Leasehold

Do stack noise, together with a flat in a converted house, count as evidence on a defect in the flat below, which this inspection did not enter, or only as a note of what was visible?

Stack noise in a flat in a converted house is only a note of what was heard where the surveyor stood. It is not evidence of a defect in the flat below, which this inspection did not enter. The survey has not decided that the stack is leaking, blocked or badly jointed. Sound through a pipe is a clue, not a finding about rooms that were closed. Condition downstairs stays outside this report, whatever the pipe sounded like on the day.

Last reviewed 24 October 2026. Written for buyers in England and Wales unless this answer says otherwise. No named surveyor has signed this page. It is general guidance, not a report on your house, and not legal advice.

What is the fuller explanation?

A soil stack in a conversion often runs through floors that used to be one house. Noise can be water, a loose clip or a joint, and the source may be above or below the room where it was heard. Hearing it does not open the boxing and does not grant entry downstairs. The survey can record the place and the fact of the noise. It cannot describe stains or pipework in the other flat. The lease may split repairing duties, which this visit should not invent.

Ask the solicitor how the stack is demised and who repairs it, using the lease rather than the noise. The lower flat is not part of this inspection. If the sound needs explaining, a plumber can look where access is actually given. That is a different instruction. Do not tell a lender the flat below has a defect. The report should stay inside the flat it was asked to describe.

What should you ask your surveyor?

Where in this flat was the stack noise heard?
Does the report make clear the flat below was not entered?
Is the noise recorded as an observation rather than a defect downstairs?

What are the typical next steps?

Treat the noise as a note inside the inspected flat.
Ask the solicitor who repairs the stack under the lease.
Use a plumber only where access is actually given.

Costs vary with the building and with who you instruct. Where this page does not cite a published figure, ask the surveyor, a relevant specialist, or your solicitor for a written quote. Do not treat a forum average as the price.

Also asked about this

Can this report force entry to the flat below?

No. This inspection did not enter the flat below, and the report cannot create a right to do so. Access depends on who occupies that flat and on what they agree. Your solicitor can ask. Until entry happens, nothing downstairs has been inspected, whatever the stack sounded like.

Does boxing around the pipe count as an inspection of the stack?

Boxing hides the pipe. Hearing noise through it is not an inspection of the joints. The survey did not open the duct. If the pipe itself must be seen, that needs access and a proper look. The noise note does not stand in for opened joints or a diagnosed leak.