity, lots of drain checks throughout the year are a practical way to keep facilities reliable, safe and follows all current health standards.
By scheduling them at set intervals, you can eliminate any risk of emergencies, control maintenance costs and make sure your drainage system continues to perform at its best.
Common drain problems in commercial properties
Common drain problems in commercial properties can range from minor disruptions to major issues that affect daily operations. High usage, complex plumbing, and varied waste mean problems often develop faster than in homes.
Blocked toilets and sinks, usually caused by wipes, sanitary products, grease or food waste, can quickly make facilities unusable and cause odours. Slow drainage in kitchens or washrooms is another frequent issue, usually from grease, soap residue, food scraps or hair, and can lead to standing water or full blockages.
Unpleasant smells may result from a gradual waste build-up, stagnant water, damaged pipes or sewer problems. In many commercial kitchens, grease and food particles are the biggest culprits of blockages, as they harden in pipes, trapping debris and causing recurring blockages.
Outside, tree roots and damaged pipes can cause hidden but severe issues that restrict water flow or collapse drains. Many of these problems are worsened by a lack of planned maintenance, which helps detect and fix small issues before they become costly emergencies.
Key areas to include in a maintenance plan
Key areas to include in a maintenance plan for business drains should combine plenty of care with fast action as soon as problems arise. This includes scheduled inspections for both internal and external drainage, often using CCTV surveys to detect cracks, root intrusion, blockages or other hidden faults before they develop into serious issues.
Cleaning and debris removal is also an essential job during maintenance, with periodic clearing of sinks, pipes, and gullies to remove grease, food waste, hair, soap scum, and other build-up. In high-use environments such as commercial kitchens, this should be done more frequently to prevent rapid grease accumulation.
Grease management plays a key role too; fitting and maintaining grease traps, making sure all fats, oils and grease do not enter the drainage system and cause costly blockages.
A strong plan should also include a clear process for repairs and replacements, allowing damaged pipes, seals or joints to be fixed quickly before they cause major disruption. Preventative measures, such as drain covers, staff training on waste disposal and scheduled high-pressure water jetting, help keep pipes clear.
Finally, it's always best to keep accurate records of all the latest inspections, cleaning schedules, repairs, and recurring issues, making it easier to track the system's condition, spot patterns and plan future maintenance effectively.
Cleaning methods used in planned maintenance
Cleaning methods used in planned drain maintenance are often created to keep your systems clear, hygienic and working properly while stopping any problems from developing.
High-pressure water jetting is one of the most effective techniques, using powerful water streams to break down grease, flush away debris and remove stubborn build-up like food residue, soap scum, silt and scale without harming the pipes.
Mechanical cleaning is another common approach, using rotary cutters or augers to tackle tougher obstructions such as hardened grease, mineral deposits or tree roots, while also smoothing pipe interiors to improve water flow.
In some cases, environmentally friendly enzymes or biological treatments are used, introducing natural bacteria and enzymes to break down fats, oils and organic waste, helping to prevent blockages and odours between cleaning sessions.
For larger commercial systems, vacuum tanker services may be needed to extract large volumes of waste, sludge or standing water from drains, interceptors and grease traps, to get rid of any possible contamination risks and maintain smooth operation.
Local drainage professionals will choose the most suitable method, or a combination of equipment or techniques, based on the system’s condition, the type of waste present and the specific needs of the premises. Doing so will increase reliability and reduce the risk of costly emergencies in the future.
If you're looking for a team of drain experts to help remove any indoor or outdoor blockages from your home or business site through any necessary means, give our team a call today. From businesses to office kitchens, we'll do all we can to get rid of any drainage issues we detect. Give us a call today for more details.
