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Level Perimeter Drain-How?

Metaxa | Posted in Construction Techniques on November 24, 2009 04:38am

Just starting our really wet season here and I have had a flood.

10/11 years in the house, the perimeter drains were hydro flushed about 9 years ago with a clean out added at that time. Not an issue until last week despite some real soakers and pretty constant rain all winter x 9 or ten winters.

Long story short, they are full of sand due to being bedded wrong, backfilled wrong and tilted wrong (front of house is higher than back!!!, drains to the front, slowly). We’ve dug out the corner we couldn’t scope and replaced that but we can see the sand in the rest, we can now see how the water flows and we can see the bad install. Hardly any drain rock used as bedding, minimal drain rock on top and no soil barriers at all.

I know how to bed them, what to use, etc. What I don’t know how to do is make them level all around the house. I’ll dig down and make the hole wide enough to work in but do I start around back and just use a level or is there a trick? Surely I don’t simply follow the footer? That would be too easy.

Currently Big O (perf. black corrugated pipe), will replace with the white stuff, lots of drain rock and filter fabric. Our perimeter drains go to the street, into storm drains around these parts.

Thanks for your thoughts.

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  1. fingersandtoes | Nov 24, 2009 04:45am | #1

    Yes follow your footings. You want them so that they are as low as possible. If your footings are not level connect them at the lowest point or make multiple connections where ever there is a low spot.

  2. plumbbill | Nov 24, 2009 04:52am | #2

    As Fingers noted, following the footing is standard.

    BUT no mater what they have to be above the drain pipe that leads to the street.

     

  3. DanH | Nov 24, 2009 05:13am | #3

    Just fill the hole with about 4" of water. That will provide you with a level reference.

    (PS: I'm kidding, sorta.)

    (Actually, a different kind of water level is the way to go. Buy or build a hose-type water level and use that. Mark a level line on the foundation all around, then measure down from that line to the bottom of your hole, aiming for a slight slope toward the front.)

    A strong nation, like a strong person, can afford to be gentle, firm, thoughtful, and restrained. It can afford to extend a helping hand to others. It's a weak nation, like a weak person, that must behave with bluster and boasting and rashness and other signs of insecurity. --Jimmy Carter
    1. User avater
      Metaxa | Nov 24, 2009 06:09am | #4

      Thanks. Nice to have something turn out relatively easy for a change."Just fill the hole with about 4" of water. That will provide you with a level reference."
      Ha!, this time of year there will be water in any hole I dig, for sure.I'm going to disconnect my downspouts and run them away from the house and do this in the spring. Rats...I wanted my "this year's project" to be raising and r&r-ing my shed foundation.Do you sock the PVC pipe or just fabric the gravel/soil interface?

  4. rdesigns | Nov 24, 2009 05:51pm | #5

    With this job, like almost any type of plumbing, whether buried or hung, the hard part is not installing the pipe itself--it's making a place for the pipe that's hard, and that's critical to a successful job.

    Overdig below the bottom of pipe by about 6" or more, and fill with 3/4 crush. Grade this base to the slope you want by directing a laser beam at the desired slope, but have the beam about a foot above the grade. Mark your shovel with a wrap of tape at the same distance above the blade edge. You can now instantly see where you're at by standing the shovel on the grade and seeing where the laser hits.

    Once the grade is set, the rest is easy by comparison.

    During installation, the 3/4 crush base will also provide a water course to allow collected water to drain to the low point where you can dig a temporary sump with a pump to keep everything dry while you work. Afterward, the base will help protect the pipe from sediment by serving as a collector.

    1. fingersandtoes | Nov 25, 2009 07:44am | #6

      "Overdig below the bottom of pipe by about 6" or more, and fill with 3/4 crush."

      Don't you typically run your perimeter drains right next to the footings? Wouldn't you be worried about excavating below them in such close proximity and then leaving a void of crushed gravel that will hold water even when the pipe is empty?

      1. rdesigns | Nov 25, 2009 06:20pm | #7

        You don't dig lower than the bottom of the footing.

         

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