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I'm sure I saw an advert for these a while ago. They were made of fibreglass, and all you did was dig the hole and drop it in like a pool liner. Anyone know anymore about them, if they're available, where from etc?
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I think the planning people get very shirty with them.
Petrol and gas fumes sink. Detectors as used on boats needed as well as assisted ventilation.
Martin
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Well I have a pit in my garage.. The only problem (it is brick built) is that although it has a damp proof course it does get damp - but no lying water.
If installing one of the fibreglass ones(? planning permission.. I doubt) I would be careful of the water table.If you broke through some impervious clay you might end up with a natural spring!:-)
Great for checking car underbodies: I have to use an inspection lamp as no built in lamps but that is not a problem.
Petrol fumes? No.. Anyone using petrol in a garage (apart from in a car) is asking for trouble. Other fumes? Not deep enough (and it's covered when unused). I only work in it with the doors open.
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Try www.mech-mate.com or 01582 670500. Advertised in Practical Classics.
I've no connection with the company.
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I would certainly give a fibreglass pit a try. I had a pit dug when I had a new garage built. Despite best efforts and 15cms of concrete all round it still leaks at the join of base to sides. I should never have trusted the builder not to do exactly what I wanted. Fortunately I installed a a sump to take a pump which is needed all year round. Altho now I only pump when needed. It focuses the mind when working time is limited to about 2 hrs before the tide starts to come in!
With a fibreglass shell I suggest that if the water table is above the bottom level that you install a 5" or 6" drain pipe to allow a submersible pump to be lowered down the outside of the shell if required. Any water will force the shell upwards like a boat! (This is standard practice with swimming pool installations).
pmh (was peter)
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I would like to re-enforce the comment that any water will force the shell upwards like a boat. I have seen a metal pit lining that had been secured into the concrete with heavy duty rawlbolts popped effortlessly out overnight. and it was metal plate, not tin !
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Swimming pools as well - a local man decided to drain his poo, after it had filled up with mud from run-off after some heavy rain. The pool (10 inch concrete) rose up from the ground cracked like an egg, and sank back in again.
back to the thread - I've seen the glass fibre pits, and agree that a sump with pump is a good idea - ideal for pumping out the gunge after an occasional scrub to get rid of grease, dirt etc which inevitably falls in. Also, fit a filter to catch all those grub screws which WILL fall in!
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a local man decided to drain his poo,
LOL :o)
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Hello Dave N
Would still be grateful if I could e-mail you direct re the Vaux Calibra 2.5 aircon problem. Thank you, petel@clara.co.uk
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Why do you want a pit when you always get me round to grovel underneath any of your motahs if they need anything doing! PS I am still NOT going to replace the mains and big ends on the Tonka Toy!
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The risk of explosion from petrol fumes is a real one and not to be lightly dismissed. Even a tiny unnoticed leak will collect in the bottom of the pit, ready to ignite from a metal-metal spark or next time you start the car over it. For this reason I had understood that they were illegal. I certainly would not want to live next door to you.
I should check with the local authority, your neighbours and your insurance company, and if still acceptable fit a petrol fume detector and an approved ventilation system.
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Thanks for all your comments guys. It's not actually for me, as my garage is already built, and I don't fancy digging a hole by hand!
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My mam and dad knew someone who fitted a pit in his garage. Unfortunately one night it filled up with PERFECTLY clear water! The next morning he jumped in before noticing it! :D
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On similar lines, I used to dig graves for a bit of extra cash and near Beverley, East Yorkshire the Wolds used to meet the Holderness plain and a spring line existed. Overnight the grave always flooded and we could never get them empty and quite often to get the coffin to sink we had to lay a heavy weight on it. More like a burial at sea but as we where near Hull it did seem appropriate. Whenever I drive past these cemeteries I always feel that Gabriel blows the last trumpet one or two will have difficulty in getting up to answer his call. For a motoring link, the hearse was an Austin A60 Westminster with a customised body. Good and fast for its day.
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?The risk of explosion from petrol fumes is a real one and not to be lightly dismissed.?
Very true. It?s not just petrol fumes that present a risk of explosion, and explosion is not the only risk. LPG, or any volatile solvent can collect in any such sump. A leaky blowlamp or gas cylinder could fill it up. A bottle of solvents with the cap left off will ooze flammable fumes over the floor; paint thinners or solvents might also do this, I?m not sure. How many iffy old cans are on the shelves in your garage?
The other risk is from asphyxiation. Fumes could collect in the pit, unnoticed until you bend down to pick up some parts you?ve dropped. Then you?ll asphyxiate, as sure as drowning but without the possibility of floating. Pliny the Elder died near the eruption of Vesuvius (79ish AD I think) like this, after he laid down for a rest. More dramatic, but the same cause.
Where I work, the requirements to work in such a confined space (e.g., oil tank bunds, manholes,) start with getting a safety officer to check the air for oxygen content & toxic gases with a gas analyser lowered into the space. He will then sign a ?Permit to Work? if he thinks it?s safe. The man going into the pit wears a safety harness and an explosion proof radio alarm, which will go off if he collapses. The harness is attached to a rope. The rope is attached to a winch. Another man stands by at the winch.
Still want a pit? You don't see many pits in commercial car workshops nowadays.
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Thanks for your concerns.
My pit is just over 1.5 metres deep so when I'm in it, my head is above the level of the ground: just banging nicely on the floorpan/gearbox/sump/suspension! Would I build a pit? No. But it came with the house (prior owner was a A Martin fanatic).
My pit is covered when not in use: chances of being filled by noxious fumes when in use: virtually nil (My garage has a few cans but they all all far away, I don't run car engines in it for more than 5 seconds at a time. And I don't weld or paint in the garage unless with open doors. And fortunately the pit is in the middle of the two other parking bays.
On the advice given ( meant in all sincerity and accepted as such) I could also and should delete all gas appliances from the house (risk of gas explosions) and all 240 volt electrical supplies (risk of electrical shockor electrocution), all stairs (risk of falling), all knives (risk of cutting, all food (risk of food poisoning) , the TV (damage to eyes) etc.
I don't know how many deaths a year occur in pits in home garages: is it more than deaths from home fires,falls, electroction, food poisoning etc? Somehow I doubt it.
I do not wish to appear careless and am aware of the risks of using a pit: (I am more likely to injure my back removing or replacing the cover to the pit); but all things in proportion I think.
madf
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A pit would seem to be the ideal place for underbody welding, but MIG welding in a pit seems to be fairly hazardous. I don't know how much gas a mig welder would use.
www.hse.gov.uk/fod/288_6R.pdf
Although madf is sarcastic about the hazards, DaveN started the thread. Any mention of a pit without stressing the associated hazards would be irresponsible. Madf may know of the hazards, others reading this thread won't. See the post about someone jumping into a pit full of water. Consider a pit full of gas and then go figure.
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