You can make some small changes to avoid blocking up your pipes this winter

FROM insulating pipes and reporting leaks to binning cooled cooking oil, fat and grease and only flushing the 3Ps (pee, poo and toilet paper), Severn Trent is encouraging customers across Leicestershire to make some small changes to help prevent a water meltdown this winter.

Paul Louth, network response lead at Severn Trent said: “Clogged drains and burst pipes should be the very last thing our customers need to be worrying about at the moment, which is why we’re encouraging everyone to take a few small steps to avoid any unnecessary issues.

“We know just how important water is, especially with more of us staying at home currently, and we want to reassure our customers that we’re here to help, but we would really appreciate their support too.

“It’s easy to assume that the warm grease and fat left over from your dinner would be ok to put down the sink, as long as you wash it down with a lot of hot soapy water. “But the reality is that fats and greases cool and solidify quite quickly once in the pipes, often leading to a serious blockage which can be costly to fix and can cause a big mess. It’s much better to pour any leftover fat, oil, or grease into a container to cool before disposing of it in the bin.

The company said that in the last year it has been called out to over 4000 blockages across Leicestershire, of which more than three quarters were caused by people flushing the wrong things into the sewer system. Leicester, Coalville and Loughborough have been identified as the top sewage blockage hotspots across the county.

Paul added: “At the same time, freezing temperatures can cause huge problems for water pipes. So before the winter weather hits us, we’re encouraging customers to prepare by lagging any household pipes that might be exposed to cold temperatures and covering any external taps.

“Lagging pipes is actually a really easy job to do and can potentially save homeowners thousands of pounds as bursts are not only devastating, but messy and expensive to fix.

“While we encourage customers to look after their pipes, our teams are also working hard to prevent any leaks or bursts on our network. So if you do spot a leak while you’re out and about, please do let us know so we can get it fixed as soon as possible.”

“If you do run into problems this winter, with either slow drains or a blocked sewer which is Severn Trent’s responsibility you can report it at www.stwater.co.uk or by calling 0800 783 4444.

“Our teams both in the call centre and in the field work all day, every day, so we’ll be here to help out with any problems our customers might have.”

While we encourage customers to look after their pipes, our teams are also working hard to prevent any leaks or bursts on our network