We had a problem of earth retention at the front of our house which had been bodged by the previous owner and was a mess in need of sorting out. The first rule of building is that anything below ground always takes longer and costs more than anticipated and this was to be no exception.
The rear will now have land drains installed, connected to the main sewer and back filled with pea gravel then consolidated stone to make good and further surface drains at the top.
Bowed walls damp leaking and moving masonary were all visible in full.
As usual the only answer is to rip it all out and start again, unlike the previous owner who had tried to restrain it with an additional reinforced concrete wall. The hole got ever bigger and endless trucks of waste absorbed cash in huge quantities.
The garage was permanently damp and it was easy to see why with a pathetic piece of holed polythene 5 courses below ground level.
Backfill was a mix of soil and building spoil and with leaking surface drains was wet and unstable.
I am fortunate in having a friend Ed who is knows a great deal about building, who recommended a substantial and effective retaining wall for the 2m height difference. This relies on mass of which is has an ample sufficiency!
We sealed this with a chemical coating and membrane.
The rear will now have land drains installed, connected to the main sewer and back filled with pea gravel then consolidated stone to make good and further surface drains at the top.
The ground works team in full agreement!
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