foundation help please!

[concretedan]

Hi All,
Can anyone offer some assistance please?
I've just gotten to the stage of digging the footings for my new extension and as you will see from the photo's i have uncovered a concrete encased pipe very close to the house. The BCO has said that i can bridge this pipe using steel lintels (one end resting on the footings and the other resting within the brickwork of me house) and I am fine with this but;
1) Is steel really necessary or can i just use concrete lintels?
2) You will see from the photo's that the concrete encased pipe also runs to the left to an opened trapped gully. Is it ok to build the oversite on top of the concrete encased pipe seeing as there will be less load than on the footings? or would i need to bridge this as well?
For the photo's please look at my albums.
many thanks

 

[noseall]

The correct lintel is simply a case of span v's load. In a majority of cases drains are spanned using a concrete lintel albeit based on the fact that a pipe is only 130mm wide and the opening very narrow.

If you are bridging over a pipe plus a broad lump of concrete then the bco may have a point regards a steel lintel.

Also bare in mind that most door openings, i.e. 32" wide are spanned by pcc lintels.

 

[concretedan]

Cheers mate. To be honest I will go for the steel to be on the safe side. What about bridging over for the oversite? Less load on the floor, what do you think?

Thanks again,

Dan

 

[noseall]

Oversite does not generally require any special lintelling process though we have in the past been asked to put mesh in the slab where the site has been criss-crossed with various drain pipes.

 

[concretedan]

Hi Noseall,

Had the BCO round today and I will be using concrete lintels to bridge the pipe work. He mentioned that no bridging would be necessary for the oversite. I am building this extension all by my lonesome and had the footings approved today and poured the foundations this afternoon, to be honest I'm quite proud of myself!

Cheers for all your advice so far.

Regards,

Dan