How can I fix this backyard drainage issue?
by Nikita
+8
My backyard slopes towards my house & he water tends to sit at the bottom of the slope. I'm worried about future damage to my patio & concrete slab foundation. I'm looking for a solution to that is not going to cost too much.
You can install what’s known as a French Drain (see pic below). You can run it out to the front yard. These are not very expensive but they require a lot of labor. See article below for instructions on how to do the job.
https://www.hgtv.com/remodel/outdoors/how-to-install-french-drains
3 choices to help you https://www.tlake.com/blog/french-drain-vs.-trench-drain-vs.-swale
Could drainage tiles work ? Route them around your patio.
Check what your neighbors solutions are
Very steep slope from the back of the yard. To break the run off, you might create a long flower bed running across the end of the patio and on across the yard as far as you need. Then any water would go into the bed for the plants. Failing that, a French drain would do the trick but more work.
Hi Nikita,
I would do a small arched retaining wall and a small gravel patio. It could be done by-hand by removing the lawn, levelling the area, laying down landscape fabric and brining the gravel(crusher chip) in by wheelbarrow.
I would do just a single row of blocks with a cap for the wall as it doesn't need to be very high. The blocks can be bought at Homedepot etc.
I drew a little sketch below, I'm sure it's not to scale but you get the idea.
The flat gravel will help the water soak in to the ground better before it gets to the house.
It might not be the cheapest option, but it should serve you well in the long run.
best of luck!
Jana
As you are up against gravity with any scenario, unfortunately, no solution that will be effective and have durability will be inexpensive.
To protect your home and to maintain the value of the property though, it might be a worthwhile investment.
Hi. Put in a dry river bed from where the water is pooling in the picture to around the side of the house. This will direct the water flow to carry it down to the street. Plant cannas and other plants that can stand in water for a period of time without root rot. Not only attractive, this would be a simple solution. Happy DIY'ing!
Your least expensive fix requires serious digging. You have to collect the water and divert it around your house. You can create a trench, line it with plastic sheeting, lay a pipe with holes cut in the sides, cover with landscape fabric and the fill in the trench with stones. You can do this and make it look like part of a flower bed by planting some small shrubs between the house and the trench and continuing the stones under the shrubs. At the end of the collecting pipe you need to make a drain that will take the water around the house. If you go this route consider running your downspouts into the drainage pipes. The more water you can get away from your foundation the better.
Just buy some sleeved perforated corrugated pipe ($1/ft, 50ft rolls & 100ft rolls at Lowe’s or Home Depot). You need about 1 yard of 57 stone per 100ft as well (call local mulch/rock supplier). Trench that perforated pipe down right where your swale line exists; that’s where all your water is going. You can adapt solid pipe to the perforated pipe once the pipe has sufficient steady flow unless the grade flattens out again somewhere else. Try to get a few inches of stone over the pipe. Minimum topsoil works over the stone works for the grass. It’ll grab. Be careful, you will actually need to over-water the grass directly over the newly installed french drain because it doesn’t stay long under the grass. Once it roots, you’re ok. Happy trenching!