Updated - Basic Conservatory (no dwarf wall) over edge of drain??

[rednaxela]

Hello all, long time, no post.
I could not have done without all the amazing help on here when I was doing my extension. I'm back with a new question.

I'm having a small conservatory 3m x 1.6m. No dwarf wall.
One corner of it will terminate right at my drain cover. The whole cover assembly has to be replaced as it is corroded.

Would I be allowed to gain a little more width than 1.6m by offsetting the new cover from the chamber by a couple of brick widths?
My chamber comes only from my house and then feeds onto a main run, so there is no traffic from other homes.

A couple of bricks doesn't seem much, but I think the extra space gained inside would be well worth it as my external door will be on the end of the length.

The entire drain cover is parallel with the bricks between my kitchen and bathroom, so I have no option of having the whole drain inside the conservatory as it would always have to be under a wall.

I would appreciate your opinions and I hope I made sense!!

Best regards, Alex

 

[rednaxela]

Basically I want to move the cover 10cm to the right

 

[Hugh Jaleak]

10cm to the right as in the picture? Don't see it being a problem, provided you seal up the side where you will be covering to prevent any detritus falling into the chamber, use an appropriate lintel or suchlike to cover the gap.

 

[rednaxela]

Many thanks Hugh, yes 10cm as in the picture. The new position will still allow fully vertical access to the drain for rodding.
I'm just mindful that I don't want to break any regulations having the corner of my conservatory on a lintel over 10cm of the chamber.

 

[Hugh Jaleak]

It's technically your chamber as on your property, and only takes from your house, so I don't see an issue, provided as I said, the work is done properly, and not just a couple of planks to fill the gap!

 

[^woody^]

You will get sewer smells coming into the property, however well you think you can seal it.

 

[^woody^]

It's technically your chamber as on your property, and only takes from your house, so I don't see an issue

It's still controlled work under the Building Act and public health legislation, and it's not acceptable to do this.

 

[Hugh Jaleak]

Not disagreeing, but how is it different though from having a chamber with a sealed cover internally, or the use of a slab or biscuit to reduce the opening of a larger chamber to accommodate a standard size cover? Come across plenty of similar instances out there, as long as the cover is liftable and adequate access remains for rodding/jetting then it wont be much different to other under boundary walls/fences etc.

 

[rednaxela]

The lintel would in theory be below ground, then two bricks up on top of that, with DPC and insulation and concrete top.
I would be surprised if any smells could get through, however smells and water are strange beasts that do defy logic.

 

[Hugh Jaleak]

Other option is to move the chamber, but that depends where the pipe at 6 o'clock is coming from.

 

[rednaxela]

The 6 o'clock is an addition from my extension. It goes about a foot, then goes off at 7:45 ish up and towards the house.

 

[Hugh Jaleak]

How difficult would it be to move the chamber across? Can put a bend immediately outside on the outlet to skew it across slightly, and then extend the inlets to suit.

 

[rednaxela]

I will chat to my builder about it. He is coming at the end of the week to start the footings. He won't order the conservatory until he has the size.
The digging will be a look see, to see what options are available.

Again, thanks to all for your comments and wizdom

 

[^woody^]

Not disagreeing, but how is it different though from having a chamber with a sealed cover internally, or the use of a slab or biscuit to reduce the opening of a larger chamber to accommodate a standard size cover? Come across plenty of similar instances out there, as long as the cover is liftable and adequate access remains for rodding/jetting then it wont be much different to other under boundary walls/fences etc.

With a normal arrangement, a sealed chamber has the frame sealed to it and the lid sealed within that.

With the OP's proposal he won't get any such seal by plonking those lintels across the chamber.

It's not an impossible task, but it will need to be considered and properly designed and constructed. Sewer smells are powerful and can get out through the tiniest gap, and houses are not airtight.

 

[Hugh Jaleak]

I was rather hoping if the OP did attempt the idea he would do a 'proper job'. I've worked on and around drainage throughout my working life, and I have a thing about it being done properly. Bodges usually come back to bite before too long....