My house sits on a double city lot, 60' wide. There was a house at one time on the second lot. Right now its open yard, but will soon house our 16'x30 addition to our home. My problem is that behind our exisiting house and behind where the house next door used to be my backyard floods. 80% of the yard is grass, the rest is garage and a brick paver patio. We want to build up our yard and grade it so the water runs out of the yard. Does anyone have any general "how tos" for this project? We've got some ideas as well as all of the resources, but want to make sure this is done properly. Should we remove the sod, lay gravel, just top soil, both, leave the sod, should the water run off towards the sides of the yard? The neighbor behind us is also building his yard up in spring, but the neighbors on both sides of us are not. There is limited information on this that I can find. If anyone has a website or can offer advice it would be appreciated!
2007-01-06 04:39:54 · 4 answers · asked by skyblueme 2 in Home & Garden ➔ Garden & Landscape
Just to give some extra background...all of the houses are on a crawl space, no basements in this area. We only have one neighbor on the west side of us, they are the corner house. We only back up to one neighbor, he is the corner house on that side of the street. There is an open lot on the east side of us that is about 30' wide. The house next to that owns that property but there currently isn't anything on it. We have a friend that does this for a living and owns a company where we could get all the material needed, but I'm looking for advice not "hire a contractor".
2007-01-06 05:14:16 · update #1
Debs, I instant messaged you...but to answer for others - it only floods in puddles, as our yard isn't level. We want to level out the yard to prevent this. The water only occurs when it rains and while it doesn't last long, it creates a big mess - we have dogs. The yard has never been resodded or landscaped since it was built in the 1950's. I know this for fact, the neighbors acrossed the street built there home before this one was built. A collection system would be costly, our yard is huge....
2007-01-06 06:51:21 · update #2
Hello, you have really received some great answers but as a horticulturist and licensed irrigator may I suggest a much simplier and cheaper alternative. Again as stated in other post you should seek out city ordinances from the city you live in. now back to the solution... A french drain works wonders for moving rain water and it will definilty help to dry your yard after a rain. A 6 or 8 inch perforated plastic tubing buried in ditches with gravel in the bottom, landscape cloth over the pipe, then more gravel, then topsoil and finally your grass back. With this method you can direct the water to a specific area, ie the street, or natural run off area from your yard. The material is cheap. Its less invasive to your yard and it is a project you could easily do yourself. Rent a trencher, have a load of gravel delivered and your set. You will need someway to ensure the grade of the pipe is always moving the water away from the house,yard, etc.Good lick and I hope this was helpful.
Doc
2007-01-06 16:26:52 · answer #1 · answered by Doc 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I am a horticulturist and landscape designer who also happens to sit on our local planning and zoning board. Flooding problems are rampant these days as we continue to change the 'neighborhood' hydrology with building, grading and irrigation systems. Firstly, you probably won't want to change your grade until you check your local ordinances to see if it is legal. It usually isn't and even if there isn't a local ordinance governing such things, your neighbors can sue you for creating new issues by changing your grade.
Second, changing the grade may not solve the proble,. Do you know the source of the water? Is it runoff from rain, an underground spring or possibly a leak? If it is rain water, how often does it happen? Does it stand for a long time? I would at least entertain the idea of burying an underground collection tank (cistern) and using the collected water for irrigation. It is being done under parking lots for strip malls and so forth in the Midwest.
2007-01-06 05:40:49 · answer #2 · answered by Debs 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The best approach due to all the parameters such as neighbors who might become rather irritated because their yard potentially could be the sink for your run-off, is to consult a certified landscape architect. Then the architect takes the hit if you have problems such as your neighbor(s) suing because suddenly in addition to their back yard becoming MORE flooded, but their house is flooded too due to the EXTRA water you sent their way.
2007-01-06 05:04:56 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
Most each backyard is differen. Not just slope and what's on it but, what's under it and what effect you'll be causing to your neighbor's yards. It IS best to call in two even three different contractors for an estimate and consult.
2007-01-06 04:50:32 · answer #4 · answered by Ricky J. 6 · 1⤊ 1⤋