# Standing Water



## Blue1987 (Apr 2, 2020)

Not sure if this is the right place for this question . I'm hoping it is, buT I have a small area of standing water after rain. Any suggestions on what to do before I renovate?


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## g-man (Jun 15, 2017)

Fix the grading.


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## Blue1987 (Apr 2, 2020)

g-man said:


> Fix the grading.


Thank you for the response @g-man . Would you recommend it professionally done or is there anything I can purchase to regrade it myself? Since its a small section? Thanks.


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## g-man (Jun 15, 2017)

You want the ground to slope away from the house. That spot is lower than the rest, so it will need soil there. You need to look at the entire area and make sure it all flows away from the house.


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## Gilley11 (Nov 3, 2019)

Can you post a broader picture of the entire area?


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## Blue1987 (Apr 2, 2020)

g-man said:


> You want the ground to slope away from the house. That spot is lower than the rest, so it will need soil there. You need to look at the entire area and make sure it all flows away from the house.


Thank you


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## Blue1987 (Apr 2, 2020)

Gilley11 said:


> Can you post a broader picture of the entire area?


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## RVAGuy (Jul 27, 2020)

You might be able to do a french drain along the mulch bed with a catch basin in the corner, and punch a hole in the curb and drain there. You obviously need the slope for it, but I can't tell from the pictures.


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## Blue1987 (Apr 2, 2020)

acampinoob said:


> You might be able to do a french drain along the mulch bed with a catch basin in the corner, and punch a hole in the curb and drain there. You obviously need the slope for it, but I can't tell from the pictures.


I appreciate it a lot . Would it be better to have a professional company install those or DIY?
Also, would a sump pump be good for this section? I was thinking about GMans idea with adding soil.


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## mjh648 (Sep 1, 2020)

@Blue1987 Get some drainage/landscape experts out to your property to see how they assess things. Show them the pictures. See what they recommend. You will get some people who give you the gold plated solution and others who give you the most cost effective for your application. Listen to what they say and learn from them. If they are outside of your budget at least you know their opinion in the event you want to tackle the project yourself. I can tell you though that drainage installation is labor intensive. You have to dig deep trenches and slope the drainage so the water exits efficiently. I didn't want to do it so I paid someone else to. Plus their work is pretty much guaranteed so in the event it doesn't work after installation you can get the to come back out and fix usually at no charge. Don't go with the cheapest guy also. If water isn't collecting near your foundation then standing water isn't the end of the world but it is unsightly.


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## RVAGuy (Jul 27, 2020)

+1. I'm a DIY guy that doesn't mind working pretty hard, but I did some trenching and it sucks. The sump pump definitely wouldn't be a DIY thing because you'd have to have an electrician add a circuit and have it inspected (at least in my area). It's totally worth getting a consultation and following their ideas with a DIY or hiring them.


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## mjh648 (Sep 1, 2020)

@acampinoob if it's sloped towards the street then you wouldn't need a pump right? Just seems like an extra cost and point of failure instead of just designing it correctly to begin with. So I guess option 1 is to put in drainage and a couple catch basins and the other option would be to grade the terrain towards the street. Looks like you could grade and then add in some sod in the sparse areas unless you have a problem with growing grass there.


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## RVAGuy (Jul 27, 2020)

@mjh648 Yeah, grading is the correct way, but I can't tell if the slopes will allow for it. Adding dirt to that one spot will just erode to the walkway with time. A pump isn't ideal, but that's why it's a good idea to see what the drainage guy says.


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## mjh648 (Sep 1, 2020)

@acampinoob good luck keep us updated. When I bought my house instead of grading I added some 6" catch basins in low areas around the property in an already existing drainage system. There were also some drainage popups by the street that didn't work worth a damn so i had them extend the PVC into the curb which has made a huge difference.


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## mjh648 (Sep 1, 2020)

@acampinoob lol you weren't the OP so you can't keep us updated. My bad.


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## Blue1987 (Apr 2, 2020)

Heys Guys, sorry for the late response.

I'll be contacting a drainage expert in my area soon. I really want it to be corrected because I plan on renovating to add tall fescue next Fall. I'm pretty sure that puddle will not let seed grow. Thank you for the suggestions!


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