Hi
I came to this site/ forum as it my be my only and last resource to solve this problem which has put my project to stand still.
And getting advice from builders , landscape gardeners etc has just caused more despair then relief!
Here is my problem and I so hope one of you clever guys will be able to help- I got to a stage I don't know who else to trust
The problem;
We just added a new single story extension to the back of the house in order to create a kitchen/ living area.
As the baby was due in Jan the builders have rushed ( off course they wanted their cash in hand in time of Christmas too)!and they have built the extension as per our granted planning permission drawing plans.
There were no technical drawings, as in order to get the work done quicker, we chosen the "building notice" approach and had the Building survey inspector coming in and approval the work as it was getting on.
So the walls were up, the gully was put in ( very close to the external wall) and the bifolding doors installed.
So the internal work is sort of completed- we have walls, a roof and the doors.
BUT we can't get the patio done because the gully and the Door sill- the gully outlet and the door sill are both the same level !!! Which means the gully is higher then the dcp level...
The idea was to build the patio using the ACO drainage system so we could have a nice flat threshold step-less feel from out the living area into the patio but there is no "space" to connect the ACO channel system on top of the gully vertical outlet as both are at the same flat level !!!!
Don't ask how the builder inspector has signed off a gully which is as high as the door. Highest thrn the dcp level.
She got on too well with the builders and just assumed he was doing everything right. 3 days before Christmas everyone was just trying to move on.
Now we have no patio, an unsealed area under the folding doors which every time it rains water, is poring inside the internal area causing a lot of dampness and wet floors in the new extension .
The guys who are meant to install the floor have refused to do so until we get the drainage and patio sorted . Only by doing this we can stop the water coming through..
To make matters worst the builders have done a run! doesn't matter how much we try to get them back. they refusing to take any responsibility for it an with no vat registered we can't even think of take this legally resolved.
I am sorry for such long post, thank you for reading.
I would really really appreciate if you could put me in the right direction.
It just been an horrible experience which I jus want to finish and enjoy the dreamed family life.
I do have pictures and I am more then happy to send over so you can see the problem.
IS there a drainage system that can be installed which Door sill and gully are at the same flat level??
email me pics at info@localdiggers.co.uk i can host them this evening for everyone to see but my gut feeling is that the seemless levels you want from floor to patio is never going to work without properly without issues like this. simply you need to lower everything to 150mm below the existing damp course andnhave a step outside the patio doors
Tanking you i have sent you some pictures. Well apticiated for posting them for me as I haven't got such facility.
So in regarding your advice.
Perhaps I could go down 15mm step down BUT i dont think it would work, because of the natural flow of the water that goes into the gully to the manhole ( which is positioned under the extenion and we cant access it) we can't move the gully any lower or move it further .
looks like a proper pikey job! :-/ Is the gully just taking the water from the down-pipe? Where does the gully run to?
Could you build a small 'planter' around the gully to hide it, and then run aco's at sill level and discharge further down stream or to a soakaway?
just read that it runs under the extension. Could you use a pea trap? with the aco's running directly over the top as per... http://www.pavingexpert.com/aco01.htm
if that runs under the house then i doubt you will be able to lower, at some point someone didnt do any careful measurements or thoughts when laying that pipe.
for me the way forward is to now removebthat gully and block pipe off totally and have a soakaway dug to collect that black and grey (fail) downpipe and you can also run a linear drain to that. as for the render, im going to assume the damp course is at the bottom of the door sill as there is a drip rail fitted in the render to the left of the doors... if thats the case then it needs to be the same on the right sode too as currently the water is making its way over the render and its bridging the damp course causing that damp shown in the pics. i would make sure you write up a good snag list here what i can see so far is a little worrying
we have done these jobs
you either use a fin drain or an aco type drain flush to the threshold
to overcome the DPC issue a cavity tray is installed at the first DP which rises up 225mm onto the internal blockwork
a second dpc is installed out side 225mm above finished patio level
that gully is irrelevant to the drain in front of the door as it takes foul water to your sewers
the drain along the door needs to run to a suitable soakway,constructed independently of the sewer system
cheers LLL
