Gurgling drains: what the noise is telling you
A gurgle is air being forced through the water in a trap. Which drain gurgles, and when, tells you if it is a slow trap, a vent fault or the main drain.
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Key takeaways
- A gurgle is air being pushed or pulled through the water seal in a trap, because something is stopping air or water moving through the drain.
- One fixture gurgling as it empties usually means a partial blockage in that fixture's own trap or branch pipe.
- A toilet or basin that gurgles when another fixture empties points to a partly blocked shared drain or a vent problem.
- Gurgling is one of Hunter Water's listed signs of a sewer blockage. If several fixtures gurgle or water has backed up in the yard gully, stop using water and call.
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