| French drain and drywell drainage diagrams Step 3 |
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How To Diagram and Layout
your Lawn Drainage System
Step 3
your Lawn Drainage System
Step 3
Please first read Step 2: Drainage System Design
In Step 3 you will find information on:
• How to diagram and layout your drainage system
• Drywell and French drain installation
• Perforated plastic pipe and drainage tile
How To Diagram and Layout a Yard Drainage System – Step 3
It is time to combine all the pieces of drainage information you learned in Step One -
How To Discover Your Water Drainage Problems, and Step 2 - How To Design a
Drainage System. The goal here is to solve your drainage problems with as little
digging and as little cost as possible. To achieve that goal you will design and diagram
a COMPLETE drainage plan, BUT only install one or two parts at a time to see if your
drainage problems can be solved with a PARTIAL drainage system.
Get out your original rainy day sketch and re-draw it nicely on a clean paper. Also
quickly refresh yourself on the information linked to in Step 2 - How To Design a
Drainage System. The links in the following text will take you to instructions on how to
build or install the drainage features.
The example above will help you see how to produce a yard drainage
diagram. We will use this example of a house on a corner lot that has one drainage
problem in the side yard and a separate drainage issue in the front yard by the
sidewalk. In our sketch of this house the Lake Downspout type issues are labeled with
a 1, the Soggy Lawn Swamp areas are labeled with a 2, and the Rainy Rivers created
as the lawn swamps overflowed are labeled with a 3 anywhere they gather, turn, or
end. Note that there was an area next to the driveway where rain water flowing on the
drive quickly builds up and that is labeled as a 1 also.
In the example each 1 is connected by a line to any 2 that it feeds, and each 2 is
connected by line to any 3 that it feeds – this diagram shows the flow of the rain water.
In this diagram we see what the drainage pipe layout would be for a
COMPLETE drain installation. Notice that the locations of the drain lines have been
shifted away from the trees to avoid the root areas. Also notice how all the pipe runs
are straight and how connecting pipes intersect at either 90 or 45 degree angles.
There are only 90 and 45 degree connectors available for rigid plastic drainage pipe.
(Click the links to read why I do not recommend the flexible corrugated perforated
plastic drainage pipe and read why some T connections use 45 degree connectors )
*Remember that although this is a complete drainage system diagram, the goal for
anyone using their own muscle, money, and time is to install as little of the system as
will solve the drainage problem. The next picture shows the first portion of the
drainage system we will install.
The big flashing problem in all these drainage diagrams is the water that builds up
right next to the foundation in the front yard. Upon checking the slope of the ground in
this area we find that it is too flat and therefore needs to be built up to get the water to
drain away from the house. The second noticeable item is the long length of drain
needed to get from the single area 2 in the side yard clear out to the dry area. To
minimize our digging and material costs we want to first try two smaller
drainage projects.
1) In the front yard we will fix the foundation ground slope problem and try installing a
few independent drywells along the path of the proposed French drain to see if they
will handle the Soggy Lawn Swamp problems.
2) In the side yard we will only install half the French drain system initially to see if it
corrects the problem. Some of the soil from digging the drywells and the French drain
in the side yard can be used for building up the foundation ground slope in the front.
Note that the drain pipes servicing the area 1 locations in the side yard include short
vertical pipes that rise straight up from underground to accept a downspout and the
surface drain for area 1 next to the drive.
Click here to go to Step 4 - Results from the Partial Drainage System - to see how the
partial drainage system works out.
It is time to combine all the pieces of drainage information you learned in Step One -
How To Discover Your Water Drainage Problems, and Step 2 - How To Design a
Drainage System. The goal here is to solve your drainage problems with as little
digging and as little cost as possible. To achieve that goal you will design and diagram
a COMPLETE drainage plan, BUT only install one or two parts at a time to see if your
drainage problems can be solved with a PARTIAL drainage system.
Get out your original rainy day sketch and re-draw it nicely on a clean paper. Also
quickly refresh yourself on the information linked to in Step 2 - How To Design a
Drainage System. The links in the following text will take you to instructions on how to
build or install the drainage features.
The example above will help you see how to produce a yard drainage
diagram. We will use this example of a house on a corner lot that has one drainage
problem in the side yard and a separate drainage issue in the front yard by the
sidewalk. In our sketch of this house the Lake Downspout type issues are labeled with
a 1, the Soggy Lawn Swamp areas are labeled with a 2, and the Rainy Rivers created
as the lawn swamps overflowed are labeled with a 3 anywhere they gather, turn, or
end. Note that there was an area next to the driveway where rain water flowing on the
drive quickly builds up and that is labeled as a 1 also.
In the example each 1 is connected by a line to any 2 that it feeds, and each 2 is
connected by line to any 3 that it feeds – this diagram shows the flow of the rain water.
In this diagram we see what the drainage pipe layout would be for a
COMPLETE drain installation. Notice that the locations of the drain lines have been
shifted away from the trees to avoid the root areas. Also notice how all the pipe runs
are straight and how connecting pipes intersect at either 90 or 45 degree angles.
There are only 90 and 45 degree connectors available for rigid plastic drainage pipe.
(Click the links to read why I do not recommend the flexible corrugated perforated
plastic drainage pipe and read why some T connections use 45 degree connectors )
*Remember that although this is a complete drainage system diagram, the goal for
anyone using their own muscle, money, and time is to install as little of the system as
will solve the drainage problem. The next picture shows the first portion of the
drainage system we will install.
The big flashing problem in all these drainage diagrams is the water that builds up
right next to the foundation in the front yard. Upon checking the slope of the ground in
this area we find that it is too flat and therefore needs to be built up to get the water to
drain away from the house. The second noticeable item is the long length of drain
needed to get from the single area 2 in the side yard clear out to the dry area. To
minimize our digging and material costs we want to first try two smaller
drainage projects.
1) In the front yard we will fix the foundation ground slope problem and try installing a
few independent drywells along the path of the proposed French drain to see if they
will handle the Soggy Lawn Swamp problems.
2) In the side yard we will only install half the French drain system initially to see if it
corrects the problem. Some of the soil from digging the drywells and the French drain
in the side yard can be used for building up the foundation ground slope in the front.
Note that the drain pipes servicing the area 1 locations in the side yard include short
vertical pipes that rise straight up from underground to accept a downspout and the
surface drain for area 1 next to the drive.
Click here to go to Step 4 - Results from the Partial Drainage System - to see how the
partial drainage system works out.
| Lawn and Garden Drainage Guide Step 1 Step 2 Step 3 Step 4 Instructions |
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