Plumber Fairfield, NSW 2165
Fairfield is one of the most densely settled suburbs in the south-west, with a busy town centre around the station, Neeta City and Fairfield Forum, and streets of 1950s cottages that have been extended, rebuilt and joined by granny flats. The 1960s-70s walk-up unit blocks near the station add strata work. It sits on Cumberland Plain clay close to Prospect Reservoir, so pressure is high and the old earthenware sewers are cracked, and Prospect Creek runs along the eastern side.
What usually goes wrong in Fairfield
- Earthenware sewers from the 1950s cracked in the clay and blocked with roots from camphor laurels and street trees
- Pinhole corrosion in 1960s-70s copper inside unit blocks, with leaks tracking through the slab to the unit below
- High mains pressure near Prospect Reservoir shortening the life of taps, cisterns and hot water relief valves
- Granny flats and duplexes on old shared sewer lines overloading pipes sized for a single cottage
- Stormwater and sewer surcharge in low streets near Prospect Creek after heavy summer rain
Local notes from the plumbers
Fairfield is one of the older suburbs in the south-west and the housing has been reworked more than once. The 1950s-60s fibro cottages on the streets around Fairfield station and The Crescent have mostly been extended, rebuilt in brick or joined by a granny flat, but the earthenware sewer line under the yard is often the original, cracked at the joints by Cumberland Plain clay, full of roots from camphor laurels and street trees, and now carrying two households where it was sized for one. The 1960s-70s walk-up unit blocks near the station and Neeta City have copper that is pinholing inside the slab, so a leak in one bathroom turns up as a stain on the ceiling below. Mains pressure is high across Fairfield because of Prospect Reservoir, which shortens the life of tap sets, cistern inlets and hot water relief valves. Low streets toward Prospect Creek and Fairfield East get stormwater and sewer surcharge through the overflow gully when the summer storms hit. The restaurants along The Crescent and Smart Street add grease and drain work. The Cumberland Highway and The Horsley Drive give quick access.
Housing in Fairfield
1950s-60s fibro and weatherboard cottages, many since replaced by brick homes, duplexes and granny flats, 1960s-70s three-storey walk-up unit blocks around Fairfield station and The Crescent, 2010s apartments near Neeta City, and a strip of light industry and shops along the Cumberland Highway and Smithfield Road.
