Soakaways

fly_half83

Hi,

We are in the process of selling our property and have Building Control coming round towards the end of the week to do a final inspection.

As far as we can find out there is only one thing that is required for us to do and that is a rear soakaway. We currently have a water butt there which takes the rain water away, and use to water the garden.

What are the chances of us getting the Completion Certificate with this? Or do we require an all singing and dancing soakaway? Just keen to find out so that if need be we can get someone in to do the work before Building Control come round.

All help much appreciated.

Furts

If a soakaway is required, and it sounds like it is, then you have little chance of pulling the wool over the eyes of a Building Inspector. The fact that you have a water butt is not relevant. What happens if it leaks, or is stolen, or the future owners do not want one...

If I was doing the Final Inspection and I saw that the applicant was trying to con me I would go through everything with a fine toothcomb. That way I would cover my back ...and hit the applicant with considerable charges.
You might call it revenge..or you might call it justice!

stef73

When we built our extension building control looked at the soakaway when the hole was dug, looked at what we were using to put in it and line it with and then came back when it was finished.

anotherbaldrick

We have a 50 gall water butt, one days decent rain will fill it from empty to full.
We also of course have a drain to a soakaway to take the excess water otherwise the area adjacent to the wall would get waterlogged. You need one too.

jbainbridge

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/4669953

cyclonebri1

So, you have done alterations or an addition and want to sell immediately?

The point is you haven't completed the project, and it can't be signed off.

Picture the buyer post if you left it like that;

"Just bought a house with a completion certificate, when it rains the garden floods, pipe in ground does not go to any soakaway, can I sue the council?"

Fair dues, complete it properly.

nickcc

We had an extension added to our house some years ago, the builder plumbed all the surface water into our septic tank. Building inspector visited for final inspection and discovered builders "mistake". I ended up having to dig four soakaways, even for the existing surface drains which also drained into the septic tank, as the surface water would have overloaded the septic tank. If the incorrect drainage had not been detected by building control it would probably have resulted with the later sale of my house falling through following a full survey, including drainage, by my purchasers surveyors.

27col

A rain butt is no substitute for a soak away. It is just a reservoir in the downpipe. As has already been said, a rain butt will fill in minutes and after that the water is just running into the ground. Which will soon become sodden and water logged. So, do the job properly using a soak away.

cyclonebri1

And use drainage crates rather than gravel, much greater capacity but a little more expensive.

nickcc

Used building rubble topped with gravel then visqueen to prevent ingress of soil, with the size and number of the soakaways I had to instal it would have cost me loads of money to buy in and it also saved me the cost of a couple of skips for the rubble.