Percolation Tests carries out BRE365 soakaway percolation testing and foul infiltration testing across Malvern and the surrounding Malvern Hills area.
We are based in Wolverhampton, about 34 miles away, and Malvern is well inside the area we cover as standard. We have carried out 55 tests within fifteen miles of Malvern and 166 within twenty-five, so the ground around the town is familiar to us.
Ground conditions in Malvern
Malvern sits at the foot of the Malvern Hills, an area of ancient, hard igneous and metamorphic rock quite different from the surrounding Worcestershire clay. Ground conditions can change quickly here depending on proximity to the hills versus the lower-lying Severn Vale side of the district, so a site-specific test is particularly important in this area.
The older mudstones and sandstones around Malvern weather to variable depths, and the amount of superficial cover changes quickly across a plot. Valley floors often carry alluvium and river gravels that behave completely differently from the slopes above them. Sloping sites bring a second consideration: a soakaway has to be positioned so that what it discharges does not resurface further down or affect a neighbouring property, which sometimes matters more than the raw infiltration figure.
What we test for
- BRE365 percolation testing for surface water soakaway design
- Foul effluent infiltration testing (Part H) for septic tanks and treatment plants
- Drainage strategy support for planning submissions
What the testing actually involves
The procedure is defined by BRE Digest 365. It is worth knowing what it requires, because a test that cuts corners is easy to spot at planning.
- Trial pits go in where the soakaway is proposed, dug below the depth it will eventually sit at. How many is a matter of site size and design.
- Each pit is filled to at least 75% of its effective storage depth, the point the timed measurement runs from.
- Each pit is then filled and timed on three separate occasions, recording the fall from 75% to 25% of the effective storage depth.
- The slowest run governs the calculation, so the figure errs towards caution rather than optimism.
All of that takes time, and we plan the visit around it. If the ground will not support a soakaway we will say so plainly rather than produce a figure that fails later.
Planning conditions in Malvern
Applications in the Malvern area are dealt with by Malvern Hills District Council, and drainage conditions are attached routinely — particularly on rural plots, barn conversions and self-builds with no mains surface water connection. The condition normally asks for infiltration testing to BRE365 and a soakaway design based on the result, approved before work starts.
Testing early is worth the trouble. If infiltration turns out not to be viable the drainage strategy has to change, and discovering that after the groundworks are priced is an expensive surprise.
Septic tanks and foul drainage
Surface water and foul drainage are tested differently, and the results are not interchangeable. A drainage field for a septic tank or treatment plant is sized using BS 6297, which Part H of the Building Regulations refers to. If your site near Malvern needs both a soakaway and a drainage field, we can carry out both tests in one visit rather than two.
What you receive
- A full report with the recorded times for every pit and every fill
- The calculated infiltration rate, ready to hand to your engineer or planner
- Trial pit locations and depths
- Photographs of the testing on site
- A clear statement of whether a soakaway is viable, and if not, why not
Coverage
We test across Malvern, Malvern Wells, Colwall, and the surrounding villages. Available Monday to Friday.
Get a quote
Contact us for a free, no-obligation quote for percolation or infiltration testing anywhere in Malvern. Call 01902 475653 or request a quote online.
Percolation testing around Malvern
Each dot is a site we have tested. 25 within ten miles of Malvern, 128 within twenty-five.
Also serving Worcestershire
This page is part of our coverage across Worcestershire, which also includes:
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