For pictures from this project, please click here.
Job details
The job for Mr and Mrs Tate came about because I did a job earlier in the year for the neighbour next door but one to them. As this other job progressed, Mr and Mrs Tate had a good view of progress because their house overlooks the previous job due to the layout of the cul-de-sac.
The houses on this estate were all built on an old farm. The farm used to be called Marsh Farm. the clue is in the name really as to what potential ground conditions were going to be, and with doing the previous job we were more prepared as to what we would be facing. in general the footing depth went down to 1.6m, with the ground being soft until that depth has been made, where it turns into a more load bearing sand/ gravel mixture. Armed with this information a trial hole was dug to investigate further, so that we could decide the best course of action. the trial hole did confirm that the footings on the house were 1.6m deep, and any extension using a strip foundation would have to go down to this depth. A piling contractor was used to keep the costs down, and what could have been a relatively large job turned out to be straight forward.
The piles were set in place, and the ring beam set above them ready for concreting. the concrete was vibrated as it was poured into each pile with a vibrating poker. This displaces any trapped air and ensures a good compacted concrete footing to work from.
