Sinking Conservatory - Inspection pit

[tzartisan]

//www.diynot.com/network/tzartisan/albums/

Hi all

Hope the album of photos helps show the problem. Largeish 5x3.5m glass roofed conservatory sinking in one corner. It was either a guttering overflow problem now fixed that was causing it (unless coincidence it happened that corner) or the downpipe may not be connected underground to the drain etc.

No idea how much movement is indicated by the size of the crack - have put external and internal pictures on.

To save the couple of hundred quoted for digging up the ground just to have a look thought I would be brave and tackle it myself. Any tips on getting the paving up and how big does the pit have to be to allow enough access to the foundations? Plan to put some more pics up then to see how major the underpinning job will have to be!

Plan is to reaplce the conservatoy with a SIPS type box so naturally want to make sure the ground is stable and underpinned if neded so it can take the new structure which should be lighter than this anyway.

Any thoughts much appreciated.

Thanks

 

[ree]

Why bother digging and investigating if you are about/going to remove the conservatory and build something else? When you dig the new foundations all will be revealed.

AAMOI: the SIPS will be a heavier footprint than the conservatory.

Anyhow, prise one brick up, and the rest will follow. Remove 600mm x 600mm and dig - enlarge the area if needed. The depth should be shallow ...?
Perhaps, temporarily divert the RWP if needed.

There's a vertical crack on the recess of the utlity room brickwork in pic 5.

There's noticeable splash marks below the utility room perimeter, on the guttering and square RWP.

 

[wakey77]

Looking at those pictures I'd say either there's a problem with the foundations or the conservatory is built on made up ground
In my opinion there is no way a leaking pipe would cause that and the last thing you want to do is remove the conservatory plastics and add another structure to the existing base.
Just my opinion having worked on conservatories over 20 years.