Mill village, moor edge
Oswaldtwistle was a mill village before it was a town, and the terraced streets built for the people who worked in them still make up much of it. Stone and brick terraces and cottages climb the hillsides towards the moor, with newer estates filling in between. Many homes are small, with kitchens and bathrooms added long after they were built, and pipework that has been altered several times.
Old houses mean old supply pipes as well as old drains. Lead was used for water pipes in the UK until around 1970, stop taps that have not been turned in decades tend to seize, and pipes that run through solid stone walls or under flagged floors are hard to reach when they fail. Plumbing emergencies are as likely here as drainage ones.
Common problems in older homes
In Oswaldtwistle, watch for:
- Stop taps that will not turn, or that leak at the spindle (stop taps)
- Old supply pipes that leak or lose pressure, some of them lead
- Leaks in pipes run through walls and under floors, which only show as damp (burst and leaking pipes)
- Shared yard and alley drains in the older terraces that block and back up
- Steep drive and road gullies that fill with silt in heavy rain
Moor-edge weather
Oswaldtwistle's hillside streets take the weather from the moor. Heavy rain runs down drives and roads into gullies that fill with silt, and a cold snap finds the pipes that run through unheated outhouses, lofts and outside walls. If a gully is overflowing, clearing it often solves it (blocked drains). If a pipe has split, turn the water off at the stop tap and call.
Postcodes covered and nearby areas
We cover Oswaldtwistle in the BB5 postcode district, along with Church, Stanhill, Knuzden, Green Haworth and Rhyddings. Clayton-le-Moors and Accrington are next door, and Blackburn is just up the road.
Our services in Oswaldtwistle
Every service is available in Oswaldtwistle. Pick the one that matches your problem, or call and the team will tell you which it is.