French Drain System DIY

Install a Foundation French Drain DIY Video

Educational How to Install a Foundation French Drain System Video Released by Advanced Foundation Repair

The Texas foundation repair company Advanced Foundation Repair’s latest video, “How to Install a Foundation French Drain System“, expands their free DIY online educational series. Released February 27, 2013 Dallas County, Texas

“Installing a Foundation French Drain System is simple and the supplies can be foundation at any local hardware store,” comments Fred Marshall, owner of Advanced Foundation Repair and narrator of the educational video series. Fred Marshall adds “Moving water away from a home’s foundation is a critical foundation maintenance step. Foundation French drains are a very effective way for draining subsurface water away from a foundation.”

French Drain Basics

French drain trenches contain a perforated drain pipe which is surrounded by gravel.  Either line the entire trench with with filter fabric, or wrap the pipe in filter fabric.  Cover the trench with grass. Foundation French drains excel at collecting accumulating water from marshy or boggy areas and moving it away from foundations.

Tools You Need

With a few basic supplies and tolls, home owners can install a foundation French drain system.

• Shovel
• Level or Zip Level
• Gravel
• Filter Fabric made specifically for this type of application
• Perforated PVC drainage pipe

Walk through basic steps on how to measure and dig the trench, from how deep to dig the trench to the layers that need to go in and why.

What to Avoid

Make sure to line the trench with filter fabric. Make sure to line the trench with filter fabric or soil will wash into the gravel, plugging the drain.
Never ever connect down spouts to your French drain. If you connect you down spouts to your French drains, the flow of water can be so great that you fill up the French drain and actually push water back into the ground.

SCRIPT

• HI I’m Fred Marshall with Advanced Foundation Repair.
• I’m here today to talk to you about foundation French drains.
• Drainage problems can be caused by surface or sub-surface water.
• French drains are a type of drain that is used to remove sub-surface water.
• As a general rule French drains should be at least 24 inches deep.
• Drains that are less than 24 inches deep are most likely collecting surface water in which case a French drain is not needed.
• A typical French drain is a trench lined with a special filter fabric covered with a few inches of gravel in the bottom of the trench.
• The next step is to lay in a perforated pipe with the holes of the bottom side.
• After the pipe is laid, the trench is filled with gravel to within a few inches of the surface.
• Here you can see they are stopping at about 6 inches below the ground.
• As a final step, the filter fabric is folded over the top of the gravel and the fabric is covered with dirt.
• If you do not line the trench with filter fabric, the soil will wash into gravel and plug up the drain.
• Wrapping a pipe in a cloth is no substitute for lining the trench.
• The drain works by capturing water that is flowing through the ground. Sub-surface water enters into the gravel, flows down into the pipe, and is carried away through the pipe.
• The cloth keeps soil particles from plugging up the gravel.
• Never ever connect down spouts to your French drain.
• Remember the reason for going through the expense of installing a French drain is to get rid of ground water.
• If you connect you down spouts to your French drains, the flow of water can be so great that you fill up the French drain and actually push water back into the ground.
• For expert drainage advice call the professionals at Advanced Foundation Repair, 214-333-0003.