How to make a castle for a well. clay castle

What is a clay castle and what is it for? The clay castle provides protection during the construction of walls, the foundation of the house (foundation) or basement. Clay castle, or otherwise clay screen. A clay screen is a clay layer that is rammed and compacted, and it also protects the structure from the influence of groundwater. Crumpled clay creates an obstacle to the penetration of water, thanks to which the overall structure remains safe.

Clay castle, like all designs, has its advantages and disadvantages. Let's take a look at all the benefits first:

• the clay castle around the well is completely protected from groundwater and rainwater;
• you will not need to seal the seams on the structure every year;
• you can save money, as clay is a free and environmentally friendly material. You do not have to spend additional money on the purchase of other materials.

Since there are advantages, therefore, there are also disadvantages:

• although a clay castle is protected from moisture, clay waterproofing is still the wrong step. For this, other materials must be used;
• the clay layer, located in the zone where the freezing of the soil cover occurs, the clay begins to increase in volume. This happens in the spring every year. After a certain time, it may happen that the structure begins to gradually collapse;
• due to the high content of sand, clay sedimentation will decrease after the installation of the clay castle.

Disadvantages of a clay castle

Consider the disadvantages of a clay castle in more detail. This design is almost impossible to make perfectly dense. The material used, i.e. clay, must have excellent plasticity, be compacted tightly so that no air bubbles form.

Clay must be constantly compacted, if this is not done, then a layer of insulation against moisture is not created. But most often, the owners do not carry out this procedure. Thus, water will not penetrate from the surface of the earth, but groundwater will certainly seep and enter the mine itself.

If the impermeability of liquids (sealing) is made at the seams of the well rings and all walls are smeared, then underground moisture will not be able to affect your drinking water. The nuance is different: the water that accumulates under this structure will become ice.

If your area contains a huge amount of groundwater in the ground, then all this will put pressure on the first ring of the well. As a result, all seams are deformed and there will be a big advancement of the top of the well shaft, all debris, dirt and much more will begin to penetrate into the inside. To prevent this, this structure must be covered with a waterproofing material, namely concrete or tile.

The disadvantage may be the poor quality of the clay or your soil layer freezes heavily in winter.

It is better to install a clay castle two years after the digging of the well shaft was carried out. During this huge period of time, the earth near the walls will become dense and settle. The upper part is covered with a temporary waterproofing layer. But if you do not want to wait two years, then you have to make a soft waterproof coating around the well.

All these shortcomings can be eliminated.

The process of making a clay castle

Since the foundation is the foundation of the house, it must be completely isolated from the influence of groundwater and rainwater. The device of the clay castle and its width depends on the depth of the base of the house in the ground. If the depth of the foundation is two meters, then the width at the bottom of the clay castle is 40-50 centimeters, and at the top - 25-30 centimeters. A clay castle around the foundation is not often installed.

Before starting the entire installation, a pit of the required width is dug. Crumpled clay should be laid in layers in the pit.

The layer should be ten centimeters.

If you did not have time to do all the work in just one day, then the entire structure must be covered with a membrane that will protect the structure from moisture. In order to make a waterproof coating around the building, it is necessary to wait about half a month after the construction of the clay castle.

In order to provide complete protection from any moisture, a waterproofing membrane can be placed between our structure and the base of the house.

Clay lock for a well

An important point is the insulation from the moisture of the well. This is necessary because the drinking water in the well can become contaminated when groundwater enters it. The most common procedure is to create a clay castle around the well.

The whole process is quite laborious, all work requires a huge amount of material. As soon as all the work is completed, do not forget to clean the well.

During all work, it is necessary to follow a certain algorithm of actions. Mounting procedure:

• There is a long deep ditch over the entire surface of the well shaft. The dimensions of this trench: width - 600 millimeters, depth - 1700 millimeters.
• The trench is filled with clay. Clay is constantly important to tamp.
• A small waterproof coating is created at the top of the clay castle. This blind area should tilt from the well, and its height should be two hundred millimeters.

Mounting technology

There is a certain technology:

• To create a castle, you need to use a material that has natural moisture. When it is mined from the ground cover for future storage, this material should be soaked in water and then covered with something. In order to check the quality of the created material, try to mold something from this clay. If the quality is poor, then the clay should crumble in your hands. The material should slide off your hands. All this will help you understand whether the material is ready to start using. Since clay contains a huge amount of sand, twenty percent lime can be added to it.
• You can achieve the best result when compacting the material in an auxiliary structure (formwork). To install the formwork, you will need wooden shields. It is necessary to install so that the thickness of our clay castle is two hundred millimeters. The tamping should be carried out in layers, the height of which should be an average of 250 millimeters.
• Geotextiles should be placed on the outside of the clay castle. This canvas will become an obstacle to the erosion of the structure by groundwater.
• The process of making a clay castle resembles the process of creating a blind area for a building. The width of the clay castle can be different, it starts from one meter, the depth starts from 50 centimeters. It is most desirable that all these indicators were greater. The clay is covered with a geotextile sheet, you can put a cobblestone on the sheet.

As you understand, clay is a suitable material that can be used to isolate a well from underground moisture. The cost of clay as a material is low, and may be completely absent, since the clay is right under your feet. Any procedure that involves clay can be done on your own. This work does not require any specific skills and efforts. But at the same time, the work is quite laborious.

Clay replacement

To date, many companies offer materials that can replace clay. Such materials include a mixture of sand and gravel or ordinary sand. But can all this be a substitute for clay?

Sand, as a material, is not designed to retain water. Sand is a filter for water, that is, this material simply passes it through. After the sand passes water, it comes into contact with the rings of concrete and penetrates into the well shaft through possible cracks.

Clay, although it can get wet, is completely waterproof. Due to the fact that the clay can get wet, during severe frosts in winter, you may observe a slight displacement or advancement of the well rings.

Although today manufacturers offer us various materials, clay is indispensable. It will not wet the soil layer.

Ensuring protection of the well rings from displacement

In order to prevent any advancement of the deck rings, it is necessary to install an additional fastener. To install additional fastening, you will need plates that are not affected by corrosion, as well as fasteners that are fixed in the supporting base and hold any structure (anchor bolts).

Stainless plates must be started from the soil surface. It is necessary to finish laying when you reach a height that will be two hundred millimeters below the second seam.

The best option for this job is to use non-woven plastic materials, as they do not rot.

Proper earth tamping technology

This procedure must be carried out in several approaches, as soon as you have laid two hundred millimeters. If a poor-quality seal is made, then the whole process must be carried out again. Clay, which is used for a clay castle, should have a moisture content of 20-30 percent.

For tamping efficiency, use a sole with a small area, but with a large mass.

When to install a clay castle for a well? As soon as you made a well, do not install a clay castle, the prepared land should settle.

Otherwise, cracks and crevices will appear in the ground, the clay castle in this case will be useless. This work can be done with your own hands or with someone together. It is best to entrust the work to specialists.

Outcome

This structure (clay castle) is a protection for the source of drinking water (well), which protects it from the penetration of groundwater. Do not use other materials than clay. Because they do not have the necessary characteristics. To create a lock for a well with your own hands, you need to follow some nuances, and then you can get an excellent result. But if you have enough money, then entrust the work to professionals.

The whole procedure is quite simple, but at the same time time-consuming. During installation, it is necessary to follow a certain sequence of actions. The most important point is the tamping of clay and earth. The soil must be settled. This procedure must be approached with all seriousness, because the health of your body depends on it. Drinking water must remain clean. Get the job done and enjoy clean drinking water. We wish you success!

In this post, we will explore the concept of clay castle and the feasibility of its arrangement.

Clay is a mineral that consists of finely dispersed particles. Clay in the wet state has a high plasticity and is able to absorb a large amount of water, hold it and not pass through it.

clay castle is a layer of a certain thickness of compacted clay laid on the foundation office or underground part of the wall of houses, cellars, cellars, wells. Clay lock designed to prevent direct contact of the structure with groundwater, protection against flooding by rainwater, which allows to increase the service life of waterproofing materials and the structure itself as a whole.

Attention! It is better to install a clay castle two years after the digging of the well shaft was carried out. During this huge period of time, the earth near the walls will become dense and settle. The upper part is covered with a temporary waterproofing layer. But if you do not want to wait two years, then you have to make a soft waterproof coating around the well.

All these shortcomings can be eliminated.

The process of making a clay castle

Since the foundation is the foundation of the house, it must be completely isolated from the influence of groundwater and rainwater. The device of the clay castle and its width depends on the depth of the base of the house in the ground. If the depth of the foundation is two meters, then the width at the bottom of the clay castle is 40-50 centimeters, and at the top - 25-30 centimeters. A clay castle around the foundation is not often installed.

Before starting the entire installation, a pit of the required width is dug. Crumpled clay should be laid in layers in the pit.

Important! The layer should be ten centimeters.

If you did not have time to do all the work in just one day, then the entire structure must be covered with a membrane that will protect the structure from moisture. In order to make a waterproof coating around the building, it is necessary to wait about half a month after the construction of the clay castle.

In order to provide complete protection from any moisture, a waterproofing membrane can be placed between our structure and the base of the house.

Clay lock for a well

An important point is the insulation from the moisture of the well. This is necessary because the drinking water in the well can become contaminated when groundwater enters it. The most common procedure is to create a clay castle around the well. In general, the whole process is quite laborious, all work requires a huge amount of material. In general, as soon as all the work is completed, do not forget to clean the well.

During all work, it is necessary to follow a certain algorithm of actions. Mounting procedure:

• There is a long deep ditch over the entire surface of the well shaft. The dimensions of this trench: width - 600 millimeters, depth - 1700 millimeters.
• The trench is filled with clay. Clay is constantly important to tamp.
• A small waterproof coating is created at the top of the clay castle. This blind area should tilt from the well, and its height should be two hundred millimeters.

Mounting technology

There is a certain technology:

• To create a castle, you need to use a material that has natural moisture. When it is mined from the ground cover for future storage, this material should be soaked in water and then covered with something. In order to check the quality of the created material, try to mold something from this clay. If the quality is poor, then the clay should crumble in your hands. The material should slide off your hands. All this will help you understand whether the material is ready to start using. Since clay contains a huge amount of sand, twenty percent lime can be added to it.
• You can achieve the best result when compacting the material in an auxiliary structure (formwork). To install the formwork, you will need wooden shields. It is necessary to install so that the thickness of our clay castle is two hundred millimeters. The tamping should be carried out in layers, the height of which should be an average of 250 millimeters.
• Geotextiles should be placed on the outside of the clay castle. This canvas will become an obstacle to the erosion of the structure by groundwater.
• The process of making a clay castle resembles the process of creating a blind area for a building. The width of the clay castle can be different, it starts from one meter, the depth starts from 50 centimeters. It is most desirable that all these indicators were greater. The clay is covered with a geotextile sheet, you can put a cobblestone on the sheet.

As you understand, clay is a suitable material that can be used to isolate a well from underground moisture. The cost of clay as a material is low, and may be completely absent, since the clay is right under your feet. Any procedure that involves clay can be done on your own. This work does not require any specific skills and efforts. But at the same time, the work is quite laborious.

Clay replacement

To date, many companies offer materials that can replace clay. Such materials include a mixture of sand and gravel or ordinary sand. But can all this be a substitute for clay?

Sand, as a material, is not designed to retain water. Sand is a filter for water, that is, this material simply passes it through. After the sand passes water, it comes into contact with the rings of concrete and penetrates into the well shaft through possible cracks. Clay, although it can get wet, is completely waterproof. Due to the fact that the clay can get wet, during severe frosts in winter, you may observe a slight displacement or advancement of the well rings.

Although today manufacturers offer us various materials, clay is indispensable. It will not wet the soil layer.

Ensuring protection of the well rings from displacement

In order to prevent any advancement of the deck rings, it is necessary to install an additional fastener. To install additional fastening, you will need plates that are not affected by corrosion, as well as fasteners that are fixed in the supporting base and hold any structure (anchor bolts).

Stainless plates must be started from the soil surface. It is necessary to finish laying when you reach a height that will be two hundred millimeters below the second seam.

Clay of natural moisture is used to make the castle. If it is taken out of the ground for storage, it should be soaked by watering and covered from above. Clay is ready to use when you can mold something from it: it does not crumble and does not slip between the fingers when it is crushed. It will not be superfluous to add 10-20% lime to the composition of the clay, especially with a high content of sand in it.

If the clay holds its shape: it does not crumble or spread, it is ready for use

The best result is obtained by carefully compacting the clay in the formwork. You can install wooden panels, ensuring the thickness of the castle is 15-20 cm. If the pit is not wide, and there is enough material, the walls of the pit themselves can serve as formwork. The clay is rammed in layers 20-30 cm high. Placing a geotextile fabric outside the castle will prevent its gradual erosion by groundwater. While there is no blind area, it is also worth laying a strip of geotextile along the perimeter of the house, making backfill with a slope from the building. The blind area can be made from a mixture of crushed stone and crumpled clay, paved on top.

If the pit is not wide, the formwork can be omitted

The clay castle of the well is made like a blind area. It should be wide, at least a meter, and not necessarily deep, from half a meter. Better, of course, wider and deeper. If a water pipe goes from the well to the house, it must also be insulated with a lock, regardless of the depth of its laying. Clay can be covered with geotextile on top and paving slabs or cobblestones can be laid on it.

The clay castle of the pond is made 8-12 cm thick in three layers. The clay is kneaded to a soft dough, applied to a horizontal or inclined surface, compacted and allowed to dry a little. The surface should become similar in hardness to plasticine, then the next layer can be applied. During drying, including at the end of work, the clay must not be allowed to dry out in order to avoid the appearance of cracks. It needs to be covered with a film, you can hay. The pond will turn out perfect if you spread a film for ponds on top of the clay.

The clay blind area should be protected from above with geotextiles or paved

So, clay is not only a traditional, but also a promising material for waterproofing buildings from ground moisture. It literally lies underfoot, the work does not require qualifications and a complex tool from the performer, although it is quite laborious. European and American technologists continue to successfully develop the latest insulating materials based on clays, their appearance in Russia should be expected in the near future.

Owners of summer cottages and private households, deprived of the opportunity to connect to the general water supply network, have no alternative but to dig a well on their land. The problems of arranging life do not end there, because the water source needs care and protection.

What should the well be protected from?

So that surface water does not get into the well after melting snow or heavy rainfall, a special protection is being built for it - a clay castle. Verkhovodka is not recommended to drink or cook from it, because it has not been filtered through the soil. Mixing with water from a well, it worsens its qualitative composition. Therefore, the surface of the earth along the perimeter of the head of the well must be securely sealed with a clay lock.

What is a protective clay structure

In the text of SanPiN, the device of a clay castle is described as follows: a structure framing a well 1 meter wide and 2 meters deep. It is important that the layer is dense, so it is carefully rammed. Not every material is suitable for construction. Clay and greasy loam are kneaded before laying, in no case should they be replaced with sandy loam or soil dumps. A real castle around a well is only made of clay, made of pre-prepared material with a sand content of 5 to 15%.

Disputes about the need to equip the castle arise constantly. Sanitary standards prescribe the construction without fail, but with the proviso that in addition to it,

1. stone,
2. brick,
3. asphalt
4. or concrete pavement. It forms a ring with a radius of 2 meters with a mandatory deviation from the well wall of 0.1 m. From such a slope, water is discharged into a cuvette or tray.

The blind area is not only a decorative element. This is the protection of the castle from destruction during operation (including due to precipitation).

Before making a clay castle for a well, it is necessary that the mounted shaft stand without this structure for at least a year (while the process of natural shrinkage of the soil is in progress) . This precaution will help prevent the formation of voids and loose areas, because the lock prevents the soil from settling.

Caverns are dangerous because water accumulates in them. Rodents and insects that live in the ground can get into them and die. And the substances formed during the decomposition process and entering drinking water will add to it by no means useful properties. The duration of the process of natural shrinkage of the soil is affected by the composition of the soil, which must be taken into account when choosing the waiting time before starting work.

It is worth postponing the creation of a clay castle if a water supply is led from the well. After the installation of water supply communications, they return to waterproofing work.

It is forbidden to equip a clay ring around the well on soils prone to seasonal heaving. There is a risk of rupture of the mine shaft or displacement of the seams between the rings. There is no guaranteed protection against this. The screed of the rings with the help of anchor bolts and metal plates will not save either, so it's better not to risk it.

Procedure for carrying out work

If there is no possibility or desire to use the services of a team of professional builders, it remains to make a clay castle for.

• Dig in. A trench is dug along the perimeter of the well to a depth of 150 - 180 cm. As a result, the second seam of the connection of the rings should be visible.
• All connections must be protected from the ingress of clay into them. Any hydrophobic material that won't rot or decompose will work, such as plastic wrap.
• Material preparation. For a clay castle, it is allowed to take clay with a sand content of up to 15%, but the lower the index, the better. If you follow all the recommendations, then the clay is aged before use (usually left for the winter). To add strength to the lock, lime is mixed into the solution at the rate that its content does not exceed 20% of the total mass of the mixture. The more sand in the clay, the more lime you need to add.

It is important that the clay is mashed and not stirred. Previously, such an operation was performed with the feet, today they use small concrete mixers or use a drill with a nozzle.

Water is gradually added to the clay and lime and the ingredients are kneaded to a plastic state. You can determine the desired consistency as follows: make a clay lump. If it does not disintegrate, then the resulting mass can be rammed into a trench.

• Clay is laid out gradually, in layers of 15 or 20 cm. Each laid out layer is compacted with a heavy rammer with a small sole. It is important that the structure of the clay is changed, the purpose of tamping is to turn the soft material into a monolithic slab. The sequence of actions is repeated until the entire pit is filled. If the work cannot be completed in one day, then at night the unfinished castle is covered with a film.

The next step is to create a blind area over the castle. And without the recommendations of SanPiN, it is clear that after rains or snow melts, even a tightly packed clay castle will turn into mud. The "limp" top layer will get wet and dry, which will gradually lead to a violation of tightness. Therefore, the construction of a blind area is considered a logical completion of the process of creating a protective castle.

The coating material is selected based on personal preferences, both stone and paving slabs are suitable. And the technology of creation does not seem complicated:

1. the castle is covered with geotextile or other material with similar properties,
2. the selected material is laid on top of the screed.

You can assemble a low formwork and pour the castle on top with cement mortar. The main thing is that the bias is observed, because the task of the bridge is not just protection from moisture, but also its removal.

The construction of a clay castle will not affect the bacterial and chemical composition of the water in the area, but it will help keep it clear and usable, if it was originally such. Therefore, in resolving the dilemma "for" or "against" clay castles around the well, it is worth tipping the scales in the direction of a positive answer.

Clay castle around the foundation- layers or several layers of crumpled, well-packed clay along the wall and foundation.

Purpose of construction: waterproofing basements and foundations from contact with groundwater and wastewater. A layer of clay of 40-50 centimeters is absolutely waterproof.

Stages of building a clay castle and its device

Clay castle device

1. Clay selection. For the construction of a clay castle, greasy clay with a sand content of no more than 15 percent is used for the foundation. It is also possible to use loam, but it requires long soaking in water. To improve the properties of clay, lime should be used at the rate of 15 percent of the total mass of clay. Recently, instead of ordinary clay, bentonite is used. It gives less cracks and practically does not shrink.
2. Clay preparation. 1-2 days before you start making a clay castle, clay should be filled with water. Important: do not let the clay mass dry out. To determine readiness, it is clenched in a fist. The resulting lump should not crumble. The ideal time for harvesting clay is autumn. During the winter, it will freeze well, be saturated with moisture and become plastic and homogeneous.
3. We construct a floating formwork. The formwork is made taking into account the depth of the foundation and the thickness of the formwork. With a foundation depth of up to 2 meters, which is standard for most buildings, the width of the lower part of the formwork should be 0.4 meters. Towards the top, the clay castle narrows to a width of 0.25 meters. Instead of formwork, you can use a pit. The height of the clay castle should not exceed the height of the foundation.
4. Clay laying. Clay is applied in layers of 5-10 centimeters. The thinner the layers, the easier it is to compact. Important: in between laying, the clay castle must be covered with moisture-proof materials (film, etc.). Otherwise, the clay will begin to dry and cracks will form between the layers, which will lead to the rapid destruction of the castle in the future.
5. . The main purpose of building a blind area is to protect the foundation and the clay castle. The blind area should be built in a couple of weeks, after the construction of the clay castle is completed. All this time, the castle must be protected from rainwater. Therefore, it is covered with a waterproofing film on top. Also for this period, it is necessary to organize a drainage system for precipitation. You can build a blind area from a variety of materials. In fact, it is the top layer of a clay castle.

The most self-waterproofing of vertical and horizontal type for any type of foundations.

In our article, this is an excellent and very affordable method of vertical waterproofing.

Blind area options

• Fall asleep clay castle sand and gravel.
• Turf. Sod layers can be used as a blind area, but a prerequisite is the organization of a drain system.
• Tile. On top of the clay castle, tiles are laid along the house. Having previously fallen asleep a layer of the base.
• Concrete pavements. They are more expensive than the previous one and in a few years they will begin to let moisture through even with additional reinforcement. Therefore, it will require replacement and additional costs.

To protect the foundation from destruction by groundwater and sewage, it is necessary to organize a spillway system, build a clay castle and close it with a blind area from above. If additional financial resources are available, additional waterproofing materials can also be used.

A real skill that is not given to everyone. It is necessary to choose the right place, dig a straight shaft of the required depth and strengthen it with concrete rings, masonry with piece materials or special synthetic pipes of large diameter. When deepening the mine, the master may stumble upon quicksand, a dense layer of limestone and similar obstacles. That is why an unprepared person will spend more time building a well, and it is not possible to guarantee a high-quality result of labor.

One of the main tasks is to protect the well from getting into it perched water, melt and storm drains. The water in them does not meet sanitary and hygienic standards, often saturated with pesticides and other harmful substances. For this purpose, a special layer is arranged around the upper part of the shaft - a lock that does not let through and diverts the upper groundwater from the well.

Why clay castle?

The availability of modern building materials allows the use of different technologies for the insulating lock. They have both advantages and disadvantages, but the castle made of natural clay is considered the oldest and most proven. This is the case when the ancient methods are not only not forgotten, but also continue to be actively used in the modern construction of drinking wells. A properly laid clay castle will create a reliable barrier against the penetration of upper contaminated water.

Clay castle provides protection against falling into the well of melt and sewage

The clay that is used to create the castle is a natural and cheap material. If there are no deposits in the adjacent territory, then bringing it to the site will not be a problem.

For the construction of a clay castle, only dense, oily clay with a high degree of viscosity is used. Loams or sandy loams are categorically not suitable for waterproofing, because they do not have the desired degree of density

Benefits of a clay castle

Materials for laying a clay castle are of low cost. In addition to oily clay, you will need some sand and pebbles. From here we take the first and very important advantage - cheapness and availability.

A professionally laid clay castle is very durable. It easily tolerates freezing of the soil and abundant water in the upper layers of the soil. When the soil buckles, it moves freely around the well shaft without forming a strong connection.

When a clay castle is built

In different sources, from old literature to modern forums, you can find completely different approaches to laying a clay castle. Therefore, describing the order of construction, we will explain why it is so, and not otherwise.

First rule- you can not lay the clay castle immediately after the construction of the well. After the completion of the main labor-intensive work, it should settle from six months to two years, so that the soil around it naturally sinks. To ensure the removal of perched water, a temporary clay blind area is used. The earth has a porous structure, which is destroyed when the mine is dug. In some cases, subsidence of the soil around the well continues for several years.

If the clay is poured and compacted immediately, it will form a dense dome around the rings, under which the natural shrinkage process will continue. Subsequently, there will be volumetric cavities under the clay and cracks in the castle itself. Ground water and rodents will freely penetrate into them. Getting into the sewage well will only be a matter of time. To remedy the situation, it is necessary to excavate the old castle and re-lay the new one with high-quality kneading and tamping of clay.

Some masters offer to equip a clay castle immediately after digging a well. It will be money wasted. It is better to completely abandon such a lock than to then eliminate the consequences of "hack-work"

To ensure the removal of perched water, a temporary clay blind area is used.

The first stage of laying a clay castle

It is carried out after the soil around the well has subsided and stabilized. A trench is dug around the rings to a depth of about one and a half meters. It should narrow as it deepens and must have a slope from the walls of the well. This is the only way to achieve the effect of removing the top water from the mine. If you make an angle to the mine, then the water will flow along the border of clay and soil directly to the walls of the well and begin to destroy the waterproofing.

Before laying the first portion of clay, the bottom of the trench is sprinkled with a thin layer of sand or pebbles.

Preparing clay and laying the castle

High-quality clay, which is suitable for a castle, is not in abundance in every area, so construction stores and firms offer various building mixtures based on sand and gravel as an analogue. Unfortunately, such backfill does not retain water like clay, but simply filters it out a little. Dry backfills are suitable only for soft blind areas.

Clay before laying in a trench must be thoroughly washed in order to change the bonds in it and create a homogeneous plastic mass, simple tamping or trampling with feet for waterproofing is not enough. Clay moisture content of 15-30% is considered optimal for work.

Mashed greasy clay is laid in a trench with a thin layer - 10-15 cm and carefully compacted. The ramming tool should have a small sole area and a significant weight. The procedure is repeated step by step until the castle is level with the ground. Then a roller is applied around the ring so that rain trickles run away from the mine, and not towards it.

If the clay castle is qualitatively compacted, it does not let water through, but the top layer of clay after rain or snow melt will turn into a viscous mess, which will be a real feat to overcome. To avoid this, a thin blind area is superimposed on top of the clay or a coating of pebbles, stone or bricks is organized.

After arranging the castle, you need to periodically inspect it to identify cracking or subsidence. Found defects are refilled with clay and carefully compacted.

To minimize the negative consequences of possible winter heaving of the castle and rupture of seams, concrete rings are wrapped with non-woven material. The gasket allows the ground to rise and fall without stressing the strength of the waterproofing seams. Most often, available roofing material is used for wrapping.

Why you should call professionals for help

The process of laying a clay castle requires care, time and effort. Due to the monotony, it is better to find an assistant, or simplify your task as much as possible and order the service of building a clay castle from a professional team of craftsmen, which works on-site throughout the Moscow region.

Attention to detail in the process - the basis for arranging a clay castle of a well

The client does not need to spend energy looking for the right clay and arrange for its delivery to the site. All work, from preparation to the final design of the clay castle, will be performed by experienced craftsmen of our company. They work quickly and accurately, without damaging the environment.

Offer from the company "Three Wells"

There is a well with tasty water, but it is not protected from getting perched? Order a call on our website or call yourself at a convenient time. You will receive advice, answers to your questions and be able to order a professional clay castle device at an affordable price.

Do not forget about the further decorative design of the well - our catalog contains original houses made of natural and artificial materials, made in different styles.

The company constantly holds seasonal promotions that allow you to get a nice discount on the maintenance and arrangement of a drinking well.

The work of real professionals- this is a reliable guarantee that your well will have the right clay lock that really works and protects drinking water from pollution. Give us a call and tomorrow our team will be at your site!

The clay castle around the well is a structure that protects the source from the ingress of perched water, that is, dirty water through the walls of the well shaft. With a sufficient depth of the well, it is not necessary to make a clay castle, but if it is shallow, you cannot do without it.

The very process of arranging a clay castle is quite laborious and requires a significant amount of clay. After all the work, you need to clean the well to be sure of the quality of the water.

All measures for the construction of a clay castle can be divided into three stages

1. A recess is made around the well shaft by 150-180 centimeters and a width of 50-60 centimeters.
2. Clay is poured into the resulting trench and periodically compacted.
3. A small tubercle of 15-20 centimeters is made from above with a slope from the well.

Now let's look at some of the nuances associated with the organization of a clay castle.

Is it possible to use other materials instead of clay

For a castle around a well, it is best to use clay

There are now a sufficient number of companies on the market that offer to replace clay with sand or sand and gravel. But, first of all, they want to simplify the task for themselves, and not to help you. Let's think logically. Sand does not retain water, but only passes it through and cleans debris. Further, the water enters the walls of the concrete rings, and if there are cracks in them, then the flood water enters directly into the aquifer.

Now about clay - this is a waterproof material that prevents the penetration of water, but at the same time it can get wet on the surface, therefore, in winter, with significant frosts, a slight movement of the well rings is possible. At the same time, clay prevents the ingress of surface water and soil moisture, which is fraught with serious consequences.

Despite the existing variety of various mixtures for well locks, they cannot replace clay.

How to protect well rings from displacement

To reduce the coefficient of adhesion of clay and the surface of the rings, non-woven plastic materials are used that are not subject to decay.

To prevent displacement of the rings, you can mount an additional fastener, for this, stainless plates and anchor bolts are used. In addition, to reduce the coefficient of adhesion of clay and the surface of the rings, non-woven plastic materials are used that are not subject to decay. Their laying starts from the surface of the earth, and ends 20 centimeters below the second seam of the well shaft. Thus, we get additional protection against getting perched, as well as from spilling clay in case of non-tightness of the seams.

We tamp the clay correctly

To achieve the best effect, rammers with a small sole, but with a significant mass, should be used.

This process must be carried out in several stages, after each laying of 15-20 centimeters of clay. To achieve the best effect, rammers with a small sole, but with a significant mass, should be used. There were cases that it was from a poor-quality seal that everything had to be redone anew.

When preparing clay for arranging a castle, pay attention to its moisture content. It has been laboratory proven that clay is most plastic at a moisture content of 15 to 30 percent.

An important point: after you have dug out, you should not immediately equip a clay castle. The soil around the mine must stand and settle. Otherwise, you simply will not close all the cracks in the ground, which makes the clay castle useless.

You can do all the work yourself, but the best option is to turn to specialists or at least get an assistant.

Hello. He planned to dig his own well in the country. He brought the rings and hired workers to dig the mine. Now they tell me that in addition to the rings, I need some kind of clay lock for the well or a soft blind area. Should I listen to them - maybe I don’t need any lock? And if needed, then advise me what to choose: a lock or a blind area?

Scheme of a clay castle for a well

Your workers have given good advice. The device of a clay castle or a soft blind area - will provide reliable waterproofing of the mine of a new source. A plastic layer or soft membrane, which is installed at the level of the second ring, cuts off the well from rain and soil suspensions, while maintaining the original quality of the water accumulated in the mine.

If you abandon the lock or blind area, then all the turbidity from the upper layers of the soil will pour into the well, seeping through the cracks between the rings. As a result, all efforts to equip the source will be in vain - water from such a well will go only for technical needs.

Which is better: a lock or a blind area?

The price of a clay castle consists of the cost of raw materials and work. At the same time, raw materials can be obtained from the ground, and the work of diggers is relatively inexpensive. Therefore, the main advantage of the castle is the low cost and walking distance of this waterproofing technology. After all, all the components are already present at the construction site, and you can dig a pit with your own hands.

But will such a lock be effective? It depends not only on the efforts of its creators, but also on the quality of the building material - clay, as well as on the moisture content of the soil in which the well is built. Poor-quality clay that does not have proper plasticity will crack sooner or later and will not be able to hold dirty groundwater. And excessively wet soil will provoke heaving deformation in the castle, even from the best clay. Indeed, in winter, excess moisture will turn into ice, which will swell the clay bedding, violating the tightness of the castle.

Is it worth the risk, paying attention only to the cheapness of the arrangement, but not to the quality of the insulating layer? And is a clay castle needed for a well at all, taking into account the shortcomings voiced. It's up to you.

The price of the blind area is comparable to the cost of arranging the castle. For construction, we need a reliable waterproofing film pressed against the ring in a ballast way - sand bedding. That is, in addition to paying diggers, you will have to fork out for film and, possibly, sand.

However, despite some high cost, this version of waterproofing has very enviable advantages, namely:

• High speed arrangement . After all, immediately after the completion of the construction of the well in the zone of the second ring, only the blind area is mounted - the clay castle can be installed only after two or three years, when the soil surrounding the mine is finally compacted.
• Almost absolute reliability . No matter how the soil swells, the membrane will not let a single milliliter of dirty liquid into the mine. And no reference to plasticity - for sand, this parameter is completely unimportant.

In a word, if you value reliability, get ready for additional expenses.

How to make a clay castle?

Work on the arrangement of the clay castle should begin only after the shrinkage of the soil - after 2-3 years from the moment the construction of the well was completed. To form a waterproofing bedding, you will need washed clay or greasy loam in a volume of up to 5 cubic meters. After all, the depth of the clay castle of the well, according to sanitary standards, cannot be less than 200 cm, and the thickness - the distance from the walls of the shaft to the edge of the pit - 50 cm.

The construction of the castle itself is as follows:

The quality of the castle depends on the efforts of the person kneading the layer of clay. The more thoroughly you wash it, the more reliable the waterproofing will be. Therefore, before filling the pit, the clay is crushed in small concrete mixers, abundantly wetting with water, or mixed with construction mixers.

How to equip a soft blind area?

The construction of the blind area begins after the installation of the rings is completed.

To form it, you will need the following consumables:

• Sand - 2-3 cubic meters. It can be obtained while digging a well shaft.
• Polyethylene film or polymer coating for waterproofing pools 150 cm wide and up to 500 cm long.
• Metal tape - width 5 cm, length 300-350 cm.
• Self-tapping screws and dowels.