Houston Sprinkler Repair And Installation Experts
8070 Taylor St. , Houston Tx 77064
13 Jun 2021
drain-cleaning

Do You Have Slow Or Clogged Yard Drains? Here’s How To Fix Them.

Yard drains and driveway drains help remove rainwater from your property into the storm sewer or other drainage system like a catch basin or French drain to help keep your yard dry.

Check for obvious things blocking the drain like leaves, dirt, stones, toys, trash, etc. Remove any of these items that may be present with your hands or scoop if possible. If there is a grate on the yard drain, remove it so you can get a better look into the drain pipe. If there is additional debris viewable in the drain pipe, try to move it carefully without damaging the pipe itself.

Your property may have one or more drain cleanout or inspection portals likely located near the house, or by the street (closer to the storm sewer) or on some other location in your yard depending on how your yard is setup to handle the water drainage. Run water from a hose through your yard drain, you should see water flowing through the inspection portal towards the storm sewer or other drainage area. If you do not see a flow of water, or only a small flow of water, this could be the sign of a more serious clog including tree roots in the drain pipes or you may have broken pipes.

If you have trees on your property, making tree roots a likely candidate for blocking your yard drain, or if you suspect it is simply a more stubborn clog of dirt and debris, you can call JB Irrigation & Services as we now provide outdoor drain cleaning. JB uses a hydro-jet to clear the problems. Nasty root and other debris related clogs can be challenging to handle, so call JB Irrigation and an experienced professional will take on this job for you. Once the clog has been pulled out or pushed through the yard drain, you should be able to see water freely flowing through both the problem drain and through to the outlet. Stubborn clogs may require using the hydro-jet from both the drain side and the outlet side of the drain to break them loose.

If the hydro-jet does not allow penetration of the clogged area and what is being removed from the drain is dirt, mud and stones, this is the sign of a broken yard drain pipe that must be replaced. JB Irrigation and Services is a yard drain repair expert, having performed hundreds of broken drain pipe replacement projects. To setup an appointment and have your drain cleaned and if necessary repaired by a trained JB Irrigation professional, call us at 281-744-6909 or use this link to our contact form.

22 Feb 2019
lawn-drain

Correcting Yard And Foundation Drainage

JB

Improving the drainage outside your home will yield long-lasting benefits.

Failure to correct inadequate drainage could lead to disastrous consequences ranging from drowned plants to structural damage.

Water is the major cause of structural problems in a home, such as decayed wood, fungus growth, and settling or upheaval of the foundation.

Provide drainage with surface ditches or underground pipes.

Most underground drainage systems consists of continuous lengths of corrugated pipes, flexible polyethylene pipe or 10- and 20-foot sections of poly vinyl chloride (PVC) rigid pipe (recommended) joined by fittings.  Clay tile and bituminous fiber pipe are less common.

Perforated pipe collects subsurface water in the uphill portions of the system.  Solid pipes connect to the perforated pipes and carry water to the discharge point.

Yard Drainage

If natural surface drainage is inadequate, or if the water table is very high, drain low spots with a system of buried pipes.

If the source of the water is a slope, place an underground interceptor line across the base of the slope to collect the water.

Divert the water around and away from the house.  If the water is concentrated in one spot, such as a low area in the yard or concrete patio, install a small catch basin at that point and run a drain line.

To plan a drain line, first determine where you want to discharge the water.  A street gutter, a drainage ditch, and a swell are potential discharge sites. Do not discharge water onto your neighbor’s property.

Lay the drain lines back from the outfall.  If you have only one low spot, one line will do.  Always install a cleanout point in the high end of the system. In most cases, this is achieved with a catch basin. Cleanouts work best with smooth-walled pipe; ribbed pipe may be damaged by cleaning tools.

25 Apr 2017
catch basins

Route Water Where You Want It To Go With Catch Basins

Rainfall isn’t always predictable and a sudden downpour can be a problem for certain projects. Knowing how to take care of areas that receive more rain than the ground can absorb in a reasonable amount of time can save you from a plethora of problems. Consider starting your problem solving process with CATCH BASINS.

Stop Water Puddling Before it Begins

What is the purpose of a catch basin? It stops puddling in the yard by moving the puddle on top of the ground, into the ground and then allowing the pipe to take it away, A catch basin is a staging ground for excess water until the pipe has enough water to move it. There are many benefits to installing a catch basin — particularly in areas that receive heavy rain or are at risk for standing water.

Catch basin installations are an excellent option for areas that need a quick solution. Installing a catch basin gives you the ability to move water out quicker than options like creating a natural slope.

It also reduces erosion, which moves water more efficiently. You don’t have to wait for the soil to absorb the water.

Think Preventative

What happens when catch basins aren’t installed in high-risk areas? You either have flooding, puddling, or severe runoff that can cause destruction of property, landscape and erosion problems. On properties that have a lot of clay-based soil, heavy rains cause water to pool easily above surface because the ground cannot absorb the water quickly enough. What starts as a little runoff can turn into a small waterfall. Without a catch basin, water will start cutting away soil and the water starts eroding out the soil. If you know you have an at-risk area, you can use a catch basin as a preventative to acquire water before it gets to a low point—if you place them strategically.

Do you have a project area or landscape that could benefit from a catch basin installation? Call JB Irrigation and one of our friendly employees can help you resolve you drainage issues with the right catch basin installation.

01 Jul 2016
lawn-drain

Top 5 Yard Drain Maintenance Tips

  1. We do not recommend that you use chemicals to attempt to unclog yard drains or driveway drains as they typically drain directly into a waterway via the storm sewer without first treating the water at a sewage treatment facility.
  2. Fix or replace broken yard drain grates. Consider finer screen or grate to keep more dirt and debris out, but not too fine that will restrict the flow of water or easily get clogged up.
  3. Be careful putting anything rigid into your drains as the drainpipe very well could be clay pipe and might be damaged by sharp or heavy objects.
  4. If water still drains slowly after a thorough cleaning, consider having a larger yard drain installed. This could be costly, but it may be the only way to allow the water to drain quickly enough that it does not stand in your yard.
  5. Once you find a drain cleanout or cleanouts in your yard, hand sketch a map of where all the drains and drain cleanouts are for future reference.