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| Member |
No, not the DC swamp but an area in my front side yard that’s about 6’ x 30’ that collects standing water after every rain. Widthwise drainage from the 30 foot dimension is blocked on my side by a hill and the other side by a slight rise that goes up to the neighbor’s driveway a few feet away. The water will slowly drain from the 6’ end that’s slightly lower (the street end), but it can take days for all the water to leave. Any suggestions or prior experience with something like this? I’d like to either get the water to drain faster or use some sort of landscaping, planting or structure to hide the fact that it stays wet so long. There’s very little vertical drop from the wet area to the street so I don’t know how successful a french drain would be (my first thought). Thanks for any advice. | ||
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Member |
A pond comes to mind. Otherwise some sort drain system to dry well. | |||
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| Member |
Maybe some sort of dry sump. Dependant upon depth of standing water, percolation of soil, a sump filled with rock at the low point. Use open top plastic barrels with the buried end and sides perforated with holes for drainage. More than one barrel could be used to increase capacity, and then the the area around the barrels, use plastic garden edging, and make a rock garden out the the space. Wet tolerant plantings could be used as accent. Maybe a statue of a small boy fishing and a bridge for color, or not dependant upon your tastes! Jim | |||
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Not really from Vienna |
Neighborhood gator pond | |||
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| Member |
Plant a few trees on either side. | |||
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Ammoholic |
Do this. If you can't get proper grading to curb, then run to back yard and dump in transition from grass to woods. If that's not possible, French drain to giant pit lined/covered with landscapers cloth, filled with gravel and four or more inches of soil. Link to original video: https://youtu.be/k7goh7iDCx0 Jesse Sic Semper Tyrannis | |||
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Member |
French drains can be pretty effective even if there isn't a whole lot of grade. I think Skins suggestion might be your best bet. Dig a pit at the end that does drain, fill with gravel, and top with soil. Run the French Drain to that pit. That will get the water draining faster at least, and once it does the French Drain should keep the water moving. "The people hate the lizards and the lizards rule the people." "Odd," said Arthur, "I thought you said it was a democracy." "I did," said Ford, "it is." "So," said Arthur, hoping he wasn't sounding ridiculously obtuse, "why don't the people get rid of the lizards?" "It honestly doesn't occur to them. They've all got the vote, so they all pretty much assume that the government they've voted in more or less approximates the government they want." "You mean they actually vote for the lizards." "Oh yes," said Ford with a shrug, "of course." "But," said Arthur, going for the big one again, "why?" "Because if they didn't vote for a lizard, then the wrong lizard might get in." | |||
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| Member |
We had a french drain at our place in KC that worked well. That's a good suggestion. Maybe regrading the area to create the desired slope to move the water away. Or talk to a local garden shop about planting either a turf or ground cover that could help. A combo approach probably would give the greatest results. | |||
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Member |
We had a similar issue at our previous house. By simply creating an evacuation route for the water by slightly altering the landscape, it allowed the pooling water to flow out faster. It still got soggy, but there wasn't as much standing water allowing it to dry out faster. Is there any way to knock the top of the lip off the 6 foot side? I know you said there very little elevation change, but it doesn't take much since water follows the path of least resistance. Let gravity be your friend. ____________________________________________________ ‘‘Laws that forbid the carrying of arms... disarm only those who are neither inclined nor determined to commit crimes... Such laws make things worse for the assaulted and better for the assailants; they serve rather to encourage than to prevent homicides, for an unarmed man may be attacked with greater confidence than an armed man.’’ — Thomas Jefferson's "Commonplace Book," 1774-1776, quoting from On Crimes and Punishment, by criminologist Cesare Beccaria, 1764 | |||
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Member |
I agree that a french drain might be the best idea but not seeing the situation let me offer up another possibility... Maybe you could just fill it in.. ------------------ Eddie Our Founding Fathers were men who understood that the right thing is not necessarily the written thing. -kkina | |||
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| Saluki |
A couple willow trees? They use water at a furious rate. But they will take years to establish and will always be willow trees. A small pond with "shoreline" plantings that need lots of water. Think along the lines of cattails, and other grasses. The pond will hold water for Koi and true water plants, and camouflage the actual problem of high water table. Personally I'd try the French drain. I'm over high maintenance lawn and gardening, but the wife still dabbles. ----------The weather is here I wish you were beautiful---------- | |||
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| Member |
Thanks for the suggestions. I may give the french drain concept another look. We had shrubs planted in that area that grew well in spite of all the water, but they were a pain to trim and just ended up looking like shrubs growing in a pond so I removed them recently which brought me to the current situation with just a low area and lots of water hanging around. | |||
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Corgis Rock |
This. My bet is as the area developed, low lying areas were filled in and the water now ends up on your lot. Some years ago a number of developments were approved. While they met code individually, the end result was repeated flooding. “ The work of destruction is quick, easy and exhilarating; the work of creation is slow, laborious and dull. | |||
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