I have bought a house recently and I noticed signs of damp on the edges of floor boards of the external wall. There is an ally way on the other side. We thought it could be the soil stack leaking or surface water from the front of the property.
There was also a gully in the front of the house that wasn’t linked to a pipe (make shift soak away), so maybe some water was coming from there and travelling underground. The soil at the depth of 3 feet is clay and this is the level where I can actually see water.
We thought the gully was the cause.
So, so far we have dug up all the way on the side of the house. I have also dug up inside where there are signs of water on rainy days. Once you reach 3 feet or so, I hit water.
So we have installed a gully in the ally way. It’s not really in the front of the house, because it would have been too low there and water wouldn’t flow downwards. But we concreted the hole where the old gully was. So, I would assume the water shouldn’t escape the surface.
The soil stack and underground drain pipes are now new and not leaking.
I was confident that we have solved the issue. …………….but
Yeah you have guessed it, it rained around 6 hours after the concrete was poured and there is again standing water in the inside hole. I left the hole as it was, to make sure the problem is solved. Could the water penetrate the concrete and seep through?
How can I find out where the water is coming from? The hole where the water shows is 2-3 meters from the front of the house.
There is also a neighbours roof down pipe on the neighbours side of the ally way. The downpipe is going into the ground. I’m not sure, if it goes to a drain or just let loose below the surface.
I would have thought it is more likely the water is coming from the roof down pipe (shared for two semi detached houses), how likely is that the pipe is not going to any drain? The houses are from 1930 - 40.
I am attaching pictures of most of what’s what and I hope someone can give some suggestions. Just seems a never ending saga.
Inside hole - You probably can't see the water, but its standing at the bottom.
Where the old gully was
neighbours down pipe is on the other side of the fence. roughly where the gate in the picture is.
There was also a gully in the front of the house that wasn’t linked to a pipe (make shift soak away), so maybe some water was coming from there and travelling underground. The soil at the depth of 3 feet is clay and this is the level where I can actually see water.
We thought the gully was the cause.
So, so far we have dug up all the way on the side of the house. I have also dug up inside where there are signs of water on rainy days. Once you reach 3 feet or so, I hit water.
So we have installed a gully in the ally way. It’s not really in the front of the house, because it would have been too low there and water wouldn’t flow downwards. But we concreted the hole where the old gully was. So, I would assume the water shouldn’t escape the surface.
The soil stack and underground drain pipes are now new and not leaking.
I was confident that we have solved the issue. …………….but
Yeah you have guessed it, it rained around 6 hours after the concrete was poured and there is again standing water in the inside hole. I left the hole as it was, to make sure the problem is solved. Could the water penetrate the concrete and seep through?
How can I find out where the water is coming from? The hole where the water shows is 2-3 meters from the front of the house.
There is also a neighbours roof down pipe on the neighbours side of the ally way. The downpipe is going into the ground. I’m not sure, if it goes to a drain or just let loose below the surface.
I would have thought it is more likely the water is coming from the roof down pipe (shared for two semi detached houses), how likely is that the pipe is not going to any drain? The houses are from 1930 - 40.
I am attaching pictures of most of what’s what and I hope someone can give some suggestions. Just seems a never ending saga.
Inside hole - You probably can't see the water, but its standing at the bottom.
Where the old gully was
neighbours down pipe is on the other side of the fence. roughly where the gate in the picture is.
