Allerton Ground Water Tube

 23 Aug 2021
 
 
AGWT sketch
 
If you are concerned about the water level in the area of your soakaway, you can always dig a hole to see what the ground water level is.
 
Some may refer to this as the Water Table, but that is the level all over the garden including the drive and house too. We are really talking about ground water in the area of septic tank soakaways or Sewage Treatment Plant soakaways or more properly called Drainage Fields.
 

What is a soakaway or drainage field?

 
Soakaways are often simple pits filled with gravel or rubble. In clay land this is a bit pointless as the water tends to soak away at the top of the hole.
 
A field drain is designed to let septic tank water or water from a Sewage Treatment Plant percolate away more readily but at a slower depth, exploiting the top soil and more permeable subsoil.
 
In clay soils (which appear in most of the country) clay becomes more plastic the deeper you go in the ground. There are less fissures created by severe shrinkage of clay in very hot summers. This is when roots dive down deep looking for water. But in most summers, only the top levels are cracked and fissured.
 

When do they become a problem?

 
We know that in winter a hole dug in clay soils finds its own water and stays there all winter if not filled in. It is in the wet winter months that soakaways, and Drainage Fields, are under stress. But how far down is the surface of this water? This is where you dig a hole to see!
 

What is the Allerton Ground Water Tube?

Soakaway water measurement tool AGWT 
 
The Allerton Ground Water Tube is so simple to install with a garden spade. And thereafter, so simple to see into the ground. For £6 each, 2 for £10, or 3 for £14 (all prices include UK postage but exclude VAT),  you get a tube that is 500mm deep. It has several small holes drilled into the bottom few inches of the tube which lets water in.
 
All one needs to do is to take out the dipstick and see where the water level is. A ten second job.
 
Allerton Ground Water Tube Installed
The red cap in the image is the top of the tube which has been installed. Once this is lifted, there is a stick in the tube which shows the water levels.
 
1. If the tube is empty, fine, if there is water in the tube you would want to monitor it more often.
 
2. Check it after a heavy rain, has it had as much affect as you expected? Measure it again after a week. Has the water level gone down? Or has it come up further?
 
Bad news, good news... either way you will know. The tubes are inexpensive to buy and easy to install in a hole 500mm deep!
Contact us to order one now and experiment!