6 November 2013

Hydraulic engineers in Canberra

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Hi all,

I have a very wet underfloor to the family castle. Despite a fan bringing in outside air for 6 hours a day, for the last year or two, the humidity is constantly high.

I have already applied a number of quite excessive drainage solutions, but have reached the point where I need a better brain.

Any recommendations appreciated.

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shirty_bear said :

milkman said :

gooterz said :

Maybe you could install a boar?

Make sure you get one with plenty of grunt.

Maybe Pork Hunt can do mate’s rates?

Sorry, only deal with kosher or halal oinkers…

milkman said :

gooterz said :

Maybe you could install a boar?

Make sure you get one with plenty of grunt.

Maybe Pork Hunt can do mate’s rates?

milkman said :

gooterz said :

Maybe you could install a boar?

Make sure you get one with plenty of grunt.

Sow, have you got an engineer to pen it in yet?

thebrownstreak698:02 am 07 Nov 13

milkman said :

gooterz said :

Maybe you could install a boar?

Make sure you get one with plenty of grunt.

Bloody hell that’s bad.

gooterz said :

Maybe you could install a boar?

Make sure you get one with plenty of grunt.

gooterz said :

Maybe you could install a boar? That would lower the water table.

How far down is the water table if you dig a hole?

That would be a pig of thing to maintain.

Whitepointer11:01 pm 06 Nov 13

Have you definitely ruled out a leak? It’s amazing how much water a tiny pinhole in a 1/2″ or 3/4″ pipe or irritation conduit can let go.
Turn all of your water consuming fixtures off within the house & then check your water meter to see if it is still registering usage. If the little dials on the meter are still turning, then you have a leak….. somewhere!
Just a thought Good luck.

Maybe you could install a boar? That would lower the water table.

How far down is the water table if you dig a hole?

Grow rice?

Why is so much water entering your property? Any chance thqt there’s an underground pupe leaking off your property?

GardeningGirl said :

Sorry if its a dumb idea but could there be a spring that has become more active since the drought broke? I remember springs on the hillside near here being mentioned at one of those land release community consultation thingies and I wondered at the time how do they find them and what if someone somehow builds on one.

Not a dumb idea at all. But who do I go to to establish if a spring exists? I referred to water entering the block from the side. This flowed at 30 litres an hour prior to the drought, but the drainage put in place seems to have controlled the flow. This water is about 5 foot below the moist soil, and 10 metres away, across a large brick garage/workshop.

I’m gaining the impression that hydraulic engineers find domestic problems such as mine are in the too hard basket.

GardeningGirl4:47 pm 06 Nov 13

Sorry if its a dumb idea but could there be a spring that has become more active since the drought broke? I remember springs on the hillside near here being mentioned at one of those land release community consultation thingies and I wondered at the time how do they find them and what if someone somehow builds on one.

A Cog,

Thanks for that. We have previously had a flood caused by a blockage in a major stormwater drain that crosses our block on the high side of the underground brick wall, and as a result ended up on first name terms with most of ACTEWS plumbers 🙂 Fairly sure this is not the problem, and all other water/drainage was replaced at the time of the reno and runs above ground under the house.

I had a similar problem. Any hydraulic engineer you use will say, “yep, I can fix that, for $XX,000.” and this COULD POSSIBLY be by using an over-the-top solution. If I was you, I would:

1. Tell your neighbours about your problem and ask ALL your neighbours if they have any similar issues, or water coming out of the ground on their blocks.
2. Get your building file from ACTPLA, and any street works files that you can. Look for water/sewage pipes. There may be a leak in a pipe somewhere nearby… getting ACTEW to check their pipes for suspected leaks is quick and may solve your problem for FREEEEEEE.
3. Get a plumber to use a camera on all your water/sewage pipes on your block, looking for a leak. That’ll cost you a few hundred, but if that is the problem, problem:identified. If not, possibility:excluded. It’s win/win.
4. Get a geotechnical engineer to take some core samples from around your block and give you a report for around $850. One of these guys has no financial interest in any remedation works, so will give you their best estimate without a view to squeezing you dry.
5. Lastly, recognise that solving this problem may create another problem. If your foundations are currently in soil with X amount of water and you solve this problem, then you MAY POSSIBLY end up with movement in your foundations… and cracks in your walls, gaps in your windows/doors…

These actions MAY POSSIBLY give you an idea of what the problem is, for not much money (compared to paying a hydraulic engineer without checking yourself, and taking their word for it).

Best of luck, and please keep us all updated so we can benefit from your misfortune.

I’m the OP on this one.

We have had quite severe groundwater problems for years. On a slope, down hill from back to front. Discovered when doing a large reno that the main problem was water coming in from the side of the block. However, to cover all eventuallities, I had a 4ft high, waterproofed brick wall built across the back of the house, the top finishing at ground level, and with ag drain at the base, draing into a large system that ends in a 1000 litre sump.

For all this, the soil under the house (the level of which is above a garage level, still remains constantly moist). Need a more knowledgable brain than mine to work it out.

is there water and sewerage pipe leaking underneath? not the first time this thing has happened. person across the road dug through his slab, 1.5m to get to the broken pipe to fix it. Fortunately the person concerned his quite skilled and a builder so they could do it themselves. I hate to think what it would have cost a paid worker.

I have a similar problem.

Can you please elaborate on the “number of quite excessive drainage solutions”.

Details!

Slab-built house?
haw-haw.

Whats under the house thats leaking water?

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