Servicing all of Central and Western Oklahoma since 1993.
When Installing a French Drain as part of a Drainage System, there are many things to consider.
What is the primary source of water coming into the problem drainage area.
Are there secondary sources of water entering the area.
What are they and how many.
How fast does water enter the area and how often.
What are the potential exit points for the water, Where do we want to take the water too. Is there more than one potential exit point to increase drainage capacity.
Does the customer want a Drainage System or a Flood Prevention System and does he understand the difference.
Oklahoma Drainage recently diagnosed a Drainage Problem in South Oklahoma City. The Homeowner had a sump Pump in their basement that was fed from a French Drain outside the Basement Wall.
The French Drain was 14 feet down along the Stem wall of the house. The French Drain Pipe was cheap and had collapsed. We brought in a Mini Excavator and dug up the pipe and replaced it with Durable ADS 4 inch perf/soc French Drain pipe. In the end, we were able to dig up the pipe and replace it.
Next we installed a new exit for the water by installing a curb fitting.
No more flooding in the customers basement. A few weeks later our customer was able to lay carpet in the basement with no problems.
Servicing all of Central and Western Oklahoma since 1993.
French Drain Installation
Oklahoma Drainage and Sprinkler Repair has been diagnosing and solving Drainage Problems since 1993. Water has the ability to get into places around your home where you really don’t want it to be. Some drainage problems are easy to solve. Typically water enters the problem drainage area one way from one source. The really tricky drainage problems occur when water enters the problem drainage area from multiple directions and from multiple sources. Sometimes a secondary water source can’t be seen or identified until the primary water problem source is eliminated.
An example of this occurs when water is running into a problem area in an obvious way over the ground where you can see it.
Simple enough.
A drainage system is installed with a surface drain as the “intake” with drainage pipe running to an exit point. Initially the water drains away and everything looks great. The next day water is back and is all around the surface drain, but below the edge and it hasn’t rained at all, so no additional water ran over the surface of the ground to flood the area.
The primary water source was solved, ( The surface water run off ) but the secondary water source was not. Which was sub-surface water, (ground water) running into the area. A surface drain can’t drain “ground water.” A French Drain should have initially been installed instead of a Surface Drain. A French Drain can drain both Surface Water and Ground Water.
Oklahoma Drainage Services all of Central Oklahoma including
Norman, Moore, Edmond, Yukon, Mustang, Oklahoma City, Midwest City, Del City, Blanchard, Newcastle, Purcell and Chickasha.
Now we are expanding our service area to include: Lawton, Altus, Duncan, Chickasha, Elk City, and all of Western Oklahoma.
Standing water comes from many sources. It causes damage to sidewalks, driveways, and foundations not to mention plants, trees, and grass.
Does the side of your house flood because your neighbor doesn’t have gutters, or does your sidewalk turn into a moat after a heavy rain, or worst of all, is water seeping into your foundation and duct work after a thunderstorm?
These are just a few of the Drainage Problems that Oklahoma Drainage can help with.
We can design a Drainage System to fit your specific needs.
Oklahoma Drainage install many types of Drains to solve many types of problems. French Drains, Surface Drains, Channel Drains, Basement Drains, Trench Drains, Basin Drains, and Sump Pumps are utilized.
- 4 Inch Drainpipe Ready to be covered with dirt in Norman.
Installing Drainage Curb Fitting for a French Drain in South Oklahoma City
FRENCH DRAIN CONNECTED TO GUTTERS
Many different types of Drains can be hooked together by one Drainpipe. The Drainpipe then running to an Exit Point makes up a Drainage System.
One common type of Drain used in a Drainage System is A “French Drain.” Many times a French Drain is installed close to a building foundation or in a low area next to a home or business. This puts the French Drain in close proximity to Gutter Down Spouts.
Rather than have water come off the roof and out the Down Spout and on to the ground below, many times it is much better to tie a Gutter Down Spout Directly into a French Drain or nearby Drainpipe depending on the Drainage System Design.
Connecting The Down Spouts Directly into a French Drain
is much more efficient and causes suction to occur in the French Drain. Connection of Gutter Down Spouts to a French Drain makes the Drainage System work better.
French Drains
can protect your home and property from water damage. Oklahoma Drainage and Sprinkler Repair install a wide variety of Drains in many different places. A Drain or Group of Drains with Drainpipe going to an exit point is a “Drainage System.”
Drainage Systems can be made up of one drain or a combination of many drains. Drainage problems can be very complex. Complex Drainage Problems may require a combination of several different types of drains all inter-connected and working together. Other times the drainage problem may be simple and straight-forward requiring only one drain or several of the same type of drain connected together.
- Cutting The Curb and Installing Curb Fitting with Acrylic Cement
Complex Drainage System
An example of a complex drainage system would be: A French Drain in the back yard connected to a Surface Drain near a flower bed connected to several gutter downspouts, which are connected to a Channel Drain going across a driveway, which is connected to additional Surface Drain in the front yard, which runs to a Curb Fitting that lets all the water drain out on to the street.
A simple Drainage System might consist of a Surface Drain that is connected to a second Surface Drain which runs to a Pop-up Emitter which lets water drain over the curb and into the street. An “Exit Point” is the term used for where all the water leaves the Drainage System.
Things to Think About
Determining the Exit Point is very critical. It is one of the first things we do when diagnosing a Drainage Problem.
Drainage Systems can: 1. Keep water away from foundations — A French Drain is best because it can move Surface Water and Sub-Surface Water (water moving underground) away from the foundation. Many times less experienced companies install Surface Drains to keep water away from foundations. This can be a big mistake. A Surface Drain can’t move or drain Sub-Surface Water.
Surface Drain
Also, A Surface Drain often can’t move enough water fast enough and easily becomes overwhelmed during a heavy rain. A Surface Drain also can’t cover or protect a broad enough area. Surface Drains should be designed in a Drainage System to be located in smaller Drainage Areas moving moderate amounts of water.
Surface Drains look better
than French Drains. If ,”appearance” is more important than Drainage Capacity, Go with the Surface Drain. Just know what you are getting into and what your expectations should be. One side of a foundation alone, can be over 100 feet. A 4 inch or 6 inch French Drain is best when protecting a large area such as a foundation. 2. Keep water away from small or enclosed areas. This might be a low area just through a gate on the side of a house, or the low area between a flowerbed and the wall of a house or standing water on or near a sidewalk or driveway.
These types of Drainage Problems are best served with Surface Drains. A Surface Drain can move water away from a low area that is relatively small. This can occur in yards, flowerbeds, sidewalks and driveways. A surface Drain is designed to move Surface Water away from a problem area to a predetermined exit point.
Surface Drains are available in many sizes. How quickly they remove standing water is usually determined by the size of the pipe that is connected to the drain.
Simply put, a Drainage System is one or a group of underground Drainpipes that take water away from a place that has water standing on it or flowing across it. The water that is in the problem area, can be causing damage or may be inconvenient or both. (Usually Both)
Simple Drainage System
A simple Drainage System is a Drain for the water to enter, a Drainpipe to move the water away from the Drain, and an Exit Point for the water to be released out of the Drainpipe.
Complex Drainage System
Drainage Systems quickly can become more complicated. Considerations must include: How does the water get to the problem area? There may be one or many sources.
Water Sources:
1. It falls from the sky directly
2. Water flows downhill over the surface (surface water)
3. It flows underground under the surface (sub-surface water)
4. Water flows from the edge of a roof ( There may be many roofs near the problem area, neighbors etc.)
5. It flows from a gutter downspout
6. Water flows over the edge of a gutter because the gutter is too small and is clogged
7. It flows up from the ground (seeps and springs are common in Oklahoma)
8. Water flows from a sprinkler system use ( yours or your neighbors)
9. It flows from a leaking pipe ( water mains, water meters, water lines, sprinkler pipes, sprinkler valves) There are other reasons for Drainage Problems, the above reasons are just the most common.
Once Water Sources are Determined, Make a Plan.
You don’t have to be an engineer trying to calculate fluid dynamics. Experience at diagnosing drainage problems helps however. How much water needs to be moved will help determine the type and size of the Surface Drain or French Drain that needs to be installed.
It also helps to determine the size of Drainpipe required for the Drainage System. A good rule to follow is, “If in doubt, install a larger Drain and Drainpipe.” Unused Drainage Capacity is better than property damage caused by a Drain that is overwhelmed by too much water.
For home and small business
use typical materials used are: 6 inch, 9 inch, and 12 inch Surface Drains – 3 inch, 4 inch, and 6 inch Drain Pipes — 3 inch, 4 inch, and 6 inch French Drains —
French Drains move more water than Surface Drains — French Drains move Surface Water and Sub-Surface Water
Surface Drains move Surface Water only Surface Drains look nicer than French Drains in most cases Once the type and number of drains is determined and what size Drainpipe will connect them, an exit point must be selected. (Where is the Drainage System going to take the water to and release it?) The Drainage Curb Fitting is installed when the desired exit point for the French Drain will release the Drainage Water into the Street.
The Drainage Curb Fitting is rectangular in shape and made to be installed through the curb. A small section of Curb is cut out with a concrete saw. The Section is a few inches wider than the Drainage Curb Fitting. We then install new concrete around the curb fitting. Once the concrete has dried, the Drainpipe coming from a French Drain or Surface Drain is connected to the Drainage Curb fitting and then covered with dirt.
The Drainage Pop-Up Emitter is connected to the end of a Drainpipe. It is downhill from a French Drain or a Surface Drain. It is a small release basin with a green pop-up lid. When releasing water, it pops up about an inch to release the water from the French Drain or Surface Drain.
When the Storm Water has moved through the Drainage System and out of the Pop-Up Emitter, the green lid closes back to its original closed position. The emitter is designed to release water out into a yard or down a hill or other desirable Drainage Exit Point where there is no curb.
Drainage System installation and design
is a big part of our business. Does your sidewalk turn into a moat after a hard rain? Does part of your yard look like a pond after a thunderstorm? Worst of all, are you experiencing concrete deterioration to your foundation, sidewalk, or driveway. We can design a Drainage System to solve your Drainage Problems.
Our Drainage Systems can be simple or complex. We utilize, French Drains, Surface Drains, Channel Drains, Basin Drains, Basement Drains, Trench Drains, and Sump Pumps. Estimates are free!
Just what is a “French Drain?” Many times, people incorrectly use the phrase, “French Drain,” to apply to many different types of Drains that could be used in a Drainage System. The term is widely used and many times incorrectly connected to “Surface Drains,” or “Channel Drains.”
A Surface Drain has a grate that sits on top of a basin. The basin is underground. A Drainpipe is connected underground to an outlet on the Drain Basin. Stormwater Drains through the grate into the Drain Basin. Once in the Drain Basin, water travels out of the basin through a Drainpipe. The Storm-Water continues downhill in an underground Drainpipe to an exit point.
A Surface Drain may come in many different shapes or sizes. It is a Drain Basin with a Drain Grate on top and a Drainpipe connected on the side. The Drain Grate may be round or square.
is a type of Surface Drain, and many times is installed in concrete across sidewalks or driveways. It is long and narrow with a grate on top.
Patio Channel Drain Installation in Edmond
A French Drain is completely different from a Surface Drain. A basic French Drain consists of a Perforated Drainpipe in the bottom of a trench. A Trench Liner is sometimes used depending on the Drainage System Design and the type of soil. The Drainpipe should have a neoprene sock around the Perforated Drainpipe. This is to ensure that the Drainpipe does not become clogged.
- 6 Inch French Drain Installation
A trench is dug that is slightly wider than the French Drainpipe that is being used. There are several sizes. Three Inch, Four Inch, and Six Inch are the most common sizes of French drainpipe. The dirt that is taken out to make the trench is hauled away. It is replaced by some type of small stone or gravel depending on what is desired or available. I prefer crushed 1 inch lime stone. It is the most economical option in my area. Pea Gravel or some other type of small stone can work just as well. The limestone or gravel is placed in the trench on top of the perforated Drainpipe and filled all the way to the surface (ground level).
In some cases where
the French Drain needs to be deep or is being placed in sandy soil, a special trench liner must be placed in the trench before the perforated Drainpipe or the Gravel are installed. This helps maintain the integrity of the trench over time. It also increases the cost of the French Drain and the amount of time to install it. I install a trench liner in a French Drain every time.
A French Drain is designed to handle a large volume of water and cover a large area. The Drain is anyplace the trench goes. It has many applications and can be used in many situations. It can be installed by itself or incorporated into a Drainage System with Surface Drains or Gutter Downspouts connected to it.
The main downfall
of a French Drain is that they, for the most part aren’t very pretty. They don’t look very nice in a yard once they are completed.
Depending on the area the
French Drain is installed and the type of grass around the
French Drain, will dictate whether grass grows over the limestone. Grass can grow up and through the gravel in the
French Drain over time eventually covering the gravel. This is OK. It won’t have a measurable effect on the performance of the
drain.
DONT COVER THE GRAVEL IN THE FRENCH DRAIN WITH DIRT.
THE FRENCH DRAIN WON’T WORK IF THE TRENCH IS CLOGGED WITH DIRT. DON’T EVEN INSTALL IT IF YOU ARE GOING TO COVER IT UP WITH DIRT.
DECORATIVE STONE CAN BE USED TO COVER A FRENCH DRAIN AND THEY LOOK GREAT AND LAST A LIFETIME.
