Well or soakaway?????

[simonsa]

i am trying to sort out some drainage in my back garden after having an extension completed on my bungalow. I am hoping to install decking as a patio. Down the side of the building just outside the front door is a manhole cover which leads to what looks like a big well, it is about 1.5 metres in diameter. I have been syphoning surface water from the back garden into this and it fills up but over a few days seems to drop down to its original level. Have pumped this well??? completely dry recently and been inside it, the amount of silt/clay in the bottom is unbelievable, the house is about 70 years old and i dont think it has ever been cleared before. I would like to use this to drain the water from my back garden but am not sure if it is suitable. Cant work out if it has a solid bottom or not and whether it is supposed to be a soakaway, but have read on this site a soakaway needs to be at least 5 metres from any buildings, mine is only about 1.5 metres!! Could you please advise me on whether you think it is a soakaway and if there is any other way to get rid of the silt/clay on the bottom other than getting in and clearing it by hand as this proved to be very difficult last time.

[steve r]

Sounds as though it could be a well.
If the water level is going down over time it may be draining to somewhere.
You don't say how deep it is, but if it is filling up with silt (which must be coming from somewhere) and is that close to your bungalow I would suggest you get some professional advice.

[simonsa]

The well is about 7' deep!! Who would you suggest i talk to ? Have tried the local water board (severn trent water), they have no knowledge of it and dont seem very helpful.
Cheers!

[steve r]

Could be a catch pit.
They are intended to remove silt from a drainage system.
Can you see any pipes running into the sides of the chamber?

Going back to the well theory if you put the name of your town into this site it may well show if there was a well on your site old maps

Failing that the Enviroment agency may be able to help you.

[flowjoe]

Could be a catch pit.
They are intended to remove silt from a drainage system.
Can you see any pipes running into the sides of the chamber?

Going back to the well theory if you put the name of your town into this site it may well show if there was a well on your site old maps

Failing that the Enviroment agency may be able to help you.

whats the construction of the chamber, concrete sectional, loose brickwork, bricks and mortar ?. Pictures would help if possible

Sounds like either a catch pit, if so you should have inlets/outlet or possibly a soak-away (more likely if the walls of the chamber are not sealed). Drainage building regs didnt come in until October 1937 public health act so it is not uncommon to find soak-aways this close to the property as prior to this date builders/drainlayers basically did what they wanted.

Ive also found that these pits were used to collect water for green houses and even laundry blocks( just in case you are the lord of the manor!)

You could get a vactor unit(tanker) in to empty the silt from the pit, using high pressure water to break it up though this is not cheap , but usually its a bucket & rope job (bare in mind its a confined space and all the safety issues that this raises)

Try to find a local drainage contractor by word of mouth if possible, ask your local council whos on their housing stock contractors list, keep away from the national franchised operators whos lads work on commision and can turn a one day job into a weeks work.

If its a catch pit you should find an outlet pipe, if not can you seal the chamber and utilise it as a pump chamber to lift the water into another system ?

[simonsa]

this is the well i have been talking about. Would it be ok to join inlet and outlet to provide drainage for back garden? have been told by E.A that i can do whatever i want with it but want to know if this will work for drainage. Dont know where the outlet runs to!!

[flowjoe]

It certainly looks like a soak-away with the gravel base shown on your drawing, do you know where the two inlets shown are running from.

I would not/could not advise you to direct an unkown volume of water from your garden into a soak-away this close to your property, the construction of the tank suggests the ground has poor drainage, probably clay, too much water causes clay to swell/heave, how deep/close are your foundations in comparison to the tank?.

Convert the tank into a catch pit by sealing the base and walls and directing an outlet into another system if you have the falls, if not install a float switch pump into the sealed tank to lift the water into another system.

Its difficult to give a difinitive answer from here (tucked under the stairs) and im sure we both want your property to be standing in another 70 years so it will need to be done correctly, get the opinion of a couple of reputable local contractors before doing anything !

Keep us informed

[simonsa]

Many thanks for all your replies.

This is my attempt at the plan view of the soakaway and surrounding drains. The drain inlet was previously a downspout inlet running from the roof. It looks as though at some point the downspout was moved to the other side of the soakaway. The second downspout is water from the front side of the roof.

Household water from the kitchen runs into the nearest drain to the soakaway, then under the corner of the house to another manhole on the driveway.

Section A-A shows the possible outlet from the soakaway. When I rodded this outlet it seemed to run upwards and straight. It may be that at some point the other downspout also ran into the soakaway.

I really don't know where the drainage goes and will have to get the appropriate people out to check.
I want to fill the soakaway and run my drain straight through, then concrete over the top, doing away with the manhole cover totally.

Again many thanks for all your help, and if anyone can suggest some good contractors/advisors i would much appreciate it.

Cheers, Simonsa

[da02uk]

I dont suppose anyone is really interested in the outcome of this but i'll tell you anyway. Simonsa was my brother, he died in 2007, after 2 years fighting cancer. He completed this project which included digging several tonnes of clay/soil from the rear of his house whilst doing his chemotherapy.

We routed the drainage from the rear of the property, down the side and into the 'well'. If this ever overflowed it went into the main drain into the roadway. He left the 'well' in place. I personally think it was some sort of soakaway/catchpit.

Simon then had the decking put around the back and side of his house. It looked pretty good and he, his wife and daughter enjoyed the property for his remaining year.

[lutonlagerlout]

that's incredibly poignant that he got it done,
it was before my time in the brew cabin, but all the same really sorry to hear that
all the best
LLL

[Tony McC]

You never know what will turn up next in the Brew Cabin!

I'm glad we were able to help your brother

[da02uk]

He was chuffed to bits with it.

[Dave_L]

What a heart warming story, thanks for posting da

[Suggers]

Sounds like he was a top bloke - regards.

[seanandruby]

I dont suppose anyone is really interested in the outcome of this but i'll tell you anyway. Simonsa was my brother, he died in 2007, after 2 years fighting cancer. He completed this project which included digging several tonnes of clay/soil from the rear of his house whilst doing his chemotherapy.

We routed the drainage from the rear of the property, down the side and into the 'well'. If this ever overflowed it went into the main drain into the roadway. He left the 'well' in place. I personally think it was some sort of soakaway/catchpit.

Simon then had the decking put around the back and side of his house. It looked pretty good and he, his wife and daughter enjoyed the property for his remaining year.

we are always interested in the outcome of a project. It can be quite irritating when people don't follow on. With all that has happened it with your family it is very nice of you to post and ley the brew cabin know. It must of been hard for you. It is good to have a something there that you can sit and remember your brother by. Hope things are going well for you now.