Any experience of borehole deep soakaways?

[Michael Kilpatrick]

Following on from my posting a few days ago regarding the lovely clay sump that appears to be developing in my garden, I'm wondering if the best means of ensuring proper ground drainage (and the substantial roof draining which overflows from the rain harvester when it's full, as it has been all year!) would be to have a borehole drilled through to a permeable strata and remove the high water table from the clay in the vicinity of the rain harvester and soakaway (which are seven or so metres away from the house).

Whittlesford (CB22) is in an area of patches of loam and gravel (and the courses of ancient rivers which have all gone apart from the Cam/Granta). There is apparently chalk down there somewhere, but I've got no idea how far. There are several former gravel pits around here but there may not necessarily be gravel in our garden.

Has anyone here had experience of having a borehole soakway drilled for them?

Michael

[Grimly Curmudgeon]

No, but I have a borehole for sale, if you're interested. Buyer collects, as it's too big to post.

You could have a word with a farmer who will point you to a well-driller locally who will know the formations under your feet. Even they get it wrong though, so be prepared for a cost and more cost if the first one doesn't work.

[Simon Kelley]

^^^^^^^^

Well, on the other side of the A505 in Duxford, the chalk is about a spade-length down, if you're lucky, so it's likely not far away. Needless to say, we have no problems getting our soak-aways to, erm, soak away!

Simon.

[Andrew Mawson]

You'll be a bit bu@@@d if it's an artesian strata and water comes up from it

AWEM

[amcmaho]

I doubt that it's allowed. The aquifers are cold and clean, shoving ground = water into them will introduce vegetation and insects. Even if there's no r= egulations, I'd suspect the water borne solids would soon clog up the perme= able surface of the bore hole. I don't know though, let us know. =20

[Michael Kilpatrick]

That's what I would have thought. It's really only a question of whether we hit sand or gravel before we get to the chalk, surely.

Michael

[Michael Kilpatrick]

Golly, I emailed a company (Ipswich based) earlier this afternoon and they've already replied by email with an estimate! It includes references to the chalk outcrops near the A505 so they already know the area.

Estimate is £1850.

Michael

[Gazz]

Time to get the trusty SDS out and the biggest and longest bits you can find for it then :)

I have been thinking of something like this for my garden for years, clay about 1/2 a foot down, whole garden floods except the bit near next doors conservatory, That's because his conservatory footings are over 7 feet deep, to get through the clay and to better soil, garden drains lovely there, so i know how far i'd need to drill in my case,

i keep meaning to find out how much fo hire a bore hole drill for a weekend, one of those on a stand/A-frame with hydraulic up and down controls, rather than the arm breaker hand held jobbies, Just not sure if i could keep the hole from collapsing on it's self long enough to get the auger out and some of that perforated culvert pipe down the hole, then fill with large gravel and a larger area of gravel and a membrane around the top foot of the bore hole.

[Andrew Mawson]

If it's only 7 foot down, then far more economic to get a digger in to dig a broad trench down to the chalk and fill it with hardcore with a soil cap over Terram membrane.

AWEM

[The Natural Philosopher]

+1

[Tim Lamb]

Yes.

Consent will be needed from the EA and their first concern will be mixing water bodies.

[Gazz]

Unfortunately the cost of getting a digger lifted over the house into the garden makes that a fairly expensive option,

[Onetap]

I still don't think it will work for long. Even a conventional soak-away = needs to be dug out every few years when it has been clogged by soil and ve= getation washed into it. You can't do that with a borehole. I'm sure they k= now what they're doing and that is not just getting your money.

[boreholedriller1]

I drill deep bore soakaways for a living. If anyone wants to know the geology beneath their property, send me an email with your postcode and I'll check it out for you.

[boreholedriller1]

A deep bore soakaway is left 1 metre above the base of the water collectio n chamber which allows silt and clay to harmlessly settle at the bottom of the chamber, rather than enter the deep bore. The top of the installation i s also fitted with a syphon head which stops any floating debris entering t he deep bore, but freely allows water to enter.

[Tim Watts]

On Thursday 07 November 2013 10:59 [e-mail] wrote in uk.d- i-y:

Why? So you can spam us by email too?

[Tim Watts]

On Thursday 07 November 2013 11:09 [e-mail] wrote in uk.d- i-y:

Don't the EA get pissed off if you pour surface water into the water aquifers directly?

[Onetap]

ion chamber which allows silt and clay to harmlessly settle at the bottom o f the chamber, rather than enter the deep bore. The top of the installation is also fitted with a syphon head which stops any floating debris entering the deep bore, but freely allows water to enter.

You'd still have suspended particles which would slowly block the permeable media at the bottom of the soak away. You'd have to put the water through a sand filter to get most of that out. I noticed that you didn't put your company/trading name on your post. Are the EA aware of the services you offer?

[boreholedriller1]

The deep bore soakaway is drilled many metres into the permeable strata and so has a large surface area intersecting many fractures. The deep bore soa kaway is fitted with a siphon head to prevent debris entering the installat ion. Suspended particle within the water have never caused any issues such as silting up. Yes we do liaise with the Environment Agency. I didn't put our company name so that we don't get accused of spamming. Was only trying to help anyone who wanted to know the geology beneath their pr operty.

[Tony Bryer]

Your reticence is appreciated but do note that the FAQ gives genuine contributors to the group the chance to identify themselves:

"Company representatives (who are often valued experts) are welcome to suggest their products where a genuine question has been asked on the subject, but only if they answer the questions put (planted questions will be obvious). Company representatives may mention their products, services or websites in the signature of their replies to questions. (please keep signatures to under five 75-character lines)."