Farm shed foundations - Structural/Civil Engineer

chillyspoon

Can anyone recommend a structural or civil engineer to advise and quote for repairs to some minor erosion at the edge of the foundations of a 6m x 9m farm shed?

Location is in Co. Wicklow.

Thanks.

Willfarman

chillyspoon wrote: »

Can anyone recommend a structural or civil engineer to advise and quote for repairs to some minor erosion at the edge of the foundations of a 6m x 9m farm shed?

Location is in Co. Wicklow.

Thanks.

What kind of erosion?

chillyspoon

Possibly just slow water erosion over a long period of time combined with plant roots weakening the layer below the concrete foundation slab - difficult to know - that's why we want to get a qualified engineer to assess it. So far it's not serious, so we want to nip it in the bud.

I should have made it clear, this is outside the building, not inside - basically the ground beneath the edge of the slab being gradually undermined in one place.

Wildsurfer

Jaysus a civil engineer for that? A shovel and a few barrows of concrete is what ya need laddie, then stick a photo up on the Guntering thread!

White Clover

chillyspoon wrote: »

Possibly just slow water erosion over a long period of time combined with plant roots weakening the layer below the concrete foundation slab - difficult to know - that's why we want to get a qualified engineer to assess it. So far it's not serious, so we want to nip it in the bud.

I should have made it clear, this is outside the building, not inside - basically the ground beneath the edge of the slab being gradually undermined in one place.

How deep below the slab and how far in under it are you talking about?

chillyspoon

White Clover wrote: »

How deep below the slab and how far in under it are you talking about?

The hole currently cuts in about 30cm under the slab; and it's about 1 metre deep at the deepest point. The few barrows of concrete / gravel approach is exactly what I have in mind but before I cover it up, I need to make sure that the whole thing isn't going to subside over the next 15 years because the slab appeared to have been poured onto unrolled rubble and the shed's on a hill. So I need someone who knows what they're talking about for the long term potential problem.

Never wrestle with pigs

Where is the water coming from? Any gutters on the roof? If so are they working?

Is the natural flow of water going to this point? If so dig a small drain, (with a shovel) and divert the water flow.

Fill the hole with cement it'll be grand.

Who2

Throw up a picture . If your really worried you could shutter a section out from the wall and pour around the section

chillyspoon

Never wrestle with pigs wrote: »

Where is the water coming from? Any gutters on the roof? If so are they working?

Is the natural flow of water going to this point? If so dig a small drain, (with a shovel) and divert the water flow.

Fill the hole with cement it'll be grand.

Yeah there's a minor gutter leak directly above this (about 3.5m above); the water is making its way down an "I" girder (the green vertical) inside and outside. You only see water coming out the gutter joint when it's chucking it down. There is also lots of spring flow all through the area, so the ground is naturally damp too.

Picture: https://drive.google.com/open?id=13QgeTa23hI51RZVEnfU7pGI0jcz7QyG12Q

Another complication is that the building is just 80cm from the next shed, so there's nowhere to put a ladder to easily get up and fix the leak, and we haven't got a loader. All the ground you can see below the slab, and the moss covered mortar to the right of the rebar crumbles and falls apart if touched.

Shuttering around and filling sounds like the right answer to me - as well as getting the gutter sorted of course.