contour lines

dr_gonza_attorney

my planning application was invalid because i didnt show contour lines
who supplies the contour lines do the guys from os have them
am i supposed to draw them in or what

RKQ

Your agent ( Architect, Architectural Technician or Engineer takes levels and plots them on your 1:500 Site Plan.
Levels are recorded with a Dumpy level or total station. Levels are usually taken on a 10m grid, with a datum taken at the proposed site entrance.

A dumpy level and staff can be hired from most hire shops. I'd suggest that if you submitted the plans yourself, you could retain a Surveyor, circa €300 plus vat, to take site levels.

No6

If the site is very flat put some spot levels on the drawing. finished floor level, road level at the gate to show their relationship to each other and a big note saying "No Significant Contour" If the site is sloping then contour lines will be required.

sydthebeat

probably get shot for this but.... if its not 'handy' for you to precisely level the land....

judge them by eye, sketch them onto a site layout plan and submit again.

dr_gonza_attorney

thanks for the info
iam submitting plans for a garage so i did all the work myself including autocad drawings took a long time:)
looks like ill have to do the contour lines now aswell
the field has a fair bit of a slope unfortunately
300 euro sounds like a lot
can those kits you speak of RKQ be bought in places like maplin or rented out

Slig

:eek:I am disgusted that you would even suggest that.:D
Just remember that the FFL you put in for planning is the one youll be stuck with so make sure you dont end up building up or cutting out 10m of soil.

Slig

dr_gonza_attorney wrote: »

thanks for the info
iam submitting plans for a garage so i did all the work myself including autocad drawings took a long time:)
looks like ill have to do the contour lines now aswell
the field has a fair bit of a slope unfortunately
300 euro sounds like a lot
can those kits you speak of RKQ be bought in places like maplin or rented out

if 300 for a level survey sounds like a lot, I wont tell you what we pay for a full contour survey:D

muffler

sydthebeat wrote: »

judge them by eye, sketch them onto a site layout plan and submit again.

Holy sweet Jesus :eek:

I'd never do that

RKQ

You can hire a dumpy level and 5m staff for about €30 per day, but you'd have to know how to take levels.

Levels are standard for new builds in rural areas.
Its up to each Council, but most don't require them for extensions / garage to existing domestic houses.

There is the "old way" - get 20m of diary pipe, fill with coloured water and use it to take levels.(Clear thin plastic pipe & food colour, cost €20)
Start at the highest point and work down the slope. Use a metal tape to record changes in height.
It will take a while but you could use the house floor level as the datum, and relate all levels back to it to it.

I wouldn't guess anything, it might come back to haunt you.

Martron

if you can buy all that stuff for 20 and a dumpy is only 30 i would go with the dumpt. less chance for error and its really not rocket science.

RKQ

Everything is easy when you know how! when you do it regularly!
I wouldn't like to learn the job on my own application!

Martron is right its not rocket science. Maybe you know someone that can use a level and would give you a hand or help as a nixer?

dr_gonza_attorney

ya i know somebody who might have the tools and knowhow
thanks for the help guys

Martron

i did not mean that it is rocket science .... what i meant is that it is easy enough to try it yourself rather than pay someone a couple of hundred euro to do it.

hardest part is levelling the instrument. after that it is simple maths.

if people knew how easy it was they would kick themselves for paying someone to do it.


where do you live .... i will do it ha ha

Jimbo

It takes some practice get it right especially if you have change points.
I personally don't think it would be worth the hassle trying to learn it to save a few hundred quid

wexgun

Taking levels with pipes!! Guessing levels by eye and sketching them for submission with a planning application!!!! The planning officer will have some laugh if he or she sees that arriving on his desk. Those sort of submissions are pinned to the canteen wall so everyone can enjoy the joke.
€300 is a reasonable price for a contour survey and you will be guaranteed that your application will be taken seriously. A good surveyor will know exactly what the council require to assess your application. Why do you think we spend 3-4 years in college getting our diplomas or degrees. Its not just simple maths as some other post suggests. The information has to be gathered and plotted in a clear, presentable and universal manner so that the council engineer can quickly decide whether or not your planning would be in harmony with the surrounding countryside or neighbouring developments. Depends on whether or not youre serious about getting planning or saving €300
You'll be looking for advise on how to pull your own teeth or perform your own surgeries next and from what I'm reading here there will always be some fool willing to offer advise on how to DIY

muffler

wexgun wrote: »

Taking levels with pipes!! Guessing levels by eye and sketching them for submission with a planning application!!!! The planning officer will have some laugh if he or she sees that arriving on his desk. Those sort of submissions are pinned to the canteen wall so everyone can enjoy the joke.
€300 is a reasonable price for a contour survey and you will be guaranteed that your application will be taken seriously. A good surveyor will know exactly what the council require to assess your application. Why do you think we spend 3-4 years in college getting our diplomas or degrees. Its not just simple maths as some other post suggests. The information has to be gathered and plotted in a clear, presentable and universal manner so that the council engineer can quickly decide whether or not your planning would be in harmony with the surrounding countryside or neighbouring developments. Depends on whether or not youre serious about getting planning or saving €300
You'll be looking for advise on how to pull your own teeth or perform your own surgeries next and from what I'm reading here there will always be some fool willing to offer advise on how to DIY

Helpful indeed.

There is a rant forum somewhere and if I can get a link I'll post it.

If you wish to post a reasonable reply to the OP's query then by all means do so otherwise put the thread on ignore. No need for the aggressive comments.

wexgun

I only gave him the best piece of advise so far. Employ a professional for a professional submission. He probably should have engaged an architect in the beginning. His garage would probably be nearly built by now.

muffler

wexgun wrote: »

Employ a professional for a professional submission. He probably should have engaged an architect in the beginning. His garage would probably be nearly built by now.

That would have been more helpful.

Martron

wexgun wrote: »

Its not just simple maths as some other post suggests.

it is just simple maths!!!! backsight +/- foresight = reduced level.

if you went to college for 4 years to learn that ...........

i was only saying how easy it was to take levels nothing more.
i offered my advice on the part i knew about.

No6

wexgun wrote: »

Taking levels with pipes!! Guessing levels by eye and sketching them for submission with a planning application!!!! The planning officer will have some laugh if he or she sees that arriving on his desk. Those sort of submissions are pinned to the canteen wall so everyone can enjoy the joke.

You mean you've got planning officers in wexford who understand what contours are? :eek: can they be cloned??:D

Supertech

Not to rock the boat or anything Martron ('cos I see where you're coming from) but the levels bit is only easy when you know how. The OP has already stated that he took a long time to complete the drawings for the original application for the garage, and (no offense dr_gonza) didn't know who supplied the contours, where to get the kit required etc. etc. etc. I think the OP might require a bit of help with the job. Once you have the levels you then have to plot the contours aswell, which although it's not rocket science might pose a large problem to someone who has never done it before. I'd do as others have suggested and enlist the help of a mate who might know how - all the other suggestions also require klnowledge of what you're trying to achieve by plotting the levels !!

Might also be worth getting a price for having it done professionally. I'd have thought you might do better than €300 - probably a bit steep for contours for a Garage application - the bare essentials related to a datum would do.
On a half acre site - say 60x30 that's only 18 spots on a 10 metre grid ...

Sundy

dr_gonza_attorney wrote: »

ya i know somebody who might have the tools and knowhow
thanks for the help guys

Did you get sorted?

Where are you based by the way? i could possibly help out

RKQ

RKQ wrote: »

There is the "old way" - get 20m of diary pipe, fill with coloured water and use it to take levels.(Clear thin plastic pipe & food colour, cost €20)
Start at the highest point and work down the slope. Use a metal tape to record changes in height.
It will take a while but you could use the house floor level as the datum, and relate all levels back to it to it.

I wouldn't guess anything, it might come back to haunt you.

That's how I levelled my site, no problem - just took a very long time.