Lewisham is a small inner-west suburb with its own rail station, bordered by Petersham, Summer Hill, Dulwich Hill and Marrickville. Older houses, including Victorian and Federation homes, line the quieter streets, while newer apartment buildings cluster near the station and former industrial land.
Two kinds of building, two kinds of question
For house owners, the usual questions apply: the age of the pipework, the route and condition of the drain, and the position of valves. For apartment owners, the more important point is the division of responsibility. A newer building has modern pipework but a strict hierarchy of who can touch what, and any fault that involves shared stacks or common hot water must go through the manager first. Small suburb scale means that a single street can contain both situations.
- Houses: test the isolation valve and replace old flexible hoses.
- Apartments: keep the building manager's procedure for after-hours faults somewhere handy.
- Renovators: ask early whether the drain can take a new bathroom's load.
Close neighbours
Petersham is the nearest suburb on this site, and Dulwich Hill and Marrickville are almost as close. The Petersham guide covers terraces and semis, and the Marrickville guide covers converted buildings.
Keep reading
Return to the Inner West region. If you plan a renovation, plumbing costs in Sydney explains what influences quotes, and the emergency guide is worth a quick read before you need it.