Replies

1. 
   Guest_ | Nov 27, 1999 04:08am | #1

   *
   dig a hole About 4' in diamiter about 3' deep. Run the drain line into the hole jusst below the grass. Fill the bottom with hollow concrete block on their side up 4 or 4 layers & top it all with gravel. I don't put grass back over them if I have a choice. I leave a gravel circle with edging & plant bushes around it to help hide it. If you can have nothing showing then plant grass but beware it could easily wash out or back up in the lines.

2. 
   Dirk | Nov 28, 1999 12:58am | #2

   *
   I have a little different take. I am filling in the cisterns next to the foundation on my old house. I plan to but a fiberglass septic tank and bury it below the frost line. The tanks are only a couple hundred dollars at the local farm supply store.

1. 
   Shennes | Nov 29, 1999 08:37pm | #3

   *Thanks for the responses. There appears to be two schools of thought: open vs. container leach fields. Are there any advantages you know of to drain to a container? I thought silt buildup might be minimized w/ one, but am not sure.

3. 
   Guest_ | Nov 30, 1999 07:33am | #4

   *
   Dirk,

   how are you planning for the water to escape?

1. 
   Guest_ | Nov 30, 1999 07:49am | #5

   *Clay soil, flat lot, foundation drainage...you need some soils engineering.Perc test...or hire a LOCAL knowledgeable excavation contractor to put in some galleys and crushed stone, but if you can't drain to daylight, just when you need this DRYWELL, it's going to be a WET well, why should it be any dryer than your basement. Where is the watertable.Get some LOCAL knowledge. Start at the hardware store, or your engineer friend at church.

4. 
   Dirk | Dec 01, 1999 12:10am | #6

   *
   Rob, Escape? Hmmmmmmm

   LOL, j/k

   Actually, I am doing it two different ways. On one I plan to place gravel in the hole first. I am hoping that by capturing the water in the tank it will give the ground enough time to dry out enough to absorb the collected water. I will make sure there are enough ways for the water to get out of the tank.

   Second, I am placing a tank near a utility pad I am placing on the back corner of the house where the electric comes in, A/C compressors sit, etc. On this one I plan to hook up a pump to use the water for lawn, plants, etc. Our water/sewer rates are very high and really jump in the summer.

   My downstairs bathroom is located on the old back porch which I recently found out has a cistern under it. I am taking the cistern out and toying with adding to the basement under the old porch/bathroom to put a bathroom down there. My foundation comes 3 ft above ground level so since I have to pour footers anyway its a "As long as Im doing it..." scenario.

   I have an old clay perimeter tile that the downspouts could be diverted into when the cisterns were full. That is an option too, but Im not sure where it goes and dont want to count on it. Either way, I want to use the water.

1. 
   R_ | Dec 09, 1999 08:24am | #7

   *My experience with drywells have spanned from digging a pit filled with gravel and the sides lined with landscape fabric to farm type tanks buried, and surrounded with crushed stone and fabric to prevent the silt from clogging the tank.The risk with digging a drywell is the chance of it clogging up within the next 7-10 years.You need to figure out perc. rate and check your rain fall for your locality. Her in Mass. we use 3 inches/hour (max 1 hr rain)There is a company called Flowell that I've dealt with. Their system is based on stackable 50 gallon light weight plastic tanks with all the accessories. Grossmans and Lowes carry them. They are probable online, but I don't have the site. Flo-Well Tel# 1-800-356-9935. They can also help you with figuring out your perc. needs and tankn sizing.I also use the flexible drain pipe, with no perforations.With plenty of pitch away from the house. Put the tank or drywell below frost line.Good Luck!

1. 
   Eric_Mueller | Jan 05, 2000 08:45am | #8

   *I put 3 drywells around my place for gutter and water softener drainage and they work great. The soil is clay loam, but I dug down 11' to sandy soil. I then piled large rocks in the hole until they were about 4' from the surface. I they purchased empty plastic 55 gal. drums and drilled a whole bunch of 3/16" holes in them. You can get these drums from the local car wash. They buy their soap in these thing and, in my case, were more than happy to get rid of them for $5.00 each. I placed the drums on top of the rocks and filled around it with pea stone. I then routed the runoff water through the lid and covered the whole mess with about 12" of soil. I marked the spot with a survey iron so that every 5 years or so I can open it up and clean out any junk that's accumlated. I just opened one up this fall (after 5 years) and there was nothing at all in there. I seems to work, but the key was digging down to permiable soil.

5. 
   Shennes | Jan 05, 2000 08:45am | #9

   *
   Does anyone have any advice on how to go about building a drywell? I need to route gutter discharge & foundation drainage (4" pipe) away from the house, but I have a flat lot (can't go to daylight) and clay soil which perc's poorly. Any help on the specifics (re: container or open, size, fill mat'l, methods to lessen silting, etc.) would be much appreciated.