Outdoor Drainage - French Drain

I have a question regarding the side yard that we have. It is draining towards the house and obviously that is NOT good! We had a few companies come out and give us an estimate, and its crazy how much they want to charge us for this project! I looked into it and figured I could do it for a lot less.

So this is what I wanted to do. Put in a French Drain. I have pictures that is current and a hand drawn estimate of what I want it to look like.

I want to put in a pipe that is perforated (with a sock over it) right underneath the gutters that go along the side of the house. On top of (and a little underneath) utilizing River Bed rocks (one inch length). I was thinking about connecting the downspouts to go down and into the pipe as well. This way I can have the water going away from the house in 2 directions, 1 just going away, and the other on a little slope to the backyard. So from the house to the pipe itself, dig a few inches down, place black plastic towards the pipe, and then have the pipe there. (which will be about 2 feet down) Underneath the pipe place a few stones and then cover the pipe with stones and continue having a few more inches out of stone (up to another foot or so). As I said before, having the downspouts connected to the drain should help keep unwanted water away as well.

So am I missing anything? Or does this sound do-able? Any help at all would be greatly appreciated! Thanks









Click here for the photo gallery with a few more photos

Hi I dont have any advice but will be interested to see what the others say. I will be doing something similar to my side yard. Oh you might try shrinking your pics and they might work here

Bad idea to connect a perforated pipe system to a downspout. - The water will immediately come off the roof into the downspout very quickly and flood the preforated pipe. The pipe can then discharge water into the surrounding soil around your house.

Holes in pipes work in both directions. Slope on a perforated pipe is usually unimportant and that is why they are usually installed level. You use a non-perforated pipe on a slope to carry water away.

Didn't think of it that way.. maybe only in the backyard will I connect the downspout. But the front yard will just have to stay the way it is, or devise another idea!

*Got the pictures to work by uploading them to the website it self, then linking to them*

It doesn't look, from the pictures, that its sloping toward the house. If it is, it isn't significant.

What is the issue? Water in the basement?

I wouldn't go to all the trouble of a french drain just yet. Just build a swale. A swale is a low spot. build it close to the property line and extend it so water can run out to the street or far away from the house. This could be done with just a shovel (and a sledge to break up the concrete path). If you wanted to go all he man you could maybe rent a small bobcat for a couple of hours.

Remember call before you dig. You have a gas line that may be in the way.

If it were me - I would combine the grade fix with a new walkway. Maybe some nice pavers. You need to do grading work for that anyway. If you can extend your downspouts underground, with solid pipe, to daylight. You will also do wonders.

If you want to get some prices - Talk to a landscaper, not a water mitigation guy, I'll bet you beat the prices you have significantly and also get something nicer.

Ask about when and how to use catch basins to turn corners or to catch the water from the downspouts.