Sorry for the slightly long explanation/ post...
We are in the process of upgrading the garage floor as part of a conversion.
Having broken/ dug up the concrete slab we found a lot of loose bricks - which I thought was weird (I'll come on to that in a bit)
Most of the material (mud/ hardcore/ the bricks) were removed to reduce floor level so that it can be built back up with hardcore + DPM + concrete + insulation + screed to meet floor level in the rest of the house. We got to the stage of compacting hardcore + sand - when the general builders returned the next day (to lay DPM and pour concrete), they found the sand was notably wet as it had rained overnight.
It then dawned on us that the bricks were there to soak water and release it slowly when it stops raining. The garage was built with the house so must have been an old method of doing things (albeit apparently not recommended/ considered ineffective nowadays)
ANYWAY, we have now decided to go for a block and beam floor (yes I know, far more cost) as we're too far in to turn back now. A few days have passed and I noticed that in some areas the water was even puddling after prolonged periods of rain.
We have a block and beam floor in an other part of the house where the extension was build during the summer so I never saw the effects of prolonged rain.
The garage has a single skin wall so the builder have suggested creating an internal foundation + engineering brick wall for the block and beam to sit on.
I know there should be a bed of hardcore, sand blinding and then DPM with a 150mm void under the block and beam floor - however should I be concerned that the water rises so much during winter? Flooding under the B&B floor may be unlikely but the water sitting under it/ rising/ falling - is that a cause for concern or normal?
We are in the process of upgrading the garage floor as part of a conversion.
Having broken/ dug up the concrete slab we found a lot of loose bricks - which I thought was weird (I'll come on to that in a bit)
Most of the material (mud/ hardcore/ the bricks) were removed to reduce floor level so that it can be built back up with hardcore + DPM + concrete + insulation + screed to meet floor level in the rest of the house. We got to the stage of compacting hardcore + sand - when the general builders returned the next day (to lay DPM and pour concrete), they found the sand was notably wet as it had rained overnight.
It then dawned on us that the bricks were there to soak water and release it slowly when it stops raining. The garage was built with the house so must have been an old method of doing things (albeit apparently not recommended/ considered ineffective nowadays)
ANYWAY, we have now decided to go for a block and beam floor (yes I know, far more cost) as we're too far in to turn back now. A few days have passed and I noticed that in some areas the water was even puddling after prolonged periods of rain.
We have a block and beam floor in an other part of the house where the extension was build during the summer so I never saw the effects of prolonged rain.
The garage has a single skin wall so the builder have suggested creating an internal foundation + engineering brick wall for the block and beam to sit on.
I know there should be a bed of hardcore, sand blinding and then DPM with a 150mm void under the block and beam floor - however should I be concerned that the water rises so much during winter? Flooding under the B&B floor may be unlikely but the water sitting under it/ rising/ falling - is that a cause for concern or normal?
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