Soakaway.

[dobbslc]

I've just spotted this in two of the three drains leading to my new soakaway! No wonder the patio area has been flooded.


I poked a 3 meter length of mini trunking lid down and only got a few are bubbles up. The third drain is higher so maybe is on its way to filling up.
Is this due to the heavy rains (although we had a totally dry day yesterday) or has the builder cocked something up?
He's the same guy that poured a wall footing off centre buy miles a few weeks ago!!!
How is it possible to get it wrong? It's a hole in the ground with some pipes!
How can I check if it's the soakaway that's full?

 

[WorkshopChris]

Are you no clay? Around hear once it's been wet for a few days the ground is waterlogged and can't take any more.

 

[angellonewolf]

does a soakaway not have to be 5 meters from the house or garage ?

 

[pressbrake1]

Soak away are not much use in this weather unless you’re on gravel , a deep bore soak away is required .
Note this advice was given to me by a geologist I sub contract to, im no geological expert!

 

[daleyd]

Ours at the front of our house is blocked, it needs digging out and redoing - how long is it been there, they do silt up over time. If it’s only been there a short time then i guess it may have been not done right

 

[8ob]

Even in clay they can work, my lads did the one below on a job. In clay you just keep going until you break through to a permeable layer which in our case was the natural water table @ 5mts. Lined with membrane and stone filled, wrapped over and perforated pipes also wrapped and shingled.

Bob

 

[pressbrake1]

That was lucky bob
Im in Essex and the London clay went down as far as a 25 tonner could go and still non permeable.
A bore hole is a fortune but I make machines to do it so I ll borrow some casing and do it myself

 

[8ob]

That was lucky bob
Im in Essex and the London clay went down as far as a 25 tonner could go and still non permeable.
A bore hole is a fortune but I make machines to do it so I ll borrow some casing and do it myself

A mate of mine is a geologist and he reckons there are quite accurate publications on strata, may be worth asking someone with a copy. We were told roughly how deep this hole was going to be and they were within a meter, there were no test holes so I can only assume they were using the same reference books.

Bob

 

[dobbslc]

Are you no clay? Around hear once it's been wet for a few days the ground is waterlogged and can't take any more.

Yes its clay with some gravel.

does a soakaway not have to be 5 meters from the house or garage ?

It's 5m from the house as building regs.

Ours at the front of our house is blocked, it needs digging out and redoing - how long is it been there, they do silt up over time. If it’s only been there a short time then i guess it may have been not done right

It's only been in 2 months.
Its stopped raining and one of the drains has dropped about 3".
It has been almost non stop rain here for weeks so maybe it's just filled up due to water logged ground.

 

[Afterimage]

A water butt under the downpipe would give an opportunity to dispose of the water elsewhere...

 

[mtt.tr]

A mate of mine is a geologist and he reckons there are quite accurate publications on strata, may be worth asking someone with a copy. We were told roughly how deep this hole was going to be and they were within a meter, there were no test holes so I can only assume they were using the same reference books.

Bob

Local and previous surveys are pretty good, where I am is a complete mix of all sorts

 

[addjunkie]

Yes its clay with some gravel.


It's 5m from the house as building regs.


It's only been in 2 months.
Its stopped raining and one of the drains has dropped about 3".
It has been almost non stop rain here for weeks so maybe it's just filled up due to water logged ground.

Im wondering if hes sctually dug the big hole at the end, or justif its just a trench with polly pipe in. Were mostly clay here, very little topsoil, and ours when full surfaces through the grass.....my fields currently look like the one i @8ob s picture

 

[dobbslc]

I saw the hole but didn't see how he connected the pipes, I have to assume he cut the membrane and pushes the pipes through into the crates......

 

[eLuSiVeMiTe]

Im wondering if hes sctually dug the big hole at the end, or justif its just a trench with polly pipe in. Were mostly clay here, very little topsoil, and ours when full surfaces through the grass.....my fields currently look like the one i @8ob s picture

More likely dug the hole to regs rather than to suit the ground conditions

 

[dobbslc]

It was wet at the bottom and it was 2 metres down. So I assume that was the water table

 

[roofman]

A lot of so called builders think digging a 3 foot deep hole and filling it with gravel is a soakaway then the householder thinks if they buy a water butt then all will be fine

 

[brightspark]

is best if you can get land drain in to the main drain and cover with gravel .all is you need is a gulley trap if its going in to the foul water drain. ive just done a load at daughters front and back of house and her neighbours. now the lawn dries out in summer and scorches

 

[dobbslc]

I did the calcs for the roof size, I've used the plastic crates if I remember its 2.5m3, Gravel base and back fill round the sides with a geo membrane. It should be absolutely fine!

 

[8ob]

It was wet at the bottom and it was 2 metres down. So I assume that was the water table

Did you do the percolation test? 5.3E section in link below. Its more than a hole when clay is involved.

http://nhbccampaigns.co.uk/landingp...versions/2010/Part5/section3/appendix.htm#53E

Bob

 

[brightspark]

not much point in putting any land drains round my house apart from one I put in that goes in to the cesspit the water table is only 2 foot underground the big playingfield at back of my house is always flooding .watched them putting land drains in to no avail and big cost .our whole aria is bad for it