Liberty | Surface Water Management
The grade near the home was negative, or sloping toward the home. During rain events, water would pool up against the foundation wall. This foundation wall was starting to crack and showing signs of inward movement, or bowing in. When water is introduced to clay-like soils, these soils expand and put pressure on the foundation wall. This homeowner in Liberty wanted to take some actions to help reduce the amount of water that was getting next to her foundation.
The homeowners opted to install a french drain, with a pond liner under it. The concept of a french drain is to collect water. A french drain is a trench filled with perforated drain tile and gravel placed near the surface of the ground. This collects the water. The pond liner, or heavy plastic, was placed under the french drain to act as a barrier. This would keep the rain water from going down next to the foundation.
The french drain terminated out through a bubble box in an area of the yard that did not affect the homes foundation.
