Start with the free checks, in one afternoon
Queensland storm season runs roughly November through April, and the difference between a house that shrugs off a supercell and one that floods is usually work done in October. Most of it costs nothing. Walk the house and clear leaves from gutters and downpipe heads, because a blocked downpipe in a Gold Coast downpour sends water over the gutter edge and, on many homes, back under the eaves. Lift the leaves and silt off every stormwater grate in the yard and check water can actually get to them, since a grate buried under bark mulch is just a decoration. Trim vegetation away from gully traps and downpipes while you are there.
Then find your overflow relief gully, the open grated fitting near an outside wall, and make sure nothing is sitting on it. No pot plants, no paving over it, no garden soil creeping across the grate. If the sewer surcharges in a storm, that gully is what keeps sewage out of your shower, and it can only do that if it is clear.
Fix the drains that are already whispering
Here is the honest pattern from our storm callout book: the drains that fail in the first big storm are almost never fine one day and blocked the next. They were slow in spring, gurgling in November, and the storm just finished the job. A drain that is draining slowly, gurgling, or smelling now is carrying a partial blockage, and storm loading will find it. A standard hours machine clear at $250 to $400 as of 2026 is the cheap version of that repair. The expensive version is the same drain at 9pm in January at after-hours rates of $360 to $560 for the first hour plus the work, with a wet carpet thrown in.
Your storm season checklist
| Task | DIY or plumber | Cost, as of 2026 Gold Coast |
|---|---|---|
| Clear gutters, downpipe heads and yard grates | DIY | Free |
| Check the overflow relief gully is clear and uncovered | DIY | Free |
| Pour water into unused floor wastes to reseal traps | DIY | Free |
| Clear any slow or gurgling drain | Plumber, licensed drainage work | $250 to $400 machine clear |
| Camera check of sewer or stormwater lines | Plumber | CCTV $200 to $350, camera add-on to a clear $120 to $180 |
| Full condition survey of problem drains | Plumber | CCTV plus jetting plus report, $500 to $900 |
| Check flexi hoses and taps while on site | Plumber | Included in our visit, repairs quoted before we start |
When a camera inspection is worth the money
Not every home needs a pre season CCTV inspection, and we will not pretend otherwise. Where it earns its keep is homes with a track record: a blockage in the past two years, mature trees near the sewer line, an older home with earthenware pipes, or that telltale habit of drains slowing whenever it rains. For those homes, $200 to $350 as of 2026 buys you actual knowledge, footage of what condition your pipes are in and whether roots are waiting for summer, instead of hoping. If the camera shows clean pipe, you get storm season peace of mind and we go away. If it shows a problem, you get to fix it on your schedule at standard rates rather than on the storm's schedule.
Stormwater drains deserve the same thinking as sewer. They sit unused for months, quietly filling with silt, leaves and roots, and then get asked to move a summer deluge all at once. If your yard ponded or overflowed last season, that is your notice for this one.
If a storm wins anyway
Sometimes the weather beats the preparation. If water backs up during a storm, stop using water inside the house, keep people away from sewage affected areas, and check whether the ORG is relieving outside. Then call us. We answer after hours, our emergency rate is $360 to $560 for the first hour plus the work, and we give you a straight ETA based on where we actually are. On a big storm night the whole coast is calling at once and we would rather tell you a truthful two hours than a comfortable thirty minutes.
Book your pre season drain check
Get slow drains cleared and problem lines camera checked before the first November cell rolls in. Hills Plumbing & Gas covers the whole Gold Coast, fixed pricing quoted before work starts, QBCC licence 15243081, 5.0 stars from 27 Google reviews. Call 0472 657 042 or book through our blocked drains service page.