?hi al im try to get out of a party wall is there any method of making foundations less than 1metre?
Question:hi all im trying to get out of a party wall agreement with next door i can get away with it as long as my new extension foundations do not go below theres i live in a 1930s house going to have a dig today to see how far down they are...but ive heard its sometimes the case in 1930s houses to be less than a metre....if thats the case i think new single storey extensions need deeper foundations is there some new method were you dont need deep foundations...please help and thanks for all the help (single storey extension 12ft long and on my side of the fence)
Answers:
generally we specify 750mm to underside of foundations if you have good ground, but it all depends on the ground bearing capacity of your sub soil.
Your local building control may have records of the type of soil you have and what type of foundations will be required.
This will only be guidance and you won't know until you dig out your footings and the building inspector passes the depth fit for placing foundations on. I should think that you should serve party wall notification on your neighbour. If your neighbour objects it doesn't mean you can't carry out the work it just formalises what you will do to give him peace of mind. Party wall booklet can be obtained from your local council or off the web. you need to serve it 2 months before you start work.
Tough one but think there are options. 1 thing is finite though have to get clearance from the Council building surveyer assigned to your project otherwise they can knock down anything that is built regardless. The 1M standard in the UK is a rule but can be pushed to a rule of thumb. I.e. bit excessive as houses 19th C had no foundations at all & look at those babies still standing and 2 world wars later. Depends on your soil if your foundations come in, at say 650mm & your on a chalk base 1M can be overrulled. Being only 1 storey could also over rule the need 4 1M. Foundation design, could look at a raft which is used mainly in AUS. This is a solid concrete base slab that would not be needed to be more than 1M if the design is shown to carry the weight over the whole area. Also if the composition used is not necessary brick walling. Other than good old fashioned 'back handers' they say it is out of the industry but trust me the guy knows if it will fall down or not if less than 1M so he'll weigh the trade off between keeping his job against some money.
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