Downspout drainage

[Shimon]

One of my gutter downspouts on the front of the house drains right at the foundation. I want to channel the water away from the foundation but the problem is there isn't anywhere lower near by to go to. The road is about 15' away and is about 8" higher than the ground by the downspout. And going left or right across the house is the same. This is a low spot so I'm sure that's why drainage was never installed for this one downspout (all the others have proper drainage). The house is over 100 years old and sits pretty low relative the road and driveway.

Anyway, here is diagram of what proper drainage should look like. But since I have no road or other low spot to drain to...what options do I have. I really don't want to put in a sump with a pump. How about going out 12' to the edge of the property and then digging a 5' deep "french drain" full of gravel and have the drainage pipe coming into it near the top and then covering with lawn? It is the Pacific Northwest and it does stay fairly wet around here. Not sure where the water table is so I'm wondering if the "french drain" would just fill with water and then back up the pipe and I'm back to square one. Is the sump pump my only option? (here is a good article on the subject: Better Yard Drainage: Solving Yard Drainage Issues | Problems | Reader's Digest) Looking for any ideas that I may have overlooked. Thanks.

 

[Tororider]

If all the other downspouts have proper drainage is there any possible way to tie the bad one into one of the good one?

If not, you could dig a trench as far as you need to in order to get to a decent drainage spot and put a corrogated pipe in the trench and fill it with gravel. Make sure you put the type of corrogated that has a "sock" around it to make sure any particulates don't get into your pipe. You could still dig a french drain at the spot with good drainage to slow it down.

Just my two cents. Good luck, doesn't sound like fun worry about your foundation/basement.

 

[Shimon]

Thanks for the advice. The problem is all the other drainages are on higher ground on the other side of the house. I don't have a real problem other than the dirt in the crawlspace is a little moister in that area near the downspout. Plus it's been that way for over a century. I just want to make it drier so I can eventually seal my crawlspace (encapsulation) and avoid any future problems. I think I will just make most of the trench a drainage area along with a french drain and hope there is enough surface area with all the gravel I put in to absorb the water. Now that I think about, we must have soil that drains alright otherwise I would have a pool in my crawlspace.

 

[tony123]

There are only three basic options.

1. The water can gravity feed to a lower spot
2. The water must be pumped
3. Create a large enough french drain/reservoir (not recommended if close to foundation)

If it is the lowest point on the property, then it is a silly place to have a downspout. My first choice would be to reset the gutter pitch so that the downspount can be put in a better place?

Next option, I would dig a trench and pipe it to a lower elevation. Lastly, if you are at the lowest point on the property, it will have to be pumped up over the high point until it can gravity feed again.

 

[forgeblast]

you might want to look at capturing the water in rainbarrels to use for watering around your house. i know that wont deal with all of it. but you might be able to divert some of it to take the load off of the drainage you put in. for my drains i used 4'' corregated black pipe and 2b gravel.

 

[Champy]

Almost all of my gutters have two downspouts (one on each end). Perhaps you can raise your gutter to divert the water to the "other" end where drainage is not an issue..........

 

[Racer71]

Start your bend higher up the wall and go towards a different corner. This may not look as nice but the water will go away.

 

[Tororider]

Forgeblast has a good idea if you are interested. Normally you can find one of those water totes that hold between 200-300 gallons for $50-$100 in craigslist or if you look around. You could get a cheap pump from Harbor Freight to pump the water out to use around the yard.

 

[Shimon]

Thanks for the replies.

I like the rain barrel idea. So simple. Why didn't I think of that? That's why I come here with my problems...a wealth of collective knowledge.

 

[forgeblast]

On a recient episode of the victory garden they went to a place in san diego.
They showed a guy who collects all his rain water in different cisterns that are burried on his property and how he uses them througout the year. If im not mistaken they also showed how to make a rain barrel. I have also seen plans all over the net and i bet youtube has them too.