How to Improve Drainage Around Your Home

Buying a home is a thrilling and liberating experience. You now have a space that is yours, giving you full authority to make it into a home that represents who you are. But with homeownership comes great responsibility, and it can be a real learning experience. For instance, you could wake up one morning to steady rainfall and look outside to discover you have a serious drainage problem. Soggy areas on the lawn, flooding in your basement and standing water on your patio are not good situations. What can you do? How do you fix it?

Luckily for you, grading companies in Stanly County, NC know the best ways to improve drainage around your home. Here are some useful suggestions:

• Look for simple fixes: Before taking drastic measures, try a few simple fixes first. Go to the problem area when it’s raining and really survey the situation. All you may need to do to solve your drainage issue is extend your downspout further away from your house, which could stop water from pooling near your foundation.
• Plant a rain garden: Low areas of yards tend to collect and hold onto water. If this is the problem you’re having, a rain garden may be a great option. Rain gardens are designed to catch water, so you’ll want to include water-loving plants. These rain gardens look lovelier than a mud pit and can help solve a good portion of your soggy yard problem.
• Create a landscape water feature: If you feel creative, consider constructing a small creek bed to channel water away from low spots, or that can carry runoff to a rain garden. The right design and landscaping will make your water feature aesthetically pleasing year-round, whether it’s wet or dry.
• Install drainpipes: Low spots are a common issue around many homes. They could have been made during construction or landscaping, or slowly came about due to soil erosion over time. Whatever the reason, your best option to get rid of water from low spots is to install drains and underground pipes. This project will involve digging and measuring to ensure water can drain properly.
• Install a French drain: Another popular drain option is called a French drain. Using buried perforated pipes, this versatile drainage system can disperse water over a large area, but the pipe must be surrounded by materials like gravel that can let water drain through. A properly designed French drain doesn’t need an outlet and can be added to a dry well or used on its own.

Before you head to a home improvement store or start digging, you should take the time to sketch a drainage plan. Draw out the features on your property—including the house, garage, patios, driveways and walkways, streets and anything else—and then use a leveler to determine where your drainage problems are likely located and mark them down on your sketch. Alternatively, you can always call in the professionals to handle the job.

If you are having drainage problems, consult local grading companies in Stanly County, NC for help. Contact the knowledgeable team at Thompson Grading & Hauling, Inc. to learn more about what we can do for you!

Categorised in: Grading Companies

This post was written by Writer