Building a pit. A good idea or not

[1980escort]

I'm currently renting an old cattle shed for working on my car, the front half is concrete which I'm using but the back half is earth and i was thinking of concreting the earth bit but its lower than the front so i was thinking of digging a pit in so i could work under the car while standing up. Installing a ramp isnt a option as the roof is too low at the rear and its not in the best condition so I'm not keen to move the couples up to gain enough hight.
So what is the opinion of my fellow retroriders of installing and using a pit?

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[dodgerover]

Well thought out and constructed pits are fine, give thought to lighting, drainage and ventilation and maybe install power points, airline connections etc

[composimmonite]

Ensure you have decent escape at both ends so if something goes wrong you aren't trapped.

[1980escort]

Ive plenty of space so size isnt an issue i was thinking 4m long would that be an ok length? Also how wide and deep should it be? Lights and sockets arnt an issue being a sparky lol

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[colnerov]

HI, I have worked in pits and they are OK to a point. I used to work for a local bus and coach company, in the old garage they were about 4'6" deep and about 3' wide and poorly lit, the new garages pits were 5'6" deep and nearly 6' wide. with old ones you had to stoop to walk under the vehicle but could reach everything, the new one no stooping but had to stand on a box to reach somethings and if you stepped back you could slip off the box. If we had dropped a gearbox with the table jack we couldn't get past it to get out (it was a blind pit so no steps one end) The new one had steps which made working that end of it awkward. Both places had a working area at the end with bench and limited facilities which was adequate for working on anything that was dropped into the pit and along. If you don't have that anything dropped down has to be got up out of it to work on. Usually the pits had water and oil from the vehicles covered in sawdust or granules, not good for wheeling things about and we always seemed to be paddling around in it, so your housekeeping needs to be good. The same goes if in your area the water table is higher than the bottom of the pit you have stop water getting in. Petrol fumes are heavier than air so do you want to be welding? Pits are probably best to have on a sloping site with easy entry and exit at the lower level, beats climbing up and down pit ladders or steps with heavy kit. Personally I prefer working on the flat with the the ability to get the vehicle lifted up even a 12" to 18" is enough for most jobs and is more flexible for all kinds of work be it mechanical or bodywork.

Sorry to ramble on!

Colin

P.S. You post while i was typing. Ideally the pit needs to be long than the vehicle on it so you can get out each end. You also have to decide what percentage of work you do under the middle of the vehicle and does it warrant it.

[mikeymk]

I was just looking to cut a 2ftx2ft trench in my driveway, tramrail it, then make a creeper and put it on the tramrails.

This would enable me to just slide under the car without jacking it up, and could even use the creeper to transport parts from an oil container to an engine.

Basic, but handy, and cheap/easy to build.

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[Ryannn]

Our drive is raised higher than the house so we've done it the other way round! Two runners built out of the back of the drive and you can then either work on the front or back. Got some storage space built into the wall cavity aswell so you can have tools to hand.

I only have one photo, and it's not normally this full!

[fred]

Much fine advice above, AND.... You need to ask whoever you are renting it off if digging a pit would be ok!!

[jules1200]

Make sure it is perfectly & FULLY sealed, as they can be a 'mare' for filling with water.

[retrowrongun]

Filled mine back in for tha above reason mate. , do it properly as its horrible working in a mouldy smelly pit with wet feet

[dennisthemenace]

An inspection pit is very good thing, but; when I built mine fifteen years ago I have had a few problems.. First, the enormous quantity of the soil, second, the skeletons, bottles, pots, etc I've found.. My pit was insulated, and was 1mX5m inside.

[1980escort]

Thankyou all for your responces this is why i love this forum you guys are just brilliant.
I will measure up and see how much digging i will need to do, also theres a pond out the back so might need to dig a test pit to see where the water table is.
Again thankyou for your informative responses

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[dennisthemenace]

If the water level in the soil is too high, better forget it. Will cost more, than a proper jack..
About the digging; as I can remember, I've been digging for a week.. In my avatar, my knees are dirty, cos the picture was taken during that pit digging.. Also, there's a pitch of soil front of the gate, lol..

[colnerov]

Hi, dennisthemenace is right about the amount of soil,His pit produced probably about 6 cu/yd which is a lorry or skip load unless you can lose it around your site. The water table is likely the level of the pond.

Colin

[1980escort]

The reason i was thinking about digging a pit is because inside my shed the front is concrete and it slopes down about half a meter down to the soil so i will have to build up the ground level before i concrete so the whole floor is level so all the soil i dig out wont go to waste lol

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[hardtop]

if you have a water table problem, you can always buy a pit liner, this will keep the water out, fail to see a problem

[hardtop]

if you have a water table problem, you can always buy a pit liner, this will keep the water out, fail to see a problem

[DaveEdge]

I like working in pits myself, easy access, visibility and reach.

If you're doing it properly to last you want a good level of subgrade and base with a car etc going on, you don't want it cracking.
Then you want a good 150mm thickness for your concrete depending on what you're using it for.

Not trying to teach you to suck eggs but if you just bodge it, you're gonna regret doing it and rather than a help it could turn into a hindrance and waste of time bud, do it right imo.

Well worth doing in my opinion though.

[TurboDieselWeasel]

Ventilation & enough room for escapeing!! Just last year there was a report of of guy who'd burned to death in his (home build) pit. Leaking fuel line - unnoticed - welding - boom, fire, no way out. Sure that's a unlcky combination of events - but you all know the law Mr. Murphy wrote

I'd also make sure that the covering is as flat as possible so you can still use it as a normal garage floor.

I've thought about building one myself lately - it's the ideal solution if you don't have enough room to install a lift. and it's probably a bit cheaper, too. The three points I mentioned are my personal main-concerns. Ventilation, escaping and a good cover.

[1980escort]

I was thinking about using standard concrete block on there flat so the walls are 150mm thick and there will be pillars built in on the long lengths for strength with a ladder at each end. Power and lights inside and also a fire extinguser I'm the middle. Also i was thinking about a resessed wooden lid about 2" thick so i can use the space. Just need to dig a test pit now

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