Jurong West resident baffled as contractors find metre-long bamboo and rubber hoses clogging HDB drain

SINGAPORE: A homeowner became worried when foam gushed from the drain of the toilet of his HDB flat in Jurong West. Having nowhere else to ask for help, he sought a contractor to inspect the unit. Surprisingly, they found three bamboo sticks stuck in the drainpipe, leaving them with questions as to where these came from. 

As reported by Shin Min Daily News, the 68-year-old homeowner noticed that in June last year, foam bubbles would come out of the bathroom drain almost every day, and it sometimes covered the entire bathroom floor. More so, these foam bubbles were accompanied by a slight odour. 

The homeowner shared that he used to be a plumber and had tried to unclog the pipes himself. However, he did not notice any unusual objects. With this, he became curious as to what causes the overflow. He also notified the authorities about the issue, but the cause remained a mystery. 

He then contacted a contractor to inspect the pipes. The homeowner said that during the process of installing the water pipes, the contractor’s workers broke the water pipe in the second-floor unit below. Due to this, the workers went downstairs to check and found several bamboo poles and rubber hoses inside the water pipe. 

“It’s probably because there are bamboo poles and rubber hoses in the water pipes that the soapy water from upstairs can’t drain properly, which is why it’s coming out of my drain. But what I find strange is that each of these bamboo poles is about 1 meter long. How did they get stuck in the water pipes?” the homeowner remarked. 

The workers removed the bamboo poles and rubber hoses, and also helped the downstairs resident repair the water pipes. Since then, his toilet has not experienced any more foaming.

However, the homeowner declared that the foam started to appear in the second-floor units and suspected that the water pipes were still clogged. 

“I think if the source is the bamboo pole in the water pipe, then I shouldn’t have to pay for it; the person who put the bamboo pole in the water pipe should be responsible,” he said. 

“I hope the authorities can come and thoroughly investigate,” he added. 

In similar news about HDB incidents, a man scattered luncheon meat all over a hallway, hoping to bring bad luck to his Muslim neighbours because of their noisy children. Unfortunately, he was sentenced to prison for his actions. 

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