Drainage and site preparation that gets the ground right before anything is built on it
Site clearance, excavation, trenching and below-ground drainage from MCMurdie Contracts LTD, carried out alongside groundworks, foundations and reinforced concrete. Request a quote.
What’s involved
Every build starts with ground work that ends up buried: clearing the site, digging to the right levels and laying drainage that has to work for the life of the building. MCMurdie Contracts LTD prepares sites and installs drainage alongside its groundworks, foundations and concrete work, so the ground is set up for the next stage of the build.
Good to know
Why the ground comes first
Site preparation sets the levels that the rest of the build depends on. Topsoil is organic and compresses, so it is stripped back and kept for landscaping, not left under a structure. Excavation then works down to formation level, the prepared surface that sub-base, slabs or footings sit on.
Foul water and surface water are separate systems
Foul drainage carries waste from toilets, sinks and appliances to the public sewer or a treatment system. Surface water drainage takes rainwater from roofs and hard surfaces to a surface water sewer, a watercourse or a soakaway.
What makes a drain run last
Below-ground drainage depends on gradient, bedding and access. Pipes need enough fall to carry solids without leaving standing water, as set out in Building Regulations Approved Document H. They also need to be laid on and surrounded by suitable granular bedding so they don't crack or sag as the ground settles.
More to know
Soakaways depend on the soil
A soakaway only works if the ground can take the water away. Its size is normally worked out from a percolation test, often carried out to BRE Digest 365, which measures how quickly water drains from a trial pit. Clay soils drain slowly and may need a larger soakaway, crate units or a different outfall altogether.
Services in the ground
Before digging, it helps to know what is already underground. Utility records and a cable avoidance tool survey reduce the risk of hitting live cables or pipes. Laying ducts for water, power and data while the site is open saves digging up finished surfaces later. Ducts are usually colour-coded by service and laid at a set depth with marker tape above them.
Why people choose us
Levels set for the work that follows
When the same contractor prepares the site and then forms the foundations and slabs, the formation levels and drainage positions are worked out with those later stages in mind.
Drainage in before the concrete
Pipes that pass under slabs and through foundations can be laid and tested before the concrete goes in, so they don't have to be cut in afterwards.
Direct contact on site
You talk directly to the contractor carrying out the work, which makes it easier to sort out questions about levels, drainage routes or ground conditions as they come up.
Questions
Have a specific question about your drawings or structural package? Call directly or request a quote.
What should I have ready before site preparation starts? expand_more
Can you lay drainage to an engineer's or architect's drawings? expand_more
Do I need separate foul and surface water drainage? expand_more
Can you do the foundations and groundworks as well? expand_more
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Get in touch
Direct contractor contact. Send drawings or call to discuss foundations, steel fabrication, or concrete work.