French drain INSTALLATION COST

Yard drainage solutions

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Use grading for surface flow, an inlet for pooled runoff and a collector for water in the soil. Many yards need a coordinated route rather than one product.

US house and yard cutaway showing the drainage systems outside the house.

Which yard drainage solution fits my problem?

Use grading for surface flow, an inlet for pooled runoff and a collector for water in the soil. Many yards need a coordinated route rather than one product.

Start with the source and destination

Walk the water’s route from roof or uphill ground to the final discharge point. Identify hard surfaces, low spots and areas that stay saturated. Then work backward from an acceptable outlet.

A basin, channel or French drain is only one part of that route; none creates discharge capacity by itself.

Choose the collection method

Regrading and swales shape surface flow. A channel drain intercepts a line of runoff across a driveway or patio. A catch basin receives water at a low point and offers debris access.

A French drain intercepts water moving through soil. A dry well stores water temporarily for infiltration where the site supports it.

Compare scopes in the same units

Trenches are often priced by linear foot, grading by area and packaged inlets by item. Do not compare a basin material price with a complete system price. Ask whether piping, outlet, excavation and restoration are included.

The calculator keeps those quantity types separate and identifies bundled work to avoid counting it twice.

Plan for maintenance

Leave grates, sumps and outlet access visible and reachable. Observe the yard after the first substantial rain and note sediment or erosion. Keep leaves and debris out of inlets.

An improvement should move water to an appropriate destination without creating a new low spot, blocked walkway or recurring maintenance problem.

Cutaway of a yard French drain trench beside a brick ranch house: fabric-lined trench, gravel and a black perforated pipe under the lawn.
A yard drain in cross-section; outlet suitability needs an on-site check.

Nonwoven fabric keeps soil out of the gravel so the drain doesn't clog.

Washed gravel around the pipe lets water reach it from every side.

Water rises into the holes and runs along the pipe, which slopes toward the outlet.
Questions to ask before work starts
Can I combine several systems?
Yes, but they must be designed together for capacity, elevations and discharge. Adding components without checking the downstream route can simply move the bottleneck.
Does this price include new sod?
The grading example excludes fill, topsoil and lawn replacement. Enter restoration separately in the calculator.
Sources
Cutaway of a yard French drain trench beside a brick ranch house: fabric-lined trench, gravel and a black perforated pipe under the lawn.

French drain cost

Per-foot prices, worked examples and what changes the total.

US house and yard cut away to show a French drain, downspout line, dry well, catch basin and driveway channel drain.

French drain installation, step by step

What a pro does, from the site check to lawn repair.

Two-story US house with a gravel French drain trench curving through a wet lawn.

French drain for a soggy yard

When a yard drain fixes standing water, and when it won't.