We bought a house and moved in about a month ago. When we looked at the house, it was right after we had received a lot of rain in our area. There were several areas in the back yard that retained water. Even when we went back to look a couple other times and when we had the inspection, there was still some water. However, since we had had a lot of snow and rain I figured it was just some areas that were not draining that well. No big deal, right...

Well, now that I've been in the house for about a month, I believe that we have about 5 or 6 natural springs in our back yard. There is not a huge flow of water, but rather what appears to be just a constant oozing (that's the best way to describe it). The good thing is that it is in the back yard and down hill from our house. The bad news is that this makes about 1/3 of our yard unusable.

Anyone ever had to divert spring water?

I figure a french drain is the best alternative (our lot backs up to a pond, so I could divert the water to the pond). Any other ideas?

How much should I expect to pay to have someone install one? I'm up in Texarkana, for what its worth. It will probably end up running the length of about 75 yards.

thanks for any input/advice.

Pick some up plastic drain pipe and a couple boxes at Home Depot, and while your there grab a couple Mexican Backhoe's and knock it out in an afternoon.

We do this all the time in Austin with seasonal springs. Expect to pay anywhere from 10-15 bucks a foot for an installed drain.

You can get by using 3" French Drain pipe instead of the 4" commonly used. It'll save you on materials & is less labor to install.

quote:

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why would using 3" pipe be any less labor intensive than using 4" pipe?

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Smaller pipe = narrower trench to dig.

A 3" pipe might not work in all situations. That extra inch of depth in Austin often means the difference between using a pickax or a jackhammer for excavation.

Had a landscaping guy come look at the issue.

He said there are a lot of springs in the area where my house is at and that they will probably dry up during the summer.

He went on to state that they could install a French drain for $6-8/ft, but that he thought I should not do anything. Said it may end up creating more problems than it solved. Since he was essentially advocating that he not sell me his services, I tend to give this some credibility.

Just wanted to share what I heard from one of the local pros since ya'll were nice enough to provide your input.

I think I will give it a year and see what happens during the course of an entire year. If I do decide to do something, then I will have the benefit of knowing more about what I'm dealing with.

We had those french drains put in (old house)for a very fair price and you know that saved our bedroom many of times. DO NOT DO YOURSELF, trust me on this.

Call me.

Anybody have a contact for somebody to install a French drain in East Dallas (Lake Highlands)

Anyone have a recommendation for installing a french drain in BCS? Need one about 50-75 feet.