Hi all,

I am planning to build a single story garage parallel and as close as
possible to a 7ft party garden wall. I would expect the garage to run to
50ft parallel to this wall and parallel to my house. The reason I want to
get as close as possible is that there is only 11ft between my house and
the wall.

To this end, I will need to dig a trench about 3ft deep x 3ft wide (we're
right onsub-soil) right next to this wall which also has about a 3ft deep
foundation (slightly less). I am of course worried about colapsing the
wall. I get on well with my neighbour and would like to keep it that way.

Some people I have spoken to have suggested: - Building the garage in two
stages and linking the foundations with steel bars - not my favourite as
two loads of concrete and two days hire of a digger required.
- digging pre-trenches, and pouring concrete deeper than my foundations
every 10ft along the stretch.

Any other advice or suggestions appreciated!

Thanks in advance,

Derek.

Take a look at these three sites that should answer most questions re the
legal side that would be worth looking at just to see that there are no
issues that you have forgotten or are unaware of..

http://www.gardenlaw.co.uk/

http://www.partywalls.org.uk/

http://www.onlineplanningoffices.co.uk/frames.htm

Peter Crosland wrote:

Take a look at these three sites that should answer most questions re the
legal side that would be worth looking at just to see that there are no
issues that you have forgotten or are unaware of..

He didn't ask any questions re. the legal side! He asked a perfectly
straightforward building question.

--
Grunff

"Derek" wrote in message
...
Hi all,

I am planning to build a single story garage parallel and as close as
possible to a 7ft party garden wall. I would expect the garage to run to
50ft parallel to this wall and parallel to my house. The reason I want to
get as close as possible is that there is only 11ft between my house and
the wall.

SNIP

Any other advice or suggestions appreciated!

Thanks in advance,

Derek.


Derek,

Why not take down that section of garden wall and replace it with the garage
wall, using the rubble as hardcore in your slab?

Andrew Mawson

Hi Andrew,

Thanks, I thought about this, but it is a shared garden wall, so I only
own the inside half, and the neighbour has it nicely planted and he has
paved up to it. I get on really well with them, but I couldn't force them
to endure more than necessary.

Thanks again,

Derek.


...
Hi all,

I am planning to build a single story garage parallel and as close as
possible to a 7ft party garden wall. I would expect the garage to run
to 50ft parallel to this wall and parallel to my house. The reason I
want to get as close as possible is that there is only 11ft between my
house and the wall.

SNIP

Any other advice or suggestions appreciated!

Thanks in advance,

Derek.


Derek,

Why not take down that section of garden wall and replace it with the
garage wall, using the rubble as hardcore in your slab?

Andrew Mawson

Thanks Peter,

I gave them a read and I seem to be ok - once I don't collapse the wall! ;-)

Thanks,

Derek.

On Tue, 13 Apr 2004 11:58:44 +0100, Peter Crosland wrote:

Take a look at these three sites that should answer most questions re the
legal side that would be worth looking at just to see that there are no
issues that you have forgotten or are unaware of..

http://www.gardenlaw.co.uk/

http://www.partywalls.org.uk/

http://www.onlineplanningoffices.co.uk/frames.htm

He didn't ask any questions re. the legal side! He asked a perfectly
straightforward building question.

Try reading the original again. He said "Any other advice or suggestions
appreciated!"

On Tue, 13 Apr 2004 11:54:53 +0100, a particular chimpanzee named
Derek randomly hit the keyboard and produced:

I am planning to build a single story garage parallel and as close as
possible to a 2.1m party garden wall. I would expect the garage to run to
15.2m parallel to this wall and parallel to my house. The reason I want to
get as close as possible is that there is only 3.4m between my house and
the wall.

Sorry, I can't visualise imperial measurements (feet & yards at least)

To this end, I will need to dig a trench about 0.9m deep x 0.9m wide (we're
right onsub-soil) right next to this wall which also has about a 0.9m deep
foundation (slightly less). I am of course worried about colapsing the
wall. I get on well with my neighbour and would like to keep it that way.

Provided your foundations are no lower than the neighbouring wall,
then it shouldn't collapse provided there isn't a long period between
excavation and backfilling (i.e., more than a few months). While the
wall is 'exposed', it is acting as a retaining wall, but if it's
225-300mm thick coursed masonry, it will be adequate to cope with most
normal loads anyway. If it's thinner (only half a brick thick) then
it should be OK provided it's not overloaded (i.e., if your neighbour
parks his car next to it, or if you have a few weeks of heavy rain
before you backfill).

Why do you need to be 0.9m wide? A normal strip footing for a small
garage is between 450mm-600mm wide on most sub-soils. If you need to
excavate below the adjoining foundations, then do it in short sections
akin to underpinning.
--
Hugo Nebula
"The fact that no-one on the internet wants a piece of this
shows you just how far you've strayed from the pack".

Hugo Nebula wrote in message . ..
On Tue, 13 Apr 2004 11:54:53 +0100, a particular chimpanzee named
Derek randomly hit the keyboard and produced:

I dont know what you can and cant do on this point, but what about
incorporating the existing wall into the new structure? In other words
no tearing down and rebuilding, but underpinning it if it needs it,
adding more wall onto it if needed etc. Is that an option?

The other point is that it may well be possible to pull the climbing
plants off without cutting them, tie them back temporarily, then drape
them onto the new wall, and if necessary tie them to new hooks or
wires on the wall. Even if only half the stems can be got back in one
piece it'll soon cover the wall again.

And of course you can offer the neighbour some additional free plants
if you wish.


Regards, NT