Soakaways

Put filters in the gutters over the downspouts. Cheap enough. Saves digging.

Depends on the area. In some places the soakaways will feed streams, which will eventually become a drinking water source.

Take an area. The amount of water falling on roofs is minuscule compared to the water falling on the open land, inc gardens. Soakaways may help when water levels get very, very low, that's all. They are certainly not the problem.

Normally, air.

That's more of a french drain. If you fill your soakaway with stuff, there's no holding space for water.

They used to be of brick.

OK, so phone call to IBM tomorrow morning to order a new keyboard (or perhaps put this one in the dishwasher tonight.....

No they wouldn't, there are holes (deliberately) in the floors.

Mary

One caravan is on a permanent site on a daughter's farm and the water could be used in her adjacent greenhouses, saving metered water. The other is in our gaden and saved water would also be used in our greenhouse.

It makes sense to save as much water as possible.

Mary

Its still standard practice. It helps prevent flooding.

Thtas bollocks. Al a soakaway is is a temmporary chamber to hold water before it soaks away into the surrounding soil

It can be enything from a custom plastic jobby to a simple 'dry pond' that only fills up briefly after it rains.. pits full of rubble covered in soil are traditional, work well, and are still sokaways.