rscho wrote:
I've had to remove a few T&G floorboards near some walls to replace
rotten joists in a cavity brick house. In order to get underneath the
boards I had to dig out about 6-8 inches of rubble (bricks, mortar and
clay soil) making a space of about 1'4" so I could crawl around. Having
replaced the rotten joists (and fixed the drainage problems that caused
them) I don't know whether to return the rubble, replace with a cleaner
& easier draining (and less smelly!) fill like crushed rock or leave it
cleared. The ground level underneath the house is now about 5" lower
than that outside the house.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

The crawlspace under my house has always been lower than
the outside yard. When I first moved in I had a
moisture problem, but I figured out where it was coming
from and corrected it and now have a dry crawlspace.
The main thing is to make sure where any moisture is
coming from and try to keep it out. Sometimes this is
easy, mine was, and sometimes it isn't. It can involve
extensive sculpting of your yard to redirect rain flow,
or french drains, or something of the sort.

The main thing I am saying is that having the crawlspace
lower than the outside is not necessarily a bad thing.

Bill Gill