Re: SOAKWELLS - How easy are they to put in and install ?

I put Ag pipe down, 100mmx10m per downpipe surrounded by 50mm blue metal, works a treat and only took a weekend and a Trencher attachment on a Dingo to do the lot

Hey Fu,

Having this discussion with DP at the moment...

Shire says they dont care as long as the water is contained.

There is one soakwell for the driveway which I have no idea of the size....otherwise there are 'spoondrains' (which I dont think are connected to anything?) and a quote I got for 2 soakwells of 1200x1200 & 1200x1500 was about $2500 (Which is crazy!!)

So...my question is.

Do I need soakwells? And what is this magical ag pipe you are talking about??

Hi Fu, when you say a standard length of agpipe is as good as one and a bit soakwells, what length do you mean exactly?

I bought a 20m roll from Bunnings (with the sock on) and I assume/hope I don't need 20m per downpipe?

Also, do I need to use blue metal in conjunction with the agpipe?

Thanks in advance for your help.

Best news of the day (for me!!)

Found out that polypropylene soakwells are the way to go for WA... they are good on the enviro and your pocket!!

They look like this: (I call them giant milk crates!)




I have 2 x quotes for $1000 completed!! But...i did some more digging around (no pun intended) and found a place sells them for $120 DIY

Total for my soakwells is ~ $300 which includes soakwells, pipes plus lots of digging or maybe we will hire a digger

PM me if you want details.

Ok someone gave me the wrong price for the soakwells. They are not $120 in total, they are $120 each! :frown:

Another store sells them but after all the pipes, soakwells, bends etc is was only $20 different in cost and there would be alot more manual labour.

I still have the quotes for the soakwell people to do it instead of me, going to book in with them just after lockup.

CHECK YOUR DEPTH BEFORE YOU BUILD

Dig holes on the 4 corners of your EMPTY block before you build so you know how far down you can go before you hit anything. Then if you hit rock or the soil is hard near the top you can get a digger in before youre screwed.

We learnt the hard way

Hi Bands,

Thanks for the info.

All I can see is sand, sand and more sand! The site report came back as sandy too, so I will be suprised if there is rock, fingers crossed their isnt :/

9 metres of sand under us

More in most areas of the Swan Coastal Plain

Those cubes are what I posted in the first page. These eclipse what a soak well or ag drain do! Pay the extra and you won't regret it
Can hold 4 tonne so are ideal for use under driveways.

Oop soory Fu!!

Booked the guy to do them in the next few weeks

concrete can kiss my bum. rainwater tank Is on the list too!

Yes you do need 20meters per down pipe. Anything less and you get flooding of the eves if it is connected directly to the down pipe or if you separate (which is very highly recommended) there will be overflow onto paved areas on a regular basis. Use 20 meters and you will hardly ever see anything overflow.

If you can have a network of these all joining each other. Watch when it rains and you'll see not all down pipes flow the same amounts of water. Some will hardly at all. Link them and the water will never ever be a problem for you

Soakwells, ag drain, the cubes shown, all need to be more than 400mm deep to avoid future problems. Problems like sand being forced up through paving or out from under concrete (expensive!) Flooding eves, flooded wall spaces.

Before (pavers are recycled and made up of several different sizes so don't pick on the cuts )


After


Soakwells are not fun and bloody hard work. I have done a number jobs where soak wells have been installed at great cost only for me to start the landscape and discover a few centimetres of sand covering the lids! Please check the work done by your contractor! I'd hate to see one of you taken for a ride Most do a top job though

Talk to the guys at ya local totals store. They'll get onto a good tank mob

So i gather this is where im NOT allowed to mention that im a tank agent?

Not yet you are not, But I guess you just did.

But no business name there fu

This might be a stupid question but .. I have my hole, I have my soakwell, I know I need blue metal to about 10cm at the base, and around the sides, so what do I fill the rest in with? I don't understand how putting the soil back in is going to assist with drainage.

(I'm in the hills so have clay soil)

After you have filled the bottom of the hole with blue metal, place your soakwell into the hole, assuming its a poly soakwell you will have it wrapped with geofabric textile. BEFORE you fill in the hole run your 90mm stormwater pipe into one side of your soakwell. Backfill the rest of your hole with bluemetal and soil over the top..Job done!

You put the appropriate lid on than fill the hole up cause the soak well should still be atleast about 30cm below ground with lid on.

You only need a lid if you are using the old concrete soakwell systems. With the new geo-composite systems they are built as a cube, so the lid is inbuilt so to speak.

Ahh understood. When you say put pipe into side, does it actually punch a hole into it assuming it is one of those box type ones or it just butt up against the side?