High ground level externally to internally - going underground!

[Itchinfilth]

So, on a mission to get our 17th c house breathing again after moving in 3 weeks ago.

Had some water marks showing on the stone fireplace on external wall.

Internal floor was lower than outside but it's around level with external side after I've dug out a trench. House appears to be built direct on clay. Earth was covering the stone wall up 1 meter above internal floor level in some places and with weeds etc growing up against the wall.


A drain pipe has been put in and laid in gravel to the side but assume that's to direct water from the rear which is significantly higher on the front.

Someone in the past has gone mad with injected DPC but they look to have been removed / drilled out already.

Inside has a vile 1" thick concrete floor which looks to have been laid over yorkstone flags. Luckily the rest of the G/F has its flags laid to earth.

Question? Would the previous "higher" ground level before I dug it out been as it was when built i.e backfilled or is it likely that earth has built up?

Would it be wise to leave at the level it is now and gravel the ditch I've dug, repoint in lime to let it breath?

Hoping this will get more responses than my last post. Please check it out if you have the time, I need all the help I can get!

 

[malcolm]

Sorry your earlier post was missed. Are those holes really damp injections in the stone? That's a damp proof company with true faith there.

It's a good plan to have exterior ground levels at least 3 or 6 inches below internal floor levels. That's how they would have built the house originally in a time when builders knew what they were doing. Exterior ground levels tend to rise of their own accord surprisingly quickly.

The advantage to keeping the trench and not filling it in is the nasty cement repointing doesn't extend into the trench. You've got lime pointing so the wall will hopefully be able to dry itself out until it gets up to the cement.

 

[Itchinfilth]

Hi Malcolm,
Thanks for the advice, much appreciated!
We will be repointing the house where needed in lime. Luckily only about 2/3 in total
They really did go the whole hog here with the cement. Luckily under the mullions and reveals where they went straight on with the cement the original stone is all there but was very wet and brittle when we first freed it. Surprisingly most internal features including the doors and panelling are still in situ.

 

[John]

Interesting. In a very similar situation, the ground level is about 0.5m too high around the entire back of the house.

Planning on digging it all out as part of redoing the drive, main problem is that the garage and garden walls have been built to the old height.



The fact that the house was buried was obviously missed by damp proofing scammers who cut a channel around the entire house and mortared in a copper wire as part of this rentokill "damp proof course".

 

[Itchinfilth]

Interesting. In a very similar situation, the ground level is about 0.5m too high around the entire back of the house.

Planning on digging it all out as part of redoing the drive, main problem is that the garage and garden walls have been built to the old height.

View attachment 13948

The fact that the house was buried was obviously missed by damp proofing scammers who cut a channel around the entire house and mortared in a copper wire as part of this rentokill "damp proof course".

View attachment 13949

View attachment 13950

I ended up going down about 80 cm at deepest tapering to 30 cm so averaging about 50cm for the majority. Immediately the stone floor stopped showing signs of wet in the heavy rain. Just out of interest is your concern about the wall and garage structural or aesthetic with them being at the 'higher' ground level?

 

[Water Sourcer]

So, on a mission to get our 17th c house breathing again after moving in 3 weeks ago.

Had some water marks showing on the stone fireplace on external wall.

Internal floor was lower than outside but it's around level with external side after I've dug out a trench. House appears to be built direct on clay. Earth was covering the stone wall up 1 meter above internal floor level in some places and with weeds etc growing up against the wall.


A drain pipe has been put in and laid in gravel to the side but assume that's to direct water from the rear which is significantly higher on the front.

Someone in the past has gone mad with injected DPC but they look to have been removed / drilled out already.

Inside has a vile 1" thick concrete floor which looks to have been laid over yorkstone flags. Luckily the rest of the G/F has its flags laid to earth.

Question? Would the previous "higher" ground level before I dug it out been as it was when built i.e backfilled or is it likely that earth has built up?

Would it be wise to leave at the level it is now and gravel the ditch I've dug, repoint in lime to let it breath?

Hoping this will get more responses than my last post. Please check it out if you have the time, I need all the help I can get!

View attachment 13135

View attachment 13136

I just know that after digging out a trench in the high drive next to my house the smell of damp has gone and things can be stored under the stairs again next to that wall. 1960s house.

 

[John]

I ended up going down about 80 cm at deepest tapering to 30 cm so averaging about 50cm for the majority. Immediately the stone floor stopped showing signs of wet in the heavy rain. Just out of interest is your concern about the wall and garage structural or aesthetic with them being at the 'higher' ground level?

Just aesthetics, think I'm going to end up with a bit of a step into the garage, don't plan on putting a car in there so not a big deal. Not sure how deep the garden wall goes down, might put a raised bed at the bottom if it's an issue.

Digging has revealed some old pipes and drains. Drain on the left looks like it might have been at the original ground height. I'll lower the drain on the right, built up on dodgy brickwork anyway.

 

[Itchinfilth]

Just aesthetics, think I'm going to end up with a bit of a step into the garage, don't plan on putting a car in there so not a big deal. Not sure how deep the garden wall goes down, might put a raised bed at the bottom if it's an issue.

Digging has revealed some old pipes and drains. Drain on the left looks like it might have been at the original ground height. I'll lower the drain on the right, built up on dodgy brickwork anyway.

View attachment 13954

Great ideas! Hope it all works out!