When hiring a contractor many times a customer will get conflicting advice as to which type of drainage system is required at their property.  The pricing can range greatly depending on the type of system.   Some of the names you will hear when discussing drainage systems are french drain, catch basins, sump pump, and dry river beds.  We will discuss all of them below

French Drain Systems

French drain, this name gets throw around more then any other.  This is just another name for a drain field.  Sometimes this is just as simple as a bag of rocks wrapped in a geotextile. Other times it can resemble a septic drain field with infiltrator chambers. Another variation is to use the drain field in reverse to desaturate the area around a foundation.  This method wicks the moisture out of the soil and pipes it to a lower location.  Typically drain fields are to be avoided as they reach capacity when hurricanes come and flooding occurs.  Conversely the reverse french drain can be a very effective drainage system

Catch Basins Drainage Systems

Catch basins are the simplest system.  Typically these are the most installed type of system.  Sometimes attached to gutters or a swale around a drain box this is one of the best ways to remove excessive water from your property.  Installing a house and a large driveway reduces the amount of square feet that is available for water to peculate into the soil. therefore installing catch basins and attaching gutter spouts to drainage piping is a sure way to allievate flooding issues.  These systems can be used with a dry well sump pump or via gravity

Sump Pumps Drainage Systems

Sump pumps by far are the last resort for drainage solutions. power loss, pump failure, maintenance and clogging are just a few of some of the issues that will need to be addressed yearly when owning this type of system.  None the less when its necessary installing a sump pump system properly can increase the life of your pump and reduce the maintenance be exponents. We will be writing an article just about sump pump installation soon.

Dry River Bed Drainage Systems

Dry river beds require a complete grading of the property.  Basically it is the creation of a channel on a property in which the water naturally falls to and then heads out to the street.   Dry river beds are extremely effective as they don’t clog and are easy to maintain.  typically large and small rocks are used to reduce erosion and as well to increase the maintainability.  Dry river beds can look very interesting as well.

Make sure you gain a very good understanding of your drainage issue and the potential solutions. A good drainage contractor will take the time to educate their clients.  Any questions please call us!