The BELOW Standard for private car galleries

Dry for life

Every gallery is waterproofed to BS 8102:2022 Grade 3, with two independent forms of protection.

Why it matters. Grade 3 accepts no water ingress and no damp areas. Every waterproofing system has a way to fail, so a second one stands behind it. Our waterproofing guide explains how.

Reference: BS 8102:2022 Grade 3. NHBC Standards chapter 5.4 on combined protection.

Two ways in and out

Every gallery has a drive-through car lift and an independent second route out, normally a drive-out ramp.

Why it matters. A lift is a machine. When it is serviced or develops a fault, the cars and the people can still leave.

A lift specified for heavier cars

The car lift is drive-through, and its total load and axle load are stated in writing for heavier cars.

Why it matters. Electric cars are heavier, and older parking standards were written for lighter cars. A standard platform is never accepted. Our residential car lift guide explains the detail.

Reference: EN 14010 covers parking equipment for cars under 2,500 kg and excludes equipment that carries people. ISO 8100-1:2026.

An owner's lift and a protected escape stair

A passenger lift and a protected escape stair bring people down from the house, through an air-lock lobby.

Why it matters. People reach the gallery without walking through car fumes, and smoke can never travel up into the house.

Reference: Approved Document B, Volume 2, paragraph 5.38, on lifts serving basements.

Clean, managed air

Fresh air is filtered and pushed in, fumes are extracted from the car zone, and a pressure cascade keeps each zone clean.

Why it matters. A sealed basement draws air from the easiest path, and that path brings dust, fumes, damp and radon. Our air and climate guide explains the system.

Reference: Approved Document F, Volume 2, paragraphs 1.38 to 1.40.

Humidity held for the collection

Humidity is held within a steady band agreed for the collection, with a spare dehumidifier in reserve.

Why it matters. Damp harms metal, leather and electrics, and stability matters as much as the level itself.

A fire strategy agreed at concept

The fire strategy is agreed at concept stage with a fire engineer and the client's insurer, with suppression chosen for valuable cars and electric vehicles.

Why it matters. Electric car fires behave differently, and the wrong system can harm the cars it is meant to protect. A pre-action sprinkler system, with pipes kept dry until a fire is confirmed, is our starting point.

Reference: UK government guidance, Covered car parks: fire safety guidance for electric vehicles (2023). BS EN 12845.

Power that never fails

Life safety, pumps, security and climate control stay powered through any cut, by batteries, an uninterruptible supply and a standby generator.

Why it matters. Storms bring floods and power cuts together, and a basement depends on its pumps. Our section on standby power explains the layers.

Reference: BS 5839-1:2025 for fire alarm standby. BS 5266-1 for emergency lighting.

Ten layers of security, designed with the insurer

Security is designed in ten layers, from the estate edge to the car, with the client's specialist insurer from the first sketch.

Why it matters. Thieves rarely attack the vault door. They use the routes nobody watched. Our car gallery security guide sets out the layers.

Reference: BS EN 50131 for intruder alarms. BS EN 50136 for alarm signalling.

The ground, trees, water and neighbours protected

Ground movement is predicted and monitored against agreed triggers. Trees keep their root protection areas, groundwater is managed under the rules, and any neighbour within the Party Wall Act's distances is served notice.

Why it matters. A gallery is dug into land that was there long before it, and it should leave the trees, the water and the house as sound as it found them. On a country estate the nearest neighbour may be a field away. Where a neighbour's building is close, their walls deserve the same care as our client's.

Reference: Party Wall etc. Act 1996, section 6, for excavation within 3m, or within 6m and below a 45 degree line from a neighbour's foundations. BS 5837:2012 for trees. CIRIA C760 for ground movement. Environment Agency rules on dewatering.

Discretion

Drawings are issued on a need-to-know basis, security detail stays out of public files, and an NDA is offered on request.

Why it matters. Our clients value privacy, and a security layout is only as safe as the people who have seen it.

One lead, from first call to aftercare

One named BELOW lead runs the project from the first call to handover, and BELOW Care maintains every system after it.

Why it matters. Lifts, pumps, alarms and climate systems all need regular care, and waterproofing guarantees often depend on an annual service.

Reference: BS 8102:2022 asks for a maintenance schedule, with the first service at handover.