Perhaps digging out my greenhouse base wasn't such a good idea...

[zazen999]

You predicting a wet summer then?

He's in Wales - every day is a wet one over there.

[chris]

Looks like a plant pot to me. Chris, is your greenhouse set to run water in that direction from the gutter. If you haven't already got a butt attached the lashing we had overnight may just be from the gutter and leaked into the GH. I wouldn't panic just yet. Pour some water into the gutter and watch where it goes. Good luck pal.

My base is set into plant pots fixed in with post concrete, it's definately rain water, I was watching it come in from the front of the GH. Water does run off my gutters, yep - I don't have a butt connected to it yet though!

[chris]

I agree or drain it and see if it refills.

I'll drain it before I dig again, yep.

Wondering now if I should fork the base of the ground to try and improve the drainage somewhat, or back-fill with gravel then a membrane, then add the soil/compost mix into the GH to make it easier to change. *shrug*.

[veggiechicken]

Turn it into a reservoir and export it to England - you could make a fortune BBC News - Welsh Water should sell its water 'like oil' during hosepipe ban

[chris]

It it doesn't work, and it drowns the plants I'll just cover it and put the gravel back down!

[Bigmallly]

You really need to find where it's getting in Chris and blather it with silicone, then attach a water butt.

[mrbadexample]

You shouldn'ta dug the bottom out, you shoulda raised the greenhouse up!

[chris]

You really need to find where it's getting in Chris and blather it with silicone, then attach a water butt.

The garden it's in is a work in progress - stepped down, it was a massive slope before. The water was coming in underneath the metal base, that you can see in the photo - I'll pop out and take a couple more to show you in more detail....

[chris]

Slightly larger photos now to make it a bit more clear:

Side of the house I've put a fence up all around some "spare" land that was just allocated to the house - wasn't fenced in or nothing before.. total tip (people slinging rubbish/beer bottles all in that garden):



Through the gate looking back:


Inside GH, looking at the base:

[chris]

Otherside of that metal base:


Supposedly "rust proof" base.. - but how I've anchored it to the ground:


The ground still isn't level as you can see, but the garden is in a major state of works on going at the moment (along with house, new job, allotment, other garden - argh!!!) so it's never been totally water tight. I wouldn't have noticed this before as the ground I took out would have kept the water out - it did used to pool in front of the GH door, so now I'm guessing this is where it's all going !

So yep, please excuse the tip-state of the garden!

[chris]

The slope was probably something like a 60 degree slope down to the road, all uneven which is why I decided to step it down.. I removed a LOT of earth as well, probably around 10 tonnes, it was moved to a front garden I share with a neighbour to level that one out - I had a mound higher than my patio doors - when you're in the GH, you're below the house DPC. Getting there slowly, but meh this is a bit of a set back I didn't want!

I'm planning on re-filling the trench that I'm going to dig (one side this year, perhaps the otherside, next year) with topsoil and compost from my other garden (which also is having work going on), compost from my daleks.. I can't plant straight into the ground as it's rock hard, full of rubble and massive boulders so hence why I've dug some of the earth out to be able to plant in the ground.

Do you think my plan will work?

[Potstubsdustbins]

From what I can see the green house is sited at the lowest level in the garden. Therefore there is little chance of stopping water ingress. The ground surrounding the hole looks to be some form of clay and having opened it up it is now acting as a pond.

Chris have you any idea how deep the first layer is and what is below it? My thinking is that if you could somehow breech the non-porous layer would the water then drain away.

Colin

[VirginVegGrower]

I'll drain it before I dig again, yep.

Wondering now if I should fork the base of the ground to try and improve the drainage somewhat, or back-fill with gravel then a membrane, then add the soil/compost mix into the GH to make it easier to change. *shrug*.

I think I'd be tempted to build the ground up, raise the greenhouse and anchor it up Chris and you solve the problem of cr@ppy border soil. If you can't do that you really have got to see why it's not draining away. Clay or not, I would have expected that to drain away somewhere by now. Have you tried bailing itout to see if it refills? Get a rod and try and create a hole for it to seep away into. My greenhouse is on a solid concrete base and bolted down, but then we didn't want grow in border soil.

[taff]

that not good. What pots said, breec h the non porous stuff. And try and lay some piping through it so you dont have that problem again.

[donnakebab]

Do you know what the land use was before the houses were built?

I think you either fill it back in and change your plans or you carry on digging and hope to breach what must be clay. But then I suppose you may hit rock!