DIY Doctor UK DIY Forums

I have recently purcahsed a new property and have found the cellar to have puddles of water. No rising damp etc has been found.
The previous owners put a poor false floor in with wooden batons and loft boards... this had now rotten.
A tradesman came to do some work for me and mentioned he had the same problem when he used to live the area. Apparently there is a underground spring and alot of properties nearby have the same problem.
Next doors cellar is blocked up, probably for this reason.
I wish to address mine as i want to use it for storage.
The tradesman said he resolved his problem by digging down x amount and putting in a membrane.

Can anybody tell me how to do this and if it would work? What are the possible downfalls and is there an alternative solution?

The ceiling is low so ideally i dont want to put a false floor in.

Any help would be appreciated.

Kieran (Stoke)

kieranstoke
There are possibly 2 solutions to your problem. Wall and floor tanking is a solution but an expensive one, if it worked I would be cautious due to the external water pressure from the spring and if it was installed it would need to be completed by a specialist. The other solution would be to fit a pump which is set in a small well that comes on when water enters the well. Your floor would have to have a fall towards the well, but this would not solve your wooden floor problem.

hi; when replacing the floor you could try digging out a sump hole at least 700mm deep concrete a base , brick around the edges leaving weep holes for the water to seep into, like a manhole sort of size ;then put in an automatic pump on a plinth and any water can be pumped out to a nearby gulley or manhole. i have seen this method used bofore.

Hi

Google "newton membranes"

Bye