The Brew Cabin

Thanks for a great and informative site!

I've a couple of problems that could use some advice...

Firstly I need to build a soakaway for the guttering of a small porch. This currently discharges onto stone flags at the base of the porch, which is unsatisfactory according to a survey that was carried out on the house prior to purchase. As the volume of water is small, how would you recommend such a soakaway is constructed?

Secondly I have a reasonable amount of standing water in my cellar. It never really amounts to more than a puddle, but is irritating as it restricts the use of the cellar, and also carries up mud through the stone flags from the ground below. Upon lifting a flag I found another layer of flags, and under those a brick floor, which leads to me to believe that the floor has been raised in the past to alleviate this problem (the house was built around 1870). In the opposite corner of the cellar (which is dry!) is a small drain, which seems to function.

What would your recommendations be to resolve this problem?

Many thanks in anticipation.

In my experience many houses with cellars are built with a stone drain adjacent to the walls. This is constructed by placing strips of thin stone vertically a few inches from the cellar wall, and then laying the flags on top of these, to leave a narrow channel. Sometimes these drains also have a stone base. The stone drain leads to one corner where there is a channel to the outside, and a soakaway (or in one house, a way through to the neighbour's cellar, which was lower!). Over the years these drains become blocked with silt, or the soakaway clogs up. You can sort the first problem by rising them out with a hosepipe, but if the soakaway is blocked you have a problem. I have the suspicion that you can use a flocculant to clear them, but I'm not an expert on this side of things.

Our house is built on a couple of springs, and we have running water in the cellar, but by channeling it to the edges and applying a little heat and adequate ventilation we have made it reasonably habitable. In my last house we cured a very damp cellar using a small radiator and plenty of ventilation, though it did take a year to get it dry.

The worst thing you can do is to waterproof the floor, as this just forces the water up the walls, and you then have an even bigger problem.

Apols for the short reply, but I have to go in 5 mins - see the Important Message


Soakway - same construction as given on the Soakaways page - note that a hole filled with broken bricks and old flags is not a soakaway: it's just a hole filled with broken bricks and flags!

Cellar flooding - a submersible pump, either one with a float switch or one you switch on as and when you need to.

Bye......

Thanks for the replies, I'll definately think about channeling the water to the drain, that sounds like a good possibility.

Best wishes Tony, hope all goes well!