Grading & Drainage
Do you have water in your basement, a constantly running sump pump, puddles in your yard that form a neat ice skating rink in the winter. Proper drainage helps to alleviate all of these problems. It starts with gutters on your house, or a crushed stone dripedge around the house to catch the water falling from the roof. We use crushed stone so the water doesn't splash back up and rot the bottom of your house as well.
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Whether your house is new construction, or an existing property with drainage issues, proper surface grading, in conjunction with subsurface drainage can help mitigate, and in some cases solve those basement water issues.
It is important that all of the surfaces around your house are properly graded. The Patriots field at Gillette stadium may look flat, but it is not. It is pitched (graded) towards the sidelines to keep water from building up on the field, a gravel road or driveway is pitched to the sides in the same way to keep water from pooling and potholes from forming.
The same goes for the lawn around your house, you want it pitched away so water doesn't run into your basement. Your driveway, walkways, patios, should all slope away from your house as well. Proper grading of all the surfaces around your house is important even if you can't see it.
It is important that all of the surfaces around your house are properly graded. The Patriots field at Gillette stadium may look flat, but it is not. It is pitched (graded) towards the sidelines to keep water from building up on the field, a gravel road or driveway is pitched to the sides in the same way to keep water from pooling and potholes from forming.
The same goes for the lawn around your house, you want it pitched away so water doesn't run into your basement. Your driveway, walkways, patios, should all slope away from your house as well. Proper grading of all the surfaces around your house is important even if you can't see it.
The water is then directed into subsurface drain pipes which move the water away from the house. Equally important is the slope of your yard, it should slope evenly away from the house, both impervious surfaces like your walkways, patios, and driveway, as well as your lawn and planting beds. This keeps the water running downhill and away from your house, and keeps the water out of your basement. The best time to do drainage work is when you are building a house, but Ambidextrous Inc. can help with drainage issues you have with an existing house. Proper drainage is powered by gravity which is always on, as opposed to that sump pump which went out with the power during that last spring storm...