French drain and yard drainage in Houston: local operators and what it costs

Why Houston yards stay wet

The Lake Charles and Beaumont clays common around Houston are described by the USDA as very slowly permeable, and they sit on prairie that is nearly level, often with slopes under one percent. Water has nowhere to soak in and little slope to run on. A French drain works here only when the pipe can fall steadily from the wet spot to an outlet lower than where it starts.

Find the outlet before you dig

The hardest part of most Houston drainage projects is deciding where the water goes. The usual choices are the street, a ditch or a low corner of the property. The city's rules on discharging to the street were not confirmed for this page, so check with Houston Public Works before tying a drain into the curb or a ditch, and keep the outlet from sending water onto a neighbor's lot.

Raising the grade has limits

Adding soil to lift a low yard is common, but Houston Public Works lists fill three feet or deeper, more than fifty cubic yards of fill on a lot, or any fill that blocks a drainage course as work needing a permit, and no fill is allowed in the public right-of-way. In a mapped flood hazard area, grading and filling also need a floodplain development permit.

Timing around the rain

Houston averages about fifty-two inches of rain a year, with June, October and May the wettest months. Watching where water stands during a real downpour is the best way to plan the route, but installing in a dry stretch keeps the trench from filling as it is dug.

Texas 811

A drain trench is digging, and homeowners in Texas must notify 811 two business days ahead, excluding weekends and holidays. Sprinkler lines often run through the same wet part of the yard, so mark where yours are.

For your project post

Describe where water stands and for how long, the slope you can see, possible outlets, the rough length of the run, and whether downspouts should feed it.