Groundworks

When the builders first cleared the site four years ago and excavated the house footprint and access track, they didn’t do a great job.

The access track was very roughly excavated, some type one was thrown down and no thought was given to drainage. A bit of an omission considering that Skye is one of the wettest places on the planet. All similar tracks in the area have drainage channels cut into the sides or down the middle.

The builders also refused to use geotec membrane to help hold the surface together on the slope, despite our suggestion to do so. We suspect that they’d never used it before, despite it being the de-facto standard for stabilising surfaces on slopes for decades, or that it was extra cost, and so we were told that “it wasn’t how they built around here”.

There are no drainage channels or pipes under or beside the track. This has resulted in the rain washing the finer materials out of the mix and huge ruts and crevices being carved out by running water taking the most direct route downhill, as water does.

At times the track has almost been impassable although we’ve tried to repair it from time to time. It was clear that temporary repairs weren’t going to cut it for much longer – it was time to do a proper job.

Husband and friend hired a digger, a roller and a whacker plate machine and have worked through this last week to dig drainage channels, lay geotec membrane, cover the drive surface with several inches of hardcore and compact it.

It’s still a work in progress but is looking so much better.

Due to the difference in level between the house floor and the ground we were also faced with the prospect of a long wheelchair access ramp for the front door. Necessary for building regs.

But no longer. The surface has been brought up to where the doorstep will be.

Luckily the weather stayed largely fair for the week of work, and so great progress has been made.

I’ve lost count of the tonnes of hardcore that have been delivered.

As I write the workers are taking a break and will have a well-deserved day of rest tomorrow before cracking on next week to complete the job.

Level surfaces! No potholes and crevices! We’ll hardly recognise the place.

Thank you Hugh and Andy.