"With a french drain I would only be worried that you will increase inflitration near your wall."
Good point.. I thought about this as well, and that is the reason for the modification to create a barrier drain, as emmgjd describes:
"---Line the downhill side of the drain with 6 mil plastic...
Thanks blueoak, the USDA handbook has interesting charts corresponding to the grain size. I'll take a look at these charts for #16 grain size with fine clay soil. The reason for a backfill rather than a V ditch or swale is because this is the back yard lawn with frequent use.
During an El...
Good tips emgjld, thank you. It would be ideal if I could use this same drain to also capture surface water runoff, as I don't have the resources to build a second surface drain. The clay soil is compacted pretty well so a lot of the water will just run along the top in heavy rainstorms. I...
I am building a French Drain running parallel and 10 feet from my home, on a gentle slope away from the foundation. Another 5 feet downslope there is a retaining wall and a small but steep hill. The retaining wall has some cracks forming over the years, which worsened during the heavy El Nino...