Good drainage is important to ensure that your home and landscaping stays dry and free of mold. Standing water around your property and landscaping is the fastest way for mold to grow and wood to start rotting. Not to mention, your landscaping will eventually get washed away and you will have unusable areas due to standing water. The best way to eliminate standing water is to have Venyscapes install a French drain or catch basin. French drains are slotted pipes that re direct water to a more desirable area. According to HGTV French drains are one of the best ways to increase drainage in on your property. “French drains are a great way to disperse water over a large area, and they’re used to deal with a large number of drainage issues”

Installing French Drains

The best practice for installing French drains is to use high quality pipes, which allow water to enter or exit through small openings along the pipe. The perforations can be circles or slots. Depending on your terrain PVC pipe can be better that corrugated pipe. There are several steps to installing a French drain. With 15 years of experience and expertise we know the best way to execute the best drainage systems for your property.

Planning For Your French Drain

Undoubtedly one of the most important parts of installing your French drain is planning for it. Generally during our free estimate we will walk your property and determine the areas that are in most need of a drainage system. Secondly, when we arrive to your job to begin we will mark out the areas where the drainage system will run. By locating the appropriate part of the yard you should have the excess water in that area re-routed to a different, more appropriate area of your property. Additionally, we also make sure we choose a location where the flow of water won’t affect neighboring properties. Finally by determining a slightly downward-sloping route your water will soon be away from your property and in a better place.

Trench, Gravel and Fabric Liner

Once we have determined where the best location for your French drain system, we will start to dig. We will dig a trench in your yard for the drain itself. This trench will be about 6″ in diameter and will have a slight slope so that the water will drain properly away from the problem area. Once we have dug the trench will will fill the bottom of the trench with gravel. This gravel will not only help with drainage, but it will also help make sure the pipe doesn’t get clogged by soil and sand. Once we have placed the gravel we will lay a large section of fabric liner. This liner will be larger than the trench. The excess will eventually be used to cover the French drain itself.

Place Drain, Fill and Cover

We are now ready to place the drain itself. With the proper trench size, gravel and fabric liner in place we are ready to place your drain. We will make sure the drain is ready to drain excess water and leave your landscape and home dry. Once everything is placed properly we will backfill the area of the drain and cover it back up with your existing landscape. Whether that is sod, rock, mulch etc. Venyscapes takes pride in our work and we do everything we can to leave your property looking the same as it did before we arrived.

Have a Dry and Beautiful Landscape

Now that you have a functional drain installed by Venyscapes you will be ready to enjoy a dry yard. The most important part of any landscape design is a well drained yard. Now that you have that taken care of maybe you are ready to start dreaming up your ideal landscape design. Be sure to read our previous blog to learn some tips to creating your dream landscape.