RADON GAS

No verification required at moment, all other

gas protection systems do.

Min. 0.4 microns

2000g DPM = 0.5 Microns

BS 8485
CIRIA C735 (N1) Verification?

Independent Gas Membrane Validation And Verification BS8485 and CIRIA 735 (geoshield.co.uk)

Birmingham Office
One Victoria Square
Birmingham
B1 1BD
+44 (0)121 7261340
info@geoshield.co.uk
Visqueen Building Products
- BS 8485:2007 Summary
for the characterisation and remediation of gas contaminated
land in affected developments
Background

The hazards of ground gases must be taken into account when designing and constructing new
developments. Ground gas can be drawn into a building by the pressure difference that exists between
the inside and outside of the building (warm indoor air is less dense than cold outdoor air).
Ground gases can enter buildings through:

1. Cracks in solid floors

2. Construction joints
3. Cracks in walls below ground
4. Gaps in suspended concrete or timber floor
5. Gaps around service pipes
6. Cavities in walls
7. Soil and vent pipes

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Common ground gases and contaminates
Hydrocarbons
Hydrocarbons can be highly toxic and are a
derivative of the petrochemical industry.
Hydrocarbons are prevalent in areas such as
disused petrol stations and post industrial sites.
Most hydrocarbons are carcinogenic and
potentially flammable.

Methane
An odourless flammable gas that is explosive
when released to the atmosphere at levels as
low as 5% and exposed to a source of ignition.
Methane is formed wherever there is below-ground
degradation of organic substances e.g. landfill
sites, sewage treatment areas, mining localities
and peat bogs.

Carbon Dioxide
Carbon Dioxide is a colourless, odourless gas that
in high concentrations can result in asphyxiation.
The gas is formed by the oxidation of carbon
compounds such as in landfill sites. When carbon
dioxide levels reach concentrations of 3%
symptoms of headaches and shortness of breath
can occur, becoming severe at 5%, with loss of
consciousness at 10%. It’s potentially fatal at
concentrations of 22% and above.

Radon
Radon is a naturally occurring radioactive gas
that is odourless and colourless. It is formed
where uranium and radium are present. It migrates
into any building that is built over the source. If it
accumulates in a building at unacceptably high
concentrations it will increase the potential risk of
the occupants developing lung cancer.

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BS 8485:2007 Code of Practice
for the characterisation and remediation of gas
contaminated land in affected developments

This standard is intended to provide a framework that will allow designers to judge the adequacy of
ground gas and related site investigation data, providing an approach to determining appropriate
ground gas parameters. This can be used to identify a range of possible construction solutions that will
mitigate the presence of ground gas on a development site.

The standard is broken down into the following key elements:

1. Site categorisation and investigation

2. Risk assessment objective – determining the gas flow rate
3. Point scoring mechanism by application
4. Solutions: Protection element/system rating

1. Site categorisation and investigation

A desk study should provide sufficient information on sources, pathways and receptors for these to
be investigated. Once any potential gases have been identified a full ground gas investigation must
be undertaken using borehole testing and analysis.

2. Risk assessment objective – Determining the gas flow rate

This sets out how the data collected during site monitoring visits that measure hazardous gas
emissions from specific monitoring points can be assessed and used to arrive at one value that
represents the whole site (or set of values if a large site would be best split up into zones). After
determining the gas flow rate it is then characterised in the table below:

Table 1.

Site characteristic
Characteristic Hazard
hazardous gas flow rate, Additional factors
gas situation potential
Qhgs lh–1
1 Very low <0.07 Typically ≤1% methane concentration and ≤5% carbon
dioxide concentration (otherwise consider an increased
characteristic gas regime)
2 Low ≥ 0.07, <0.7 Typical measured flow rate <70 l/h (otherwise
consider an increased characteristic gas regime)
3 Moderate ≥ 0.7, <3.5

4 Moderate to ≥ 3.5, <15

high
5 High ≥ 15, <70

6 Very high ≥70

NOTE: The side characteristic hazardous gas flow rate is synonymous with the “gas screening value” in
CIRIA C665 and NHBC Report no.: 10627-R01 (04) [3].

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BS 8485:2007 Summary

3. Point scoring mechanism by application

Having ascertained the characteristic gas situation - including the equivalent NHBC traffic light risk
factor – a point scoring mechanism is used to match the application such as a commercial building
with the gas protection system solution. A guidance value for the required gas protection in the
range 0 to 7 should be obtained from Table 2 below. For example a gas characteristic situation 3 for
a public building requires at least 3 points.

Table 2.

Required gas protection

Characteristic NHBC
gas situation traffic light Non-managed property,
Commercial
Very low e.g. Industrial
Public building buildings
private housing buildings

1 Green 0 0 0 0
2 Amber 1 3 3 2 1 C)
3 Amber 2 4 3 2 2

4 4 3
5 D)
5 Red 6 D) 5 4
6 E)
6 7 6

NOTE Traffic light indications are taken from NHBC Report no.: 10627-R01 (04) [3] and are mainly applicable
to low-rise residential housing. These are for comparative purposes but the boundaries between the traffic light
indications and CS values do not coincide.

4. Solutions: Protection element/system rating

Having determined the required points from table 2, as the final part of the process the appropriate
gas protection measures should be selected for the building. A combination of ventilation and/or
barrier systems should be chosen from Table 3 to meet that requirement using the point scoring
mechanism.

There are a great number of existing designs and component elements available in the current
market (and others being developed constantly); table 3 provides a guide to the relative
performance of the various types of designs and systems available today.
Please see Table 3 on following page.

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BS 8485:2007 Summary

Table 3.
Protection Element/ System Score Comments
a) Venting/dilution (see Annex A)
Passive sub floor ventilation (venting Very good 2.5 Ventilation performance in accordance with Annex A.
layer can be a clear void or formed performance
using gravel, geocomposites,
polystyrene void formers, etc.) Good 1 If passive ventilation is poor this is generally unaccept-
performance able and some form of active system will be required.

Subfloor ventilation with active
abstraction/pressurization (venting
layer can be a clear void or formed
using gravel, geocomposites,
polystyrene void formers, etc.)
2.5 There have to be robust management systems in place
to ensure the continued maintenance of any ventilation
system. Active ventilation can always be designed
to meet good performance. Mechanically assisted
systems come in two main forms: extraction and positive
pressurization.

Ventilated car park (basement or 4 Assumes car park is vented to deal with car exhaust
undercroft) fumes, designed to Building Regulations Document F [5]
and IStructE guidance [6].
b) Barriers
Floor slabs 0 It is good practice to install ventilation in all foundation
Block and beam floor slab systems to effect pressure relief as a minimum.
Reinforced concrete ground bearing floor slab 0.5
Breaches in floor slabs such as joints have to be
Reinforced concrete ground bearing foundation raft with 1.5 effectively sealed against gas ingress in order to
limited service penetrations that are cast into slab maintain these performances.

Reinforced concrete cast in situ suspended slab with 1.5

minimal service penetrations and water bars around all
slab penetrations and at joints

Fully tanked basement 2

c) Membranes
Taped and sealed membrane to reasonable levels of 0.5 The performance of membranes is heavily dependent
workmanship/in line with current good practice with on the quality and design of the installation, resistance
validation to damage after installation, and the integrity of joints.

Proprietary gas resistant membrane to reasonable 1

levels of workmanship/in line with current good practice
under independent inspection

Proprietary gas resistant membrane installed to 2

reasonable levels of workmanship/in line with current
good practice under CQA with integrity testing and
independent validation.
d) Monitoring and detection (not applicable to non-managed property, or in isolation)
Intermittent monitoring using 0.5 Where fitted, permanent monitoring systems ought to
hand held equipment be installed in the underfloor venting/dilution system
in the first instance but can also be provided within the
Permanent monitoring and alarm Installed in the 2 occupied space as a fail safe.
system underfloor venting /
dilution system
Installed in the
building 1

e) Pathway intervention
Pathway intervention — This can consist of site protection
measures for off-site or on-site sources

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Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document the following apply.
NOTE: These terms are not to be confused with similar terms in other referenced documents.

Ground gas
potentially hazardous gas, generated below ground
NOTE: The most common ground gases are methane and carbon dioxide.

Measured flow rate

q
total gas flow from a borehole measured in volume per unit time (typically litres per hour)

Measured hazardous gas concentration

Chg
concentration of a specific hazardous gas measured as a percentage of
the total gas volume from a borehole

Calculated hazardous gas flow rate

Qhg
calculated flow rate of a specific hazardous gas from a borehole
reading, i.e.

Chg
Qhg = q
100

Permission to reproduce extracts from BS 8485:2007 is granted by BSI Standards Limited (BSI).
No other use of this material is permitted. The complete British Standard can be purchased from the
BSI online shop: BS 8485:2007 - Code of practice for the characterization and remediation from ground
gas in affected developments – BSI British Standards.

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