Just not sure what to do .......

Tarakiwa

My back garden is CONSTANTLY like a swamp!

There seems to be just the smallest amount of soil / grass sitting on top of tons and tons of rock.

Every winter the garden is like a swamp and during the Summer if you turn the hose on you can actually flood the garden in no time!

I just have no idea what to do!

I was thinking of hiring an excavator and digging down a few feet, then sifting through and removing the bigger rocks before replacing it with top soil.

I have no idea if this will work or not.

Any advice would be gratefully received!

looksee

How old is the house? It could be topsoil thrown down on compacted soil and builder's rubble, in which case your plan would be the best idea.

It could just possibly be that someone put a layer of soil over something like concrete, just to sell the house, again, digging it up would be good.

However naturally occuring rock (unless you live in the Burren:D) should not really be a sole reason for lack of drainage. How high is the water table (if you dig a hole how high does it fill to)? Is there water coming from adjacent land? Could there possibly be a burst main? Is there a spring on or near the garden? You might have to get someone in to look at it before you invest in digging it all up.

Sonnenblumen

Tarakiwa wrote: »

My back garden is CONSTANTLY like a swamp!

There seems to be just the smallest amount of soil / grass sitting on top of tons and tons of rock.

Every winter the garden is like a swamp and during the Summer if you turn the hose on you can actually flood the garden in no time!

I just have no idea what to do!

I was thinking of hiring an excavator and digging down a few feet, then sifting through and removing the bigger rocks before replacing it with top soil.

I have no idea if this will work or not.

Any advice would be gratefully received!

HI

damp gardens can cause huge heart and back ache trying to resolve. In severe cases (as you seem to suggest there is only a skim of soil on extensive rock) it may not be possible or feasible to retain a lawn.

You will firsdt need to establish what it is that may be causing the water to lodge on the surface, so you will need to dig a few bore holes (dig down 400-600mm deep and 600x600mm wide). Depending on what you encounter eg builders rubble, hardcore, heavy clay etc etc, will determine what remedial works are necessary. For example rubble, hardcore etc must all be removed. A mini digger is ideal for this work, a rotovator will only be of limited value, given it will be difficult to dig more than 150mm deep.

Once rubble has been removed, restore levels with mix of topsoil and no harm to add some small grit/gravel at bases (3-7mm) and topdress final 150mm with quality topsoil. Area can be ralked, rolled and levelled before seeding or laying new sod.

In very wet conditions it might be necessary to instal land drains (slotted flexible pipes available in various diameters, 100mm would be adequate for typical surburban gardens) which remove excess water usually to a soak pit (deep hole which has been backfilled with coarse stone/gravel) or diverted to planted areas where the excess water can be used to irrigate thirsty plants etc etc.

Above brief pointers of the various options to be considered and usually a number of factors (scale of problem, size of site, layout, topology, available budget etc) which will ultimately determine how best to solve the problem.

Tarakiwa

Thanks for the very detailed responses.

I am a complete idiot when it comes to DIY - however I was thinking of hiring an excavator and doing the digging myself.

Are they easy enough to figure out or am I foolish for even thinking about it?