As we all know water is an essential element. It can also be an incredibly destructive force. Water has formed some of the most amazing natural sights such as The Grand Canyon, Lake Mead and the shorelines of our own Great Lakes. The harnessing of flowing water has been a source of power for centuries throughout the world. Coupled with gravity water is a force to be reckoned with; one that cannot be completely controlled but only managed. Drainage solutions becomes very important to the homeowner.
Drainage problems have existed for home and landowners for as long as society has been civilized. Dams have been built, levies have been raised and channels have been cut to manage how water flows and to where it is drains. These same basic principles in drainage management apply equity to individual homeowners and municipalities. Transversely the lack of proper drainage management can cause great grief and cost sizable sums for structural repairs. Have you experienced drainage problems with your home and the land it rests on?
In the over 30 years as landscape contractors the staff here at Todd’s Services has remedied hundreds of homeowner’s drainage problems. Each home has received an individualized application of those drainage management principles by members of our Design/Sales staff. Usually these concepts are applied as part of a larger landscape renovation plan but stand alone projects have become more common. The most common places where drainage has become an issue is at the younger homes (20 years or less) where the grade has shifted and settled around the house after initial construction. These homes seem to be more susceptible because of the speed of construction with less attention to details and the type of materials used by many builders. Items such as gutter downspout and sump line outlets typically were not addressed at the time of construction so the ill affects are water seepage into foundations and basements, pooling or standing water after rainfall and cement heaving and cracking. Remember, water is a powerful force but it is also lazy. Water will follow the path of the least resistance (or create its own path as gravity dictates) but it will always flow somewhere. Where does it go?
Drainage management is an issue but does not have to be a problem. Proper planning and execution by an experienced landscape contractor (like Todd’s Services) can help alleviate your water flow issues.