Has anyone ever built over a water main rainwater sewer 300mm width?

Renovation2024

The coumcil has come back asking us to locate a particular rainwater main sewer, and if our proposed build is within 3 meters of this, we must revise our drawings.

The ironic thing is both my house and garage and neighbours also are both built over this pipe. Obviously done when there's were no restrictions in place.

We dug up out front garden and located the pipe which is 6.6ft under the ground and runs under our garage.

We are absolutely devastated as we had hoped to convert our garage into a playroom for our 3 kids. Now, according to Irish Water, we won't be able to to do this.

I have suggested a low bearing foundation, timber frame construction, however to my architect so as not to put much pressure on this pipe. All we want to do is extend it a further 2 meters as we have so much land to do so.

Can anyone assist me is how to play this out? Or do we have any other options instead of revising our drawing to exclude this extension?

rayjdav

Is it rainwater as noted or foul. Foul is IW, rainwater is NOT.

You could apply for a diversion agreement, if foul sewer, to IW, but €€€€€

Renovation2024

Thank you for your reply. It is rainwater NOT foul... My architect said its IW we're dealing with?

Apparently because the pipe is 300mm width, we are not allowed build within a 3 meter diameter of pipe. But my argument is that my whole house and garage is build within this boundary, so is my neighbour.

rayjdav

As it is Rainwater sewer, it is the council you are dealing with, NOT Irish Water.

Get your architect to do a pipe protection proposal, put it to the coco and see what they say.

CoCo far more forgiving and easier to get approval than IW.

Renovation2024

Thank you for that. I certainly will mention this in my letter of dispute to the council. The "as built" property is within 3 meters of this pipe.

Surely if we used low bearing foundation along with a pipe protection proposal, we may stand a chance? May I ask if you've personal experience dealing with letters like this yourself?

It's strange as our architect insists that it's IW we're dealing with despite you saying it's the Council.

Gumbo

Have encountered it a few times alright.

No way around it. Had to provide the 3m wayleave and redesign the extension to suit.

Gumbo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121890094#Comment_121890094

What is this “letter of dispute”?

I assume you have an AI request?

You have 6 months to respond. Use that time to meet with the IW/Drainage Inspectors to try work a solution.

DOCARCH

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121890460#Comment_121890460

Ditto!

The lesson learnt is now, that for every job, before starting the design process, I get a public services map from the LA (which shows public watermains and public foul/surface water drainage).

Gumbo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121890931#Comment_121890931

100%

They are available free of charge and usually you can get them by email.

Renovation2024

May I ask what La stands for? As I was looking on Ordanance survey Ireland and couldn't locate anything.

Renovation2024

Letter of response to the council. They requested we locate pipe, which we have done. Locate it on the map with help of our architect. And then revise drawings.

What is AI?

sydthebeat

LA is local authority (your local council)

AI is "additional information", sometimes called "further information"

the reason for the 3m separation distance is, assuming the sewer is a public (shared) sewer, is so that it can be maintained / replaced as necessary.

if you can argue that there is already sufficient "building over" of this sewer to render maintenance from the surface to be impractical, then you might have a chance.

i highly doubt though that the council will accept this.

Renovation2024

Thank you everyone for your very informative feedback.

There is a manhole on the pathway directly outside my driveway that can access this rainwater sewe.r.. If needs b, I will put another manhole in my driveway above the sewer if they are so concerned about access to this.

Unfortunately, the remainder of my home and garage is already build on this property when I purchased it.

I'm prepared to consider everything to accommodate the council to get this over the line, but am aware they may decline each time also.

Mellor

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058340233/has-anyone-ever-built-over-a-water-main-rainwater-sewer-300mm-width

Do don't need planning permission to convert your garage into a play room. If that is the "works" over the pipe. Then you could do that separately as exempt development. A apply for the other work separately.

If it's not the garage conversion that is over the main sewer, then seams unnecessary to mentioned the playroom.

The fact the existing is over the main is not really justification to continuing to build over it further,