How to manage backyard drainage with a simple DIY dry well
In short: Persistent backyard puddles can threaten your home's foundation. By using basic materials like crushed stone and PVC, you can redirect rainwater into a subterranean reservoir. This method effectively manages runoff and protects your landscape from water damage by directing water away from the house through a carefully engineered drainage system.
A dry well acts as a subterranean collection point, designed to capture excess water and allow it to slowly seep into the ground. According to mason Mark McCullough of Ask This Old House, the process begins with a critical safety step: contacting a local utility locating service to mark any underground lines before any digging commences.
The structural design relies on a specific hierarchy of piping and depth. The system uses solid PVC pipe near the house to transport water away, transitioning to a 4-inch perforated PVC pipe as it approaches the well itself. The trench for this piping should be roughly 8 to 10 inches deep. To prevent water from leaching back toward the residence, the trench should become slightly wider and deeper as it nears the well.
The well itself requires a significant excavation, typically about 3 feet deep and 4 feet in diameter. To maintain the system's integrity and prevent soil from clogging the drainage area, the hole and the trench must be lined with landscape fabric. This fabric is essential for containing the crushed stone, which is poured into the hole one wheelbarrow-full at a time and tamped down with a hand tamper.
The final stage involves connecting the pipes using PVC glue and couplings, including an elbow to catch rainwater from the gutter. Once the stone fills the hole and trench up to the surface, the landscape fabric is folded over the stone, and the original top layer of soil and grass—which should be saved on a tarp during the initial digging—is replaced to restore the landscape.
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- Summary by Intellect · source: How to Build a Simple Dry Well | Ask This Old House
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