Drainage problems are common, especially during the rainy season. Poor drainage can leave your home vulnerable to various safety, health and financial concerns. If you realize that water in your yard remains stagnant for long, you could have a looming drainage problem. Poor drainage can lower the integrity of your house’s foundation and also wreak havoc to your compound. There are many reasons why your home and landscape could be suffering from poor drainage and here are the top five.
Lack of Water Outlets
One reason for poor drainage in your landscape and home is the absence of outlets to drain excess water away. We all know that water takes some time to sink into the ground, so you must channel your water elsewhere. If your yard’s landscaper failed to do the grading appropriately and sloped it towards your house or an area without a water outlet, the chances are that water will tend to collect faster that it drains. Also, over-watering of the yard can cause pooling water. The first step to curbing a drainage problem in your home or yard is making sure that you have sufficient outlets to drain excess water.
Cluttered Lawn
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Yards take up the most space in the home and if they are filled with clutter, you will definitely have a drainage problem. If the grass on your yard is full of thatch (dead moss, old grass clippings, and plant debris), you will definitely have a drainage problem, not unless the thatch is removed. With the dense thatch in your yard, water hardly penetrates, and it just stagnates. Home clutter can also be a menace to the drainage of your yard. De-cluttering using a rake can help get rid of obstacles on waterways and improve your drainage problems.
Soil Texture
Heavy clay soils are a major cause of drainage problems in a yard. Clay soil usually has very tiny particles that cling together and as a result, water does not pass easily resulting in waterlogged soils. When wet, clay soil becomes heavy and sticky hence water hardly slips through it. If your yard has clay soil, try constructing drainage channels, one foot wide and dip to serve as water outlets. Besides, you can sprinkle some organic matter such as leaf mold and garden compost on your yard to improve the structure of the soil to facilitate quick water drainage.
Lack of Gutters
The absence of gutters in your home can result in excess water being dumped into the soil surrounding your house. The excess moisture can compromise the integrity of your house’s foundation, resulting in cracks and loss of stability.
Impervious Subsoil
If your home lies right above a hardpan or an impervious subsoil, you will suffer from a serious drainage problem. The layers of compacted soil do not allow water to infiltrate resulting in surface stagnation. If you live in a hardpan area, you can hire professional drillers to break the hardpan or look for a new area to reside.