Plumber Bassendean

Bassendean WA 6054, Town of Bassendean. About 10 km north-east of the Perth CBD.

Bassendean is a north-eastern suburb about ten kilometres from the Perth CBD, on the Swan River within the Town of Bassendean. It gives its name to the Bassendean Dune System, the older grey sands running through this part of the Swan Coastal Plain, and that ground behaves quite differently to the limestone country west of the city. The suburb sits low enough near the river that flooding has been a genuine issue historically, and a good deal of its recreation land was built on former swamp, both of which show up in how drainage has to be handled.

• Built on the Bassendean sandsThe grey sands here drain differently to the limestone country on the western side of Perth, and the water table sits closer to the surface across much of the suburb. A soak well specification that works fine in a western suburb can struggle here through winter, so we size drainage for this ground rather than to a generic detail.
• Low-lying ground near the riverParts of Bassendean sit low enough that flooding has caused real damage in the past. On those blocks stormwater has limited fall to work with and soakage fills quickly, so drainage needs designing for saturated winter ground rather than for an average year.
• Recreation land built on former swampThe ovals and greens near the townsite were developed on what was swampy ground. The streets around that land carry the same high groundwater, which is why properties there see slow-clearing soak wells and wet yards while houses a few streets away do not.
• Established housing on original servicesMuch of Bassendean's housing has been in place long enough that galvanised supply and earthenware sewer are the norm. Corroded supply pipe and root intrusion at sewer joints are the two faults we deal with most often, and both are age rather than misuse.