How Long Will a French Drain Last?

French drains are underground pipes that help direct water away from a home, business or any other establishment to prevent water damage and keep your foundation healthy. They’re often overlooked and not always as visible as other drainage options, but they are an important part of protecting your property from water damage.

How long will a french drain last?

A french drain, which is a trench filled with gravel and a perforated pipe that redirects water, helps to prevent water damage and protect your home. They’re a great option for homeowners and businesses that are experiencing drainage issues like flooding or standing water in their basements, yards or landscapes.

However, they don’t always work well on every property. In some cases, French drains don’t solve problems and actually make them worse. This is due to four common reasons:

1. The soil doesn’t allow water to move through it easily

Raindrops are attracted to the surface of dirt, sand or other material and prefer to stick to it rather than filling in the voids in these materials. This is especially true if you live in areas with clay soil, which is dense and doesn’t let water move through it quickly.

2. The plastic piping may collapse after backfilling

Plastic pipe is easy to bend, but it’s prone to collapsing when buried and subsequently poured with gravel and dirt. This is because a lot of the weight of people and equipment walking over it will compress the soil, which can cause the pipe to collapse over time.

3. The pipe may clog over time

If you have a clogged French drain, it’s likely that the gravel and pipe perforations are clogging with sediment. This can lead to blockage, which will need to be cleared out. To remove the clog, you can use a pressure washer that uses high-pressure water to push the clog down and out of the system.

4. The soil has a lot of roots and rocks that can damage the pipe

In some cases, a clogged French drain can cause severe structural problems for your property. If this is the case, you’ll need to get professional help.

5. The trench that the pipe is installed in won’t be deep enough to reach your foundations

If your home or business has a basement, you should ensure that the trench that the drain is installed in is deep enough to reach your foundations. This is because a french drain will need to be buried at least a foot beneath the foundation’s slab to function properly.

A good tip is to find out whether your local building codes require the drain pipe to be a specific depth before you start digging it. This will ensure that you’re putting the drain in the right place and will protect your foundation from any structural damage from the trench’s excavation.

Another thing to consider is that the trench needs to be sloped so it can carry the water downhill to where you want it to end up. It’s best to slope the trench at least 1%, which is a one-foot drop for every 100 feet. This is a good idea because it allows for any potential obstructions to be overcome before they can create problems in the rest of the system.