Two geologies in one hole
Basalt clay formed 11 thousand to 2.5 million years ago, over Ordovician clay and weathered rock formed about 480 million years ago.
Soil testing in Ballarat
Soil tests for building permits, from $550 incl. GST.
A soil site classification report to AS 2870 for a new home, extension, shed or pool. Tested by qualified staff who know soils and footing design, and backed by our professional indemnity and public liability insurance.
Reports from, incl. GST$550
Less when combined with a feature survey, land capability assessment or bushfire assessment.
Business days8 to 10
From acceptance to report, for most sites.
Express2 days
Subject to availability.
Ballarat ground.
Ballarat has young volcanic basalt clay in some suburbs and ancient Ordovician clay and rock in others, with gold-rush mine shafts and mullock through both, and the change can happen within a single site. Our reports draw on our project history across Ballarat, historical aerial photos and geological mapping, so fill, old mine workings and reactive clay are found before your footings are designed.
Gold-rush workings
Mine shafts, mullock and deep fill turn up under Ballarat houses and building blocks. We dug into one house's cracking and found a mine shaft.
Fill four metres deep
Fill placed over natural soil makes a site Class P. We have found fill four metres deep under one house.
What your site class means
Clay acts like a sponge. It shrinks when it dries and swells when it gets wet. How much your soil moves with normal seasonal moisture changes sets the class, and the class sets the footing design.
Every report gives a site class to AS 2870
ANon-reactive
SSlightly reactive
MModerately reactive
H1Highly reactive
H2Very highly reactive
EExtremely reactive
PProblem site
A
Most sand and rock sites, with little or no ground movement from moisture changes.
S
Slightly reactive clay sites, which may experience only slight ground movement.
M
Moderately reactive clay or silt sites, which may experience moderate ground movement.
H1
Highly reactive clay sites, which may experience high ground movement.
H2
Highly reactive clay sites, which may experience very high ground movement.
E
Extremely reactive sites, which may experience extreme ground movement.
P
Sites that cannot be given a normal class, because of fill, abnormal moisture from trees, buildings or drainage, soft or collapsing soils, past mining or slope instability.
Class P
Most reports come back Class P. That is normal.
Class P does not mean a site without solutions. AS 2870 requires it whenever a site's soil is not in its natural state, and few house blocks are. Street trees and subdivision fill in new estates, or the existing house on a renovation, are usually enough. Most Class P sites need solutions familiar to most builders, and an engineer designs the footings to suit.
Common reasons for Class P
- Trees taking moisture from the clay
- An existing or former building, tree or dam
- Leaking services, septic tanks or poor drainage
- Fill placed over natural soil
- Mine shafts or mullock
- Soft or saturated soils
- Steep slopes prone to slipping
What is in our report
Clear enough for an owner, detailed enough for the engineer who designs your footings. In most cases the person who tests your site also designs or helps design your footings, so nothing is lost between the report and the drawings.
Executive summary
Your site class and the site constraints, explained briefly and clearly.
Site history
Historical aerial photos of your site, including before and after subdivision, plus Geovic, Council, subdivision and archive records where they help.
Geology
An excerpt of the geological map of Victoria locating your site.
Founding conditions table
The recommended foundation soil, bearing capacity, and minimum and typical founding depths for each footing type.
Recommendations for your engineer
Design responses to the site constraints, for example an H1 equivalent slab on a moderately reactive site affected by trees, or a fully suspended slab on bored piers where there is fill or mining.
How to book a soil test
Send us the address and any plans or sketches.
We confirm the price and a date.
We drill and test on site.
Most reports are issued within 8 to 10 business days of acceptance.
Save by booking together
Combining site services in one visit costs less than booking them separately.
Site feature planLand capability assessmentBushfire Attack Level assessmentBushfire management assessment
Larger buildings, structures and roads need a geotechnical investigation. We also do land capability assessments, contaminated site assessments and salinity management assessments. Land and site reports
Book a soil testSoil report questions
Book your soil test.
Call during business hours, or send the details and a few photos and we will be in touch to talk it through.
Mon to Fri, 9am to 5pm
mail@mcclellands.com.au
201 Armstrong St North, Soldiers Hill, Ballarat VIC 3350