How to prepare for a suction truck visit

Share your location pin, so the driver comes straight to the right gate. Tell us what the job is: a full septic tank, an overflowing manhole, a grease trap, a pool to drain, or water in a basement. Say what you are seeing, such as slow drains, a smell or an overflow, and whether it is getting worse.

Photos help most of all: one of the cover or the water, and one of the street or the gate where the truck will stop. If you know when the tank was last emptied, or how many tanks, traps or manholes there are, tell us. And give us the name and number of whoever will be on site to meet the crew.

A suction truck is a large, heavy vehicle. It needs a road wide enough to drive in, room to stop close to the property, and a firm surface to stand on. Our Super Combi works from the street or the driveway and runs its hose to the tank, so the shorter that distance, the better. Tell us roughly how far the tank, pool or manhole is from where the truck can park.

Mention anything that could get in the way: a narrow lane, a low gate or archway, overhead cables, soft sand, or a basement entrance the truck can't fit under. On a compound, let the gate and security know we are coming so the crew isn't held up at the barrier.

Clear the cover. Move cars, plant pots, furniture and anything else standing on the septic tank or manhole cover, and make sure it can be lifted. If you are not sure where the tank is, look for the manhole cover in the yard or ask the building watchman, and tell us so the crew can find it.

For a septic tank or a blocked line, cut down on water use until the job is done. For a grease trap, stop running water into the kitchen sinks while we work. For pool water removal, switch off the pool pump, the heater and the automatic top-up before we arrive, so the equipment doesn't run dry and fresh water doesn't keep flowing in.

Keep children and pets indoors while the crew works. An open septic tank or manhole is a serious danger: the gases inside can make a person collapse, and nobody should go in or lean over the opening. Leave the opening of covers to the crew.

Keep clear of the hoses and the truck while it is working, and don't step over or move the hoses. There may be a smell while a sewage tank is open, so close nearby windows and doors and turn off air conditioning units that draw air in close to the tank.

The crew checks the access, parks as close as safely possible and runs the suction hose to the tank, trap, pool or manhole. For a septic tank, the liquid comes out first, then the sludge from the bottom. If a pipe is blocked, the Super Combi jets it clear in the same visit. Everything goes into the truck's own tank and leaves with us.

Before leaving, the crew closes the cover, cleans up around it and tells you what they saw. Make a note of the date. For compounds and buildings with several tanks or traps, an annual maintenance contract sets the next visits on dates agreed with you, so you don't need to plan each one from scratch.