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Warranty site inspection report and percolation test


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Just had our first inspection from warranty surveyor and they are asking for a site investigation report and also a soakaway design and percolation test to be completed.

 

I'm not sure what a site investigation report is and why we need one. It seems to be more to do with possible contaminated land? Anyone else had this request?

 

We have our soakaway design, can we do percolation test ourselves? It is mostly sand, but there is some clay which I assume is why they have asked.

 

Feels like we are about to embark on another episode of spending 1000's on reports again 😭

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You need to be firm with him and tell him NO The warrantee is a Structual Warranty which covers the house BC will be all over your drains It’s nothing to do with him Unless your able to claim against him for a blocked drain😁

If you do go ahead with a site investigation and peculation test 

He will probably know someone who can do these 💰💰💰

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I did my own percolation tests and it was immediately obvious that a soakaway was not going to cut it. It’s quite a simple test that involves digging a 30 cm cube in the ground then filling it with water and measuring the results. The exact procedure you will find on google.

 

soil samples can be sent away for quite a cheap analysis. 

 

 

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Well we have our soakaway design, so maybe we can do the percolation tests ourselves. Like you say process seems to be easily enough to find online. Our design is far better than the existing soakaway for the house that was built 80 years ago and there were never any issues there, so I can't imagine there should be too much to worry about.

 

Not sure how soil samples will benefit us, foundations have already been dug and filled in with concrete anyway, all signed off by BCO... don't know the point of a site inspection. I'll call them tomorrow and ask.

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38 minutes ago, SarahG said:

Well we have our soakaway design, so maybe we can do the percolation tests ourselves

Cart before the horse.

 

You can't have a soakaway design until you have a percolation test result.

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30 minutes ago, Dave Jones said:

do your own perco test, its dead simple. Heres mine, warranty and BCO fine with it.

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Perfect- thanks. I am going to do that.

 

11 hours ago, ProDave said:

You can't have a soakaway design until you have a percolation test result.

Then I will have my soakaway design!

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For the site inspection report this is a standard question, so if you weren't required to have one you can just ask Building Control to send an email to confirm why you didn't one. In case anyone else gets asked this, no need to panic like me :)

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 30/04/2024 at 10:31, SarahG said:

For the site inspection report this is a standard question, so if you weren't required to have one you can just ask Building Control to send an email to confirm why you didn't one. In case anyone else gets asked this, no need to panic like me :)

Apparently the email from BCO is not good enough! They now want us to pay £600 for a desktop study, which after my experience with ecology and bat studies will probably lead us down a path of more studies needed for no reason and more money down the drain! 

 

Can anyone recommend a company for a site inspection report that isn't going to try and rip us off?

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How can you have a soak away design without having done a percolation test? To correctly size the soak away you need figures from the percolation test. Unless you guess.

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1 hour ago, Temp said:

How can you have a soak away design without having done a percolation test? To correctly size the soak away you need figures from the percolation test. Unless you guess.

 

Yes I know that now, the builder had guessed basically. We are now doing percolation test (as I said 2 weeks ago). So that is all sorted.

 

I am now in the process of getting a site inspection survey done.. 

 

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  • 1 month later...

Im in the same position as you SarahG - no requirement for site inspection from planning or building control but after the first inspection from warranty surveyor (through build zone) they’re asking for site inspection report. Can I ask who you used in the end, did they do a desktop report or have to visit site and what the approx cost was? Thanks

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23 minutes ago, hgd356 said:

desktop report or have to visit site and what the approx cost was?

It's not like ecology reports where they can stipulate that they do more studies and charge you more.

this is a matter of fact. You can read it all in the building regulations. You can reduce the cost by preparing the ground yourself, but speak to a consultant first.

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