How can you drain clay soil around a house to keep it from seeping into a enclosed porch sitting at ground ?

Question

The enclosed porch sits on a concrete slab at ground level. When it rains water pools around the outside perimeter and seeps in because we have heavy clay soil that will not drain.

Answer 1

No easy way, but here is a way. Dig around the perimeter to a depth of about two feet by about 18" wide, pour in 8" of gravel and lay in drain pipe (4") with holes facing down. Cover pipe with about 4 more inches of grave. This makes a French Drain...complete the drain system by having the pipe feed into a sump, place a sump pump into the sump and hose it out to the street...Back fill the "trench with sand/dirt mix AFTER placing a fine mesh over the gravel/pipe installation...like fiberglass cloth to prevent the gravel/pipe from plugging over time. This will keep you very dry.

Answer 2

French Drain

Answer 3

Trench around the porch about a foot deep, insert a black 4-inch drainage tube (covered with filter cloth) back fill with river rock, pea gravel, or odinary gravel. Top off with soil and add a plastic edging to deflect the water.

Make sure the tube slopes ever so slightly away and terminate it in a deeper "sump" housing backfilled with gravel. Or run the tube the best you can downhill away from the area.

Answer 4

you need a french drain, google it

Answer 5

write to this old house on pbs.org