Drainage St. Louis Missouri
Grading, compaction, correct installation of foundations and hardscape structures along with proper landscaping should allow for the efficient movement of water after storms, but this often is not the case. Many property owners will, unfortunately, discover signs that they have issues with the water after storms, especially during heavy flash flood storms. Though heavy storms can cause more widespread issues, if there are signs of issues during every storm, it’s time to get expert assistance to find the right solutions. Moreover, this may mean you need a professional St. Louis drainage installation to help capture, redirect and move the water.
Why Worry About Drainage?
When stormwater sits, it can end up causing damage, especially if the puddles left behind after the storm are close to a home or building. Moreover, stormwater drainage that builds up near the foundation can end up causing serious foundation issues that are extremely expensive to repair. Therefore, when an issue is noticed, fast action to remedy it can help prevent foundation issues, water damage in the basement, mold, mildew, and other major issues inside the home. Moreover, stormwater that builds up on concrete surfaces, like around the pool or on the driveway, can also cause issues with the stability of the concrete over time and also cause major issues to the structure itself.
Signs of Drainage Issues
Property owners can keep an eye out for any signs that there may be issues around the property. Therefore, if any of the following problems tend to happen after it rains, it’s time to research a drainage solution for St. Louis and find a specialist. So, stormwater professionals will help you find the best exterior rainwater management options through effective landscaping and solutions.
- Puddles by Downspouts – Large puddles by the downspout could be a sign that the water doesn’t have anywhere to flow after it comes off the roof.
- Mulch Moves Out of Garden Beds – Large amounts of water from storms can cause the mulch to move away from the downspouts and. Also, depending on the severity of the problem, out of the garden beds.
- Standing Water Slow to Drain – Standing water should dissipate quickly (within 12-24 hours) once the rain stops. Moreover, if the puddles are large and slow to drain, there may be issues.
- Water Intrusion – Water seeping through doors, basement or garage during rain events. So, basement water intrusion is the most common and typically happens at the basement windows, the foundation footing, basement floor cracks, and or foundation wall cracks.
- Foundation Issues – Foundation issues are often caused by water pooling by the foundation. Moreover, this includes heaving, cracks, and other major issues that are all signs that foundation drainage repair is needed.
- Stagnate Water Smell – This is commonly caused by stagnate water due to poor drainage in clay soil.
- Signs of Mold or Mildew – Water pooling close to the home or building can make its way inside the basement or onto the slab, leading to mold, mildew, and other signs of water damage.
- Lots of Mosquitos – many bugs, most commonly mosquitos, reproduce in stagnant water.
Types of Drainage Solutions
While drainage issues can be problematic and some can even cause long-term and short-term health risks, property owners today do have a variety of options they can choose from. Moreover, expert companies for St. Louis will be able to point the property owner in the right direction to find the yard drainage installation solution or foundation repair that will work best for the current issues. Moreover, some of the potential drainage systems for St. Louis include the following surface and subsurface landscape drainage.
Downspout Drainage Piping – Extending the downspouts below ground in PVC, can help move the water further from the foundation. Therefore, if there is sufficient drainage further from the building structure, this can be a less expensive yet viable solution for many drainage issues.
French Drains – French drains are installed underground and can help move the water away from the buildings foundation. Moreover, this is a commonly used option today. The size of the French drain can vary depending on the needs of the property owner and will work well to redirect the water no matter how much it rains.
Surface Grates & Channel Drains – Surface grates capture the water by channeling the water to a pinpointed area. Moreover, drain Grates are very effective at capturing high flow water and moving it to a better location. So, surface grates are very effective yard drainage solutions, when you have water pooling in the lawn during rain events. Moreover, channel drains are long, typically thin drains with covers that help capture and direct water away from paved surfaces. Therefore, this can be a good driveway solution if the driveway is not graded properly and may be the perfect option for increasing the drainage around a pool, patio, sidewalk, or another paved surface area of the home.
Dry Creek Beds – Looking for an attractive option for yard drainage? Dry creek beds add to the beauty of the property throughout the year and help redirect water when it rains. Moreover, most are made with decorative river rocks and go in a winding pattern instead of a straight line to help move the water where it needs to go for proper drainage.
For more details about Solutions for St. Louis MO, visit our Installations Items Guide.
Redirection of Water
Another way to remedy drainage issues is by redirecting water through the creation of swales and berms in the lawn and landscaping contours. Moreover, this is one of the most involved types of a yard drainage system, but it is incredibly effective. So, the key is to create natural channels, at the proper elevations, that will move the water away from the home or building.
While pooling water, especially close to the home / buildings foundation, can be a serious issue, there are many different options available to solve the problem permanently. So, if you’re experiencing any issues due to poor drainage in your yard or have noticed pooling and want to prevent future issues, contact us today for an on-site consultation. Moreover, one of our experts can help you choose the best construction design and solution for your home or commercial property.
Our Drainage Systems & Solutions
Downspout Piping
We use PVC for piping downspouts underground to ensure water is captured and transported to where you want on your property, for decades. Moreover, we install PVC downspout cleanout connections on every downspout for easy access and cleaning. “Freeze Stops” connections are installed at each sump pump discharge to allow sump pumps to flow, even during the harshest winter weather freezing conditions. Especially, we have the expert downspout drainage options you’ve been searching for!
Drain Grates
The Drain grates are an ideal solution for capturing surface water that’s accumulating and causing a nuisance or a property flooding situation. Especially, we have drainage grate installation for lawn areas, patios, foundations, sidewalks, driveways and many more. Moreover, our drainage grates range in size from 4 inch round atrium drains all the way up to 4 foot parking lot drains.
French Drains
Our professional french drain installations are the best in the business. We only use PVC piping internally and we build them to the size needed for the surface area or sub-surface area watershed. Moreover, our French drains range from 1 foot wide x 1.5 feet deep all the way up to 4 feet wide x 4 feet deep (or larger). So, the best part is, when you call us for french drain system installation in St. Louis, we solve your water problem and we guarantee it.
Trench Drains
The Trench drains, also known as “Exposed French Drainage Systems Installation” is the ideal solution for an area where there’s high flow water and a long area that needs drained. Moreover, another benefit of a trench drain is that they can capture sub-surface water as well because the sub-grade portion of the trench drain acts as a french drain allowing water in the soil to drain into the trench drain piping. So, trench drains are a great option for a yard drainage system.
Dry Well Drainage Systems
The Dry well systems are underground structures designed to store water and gradually infiltrate the water into the ground.
In theory, dry wells provide significant stormwater infiltration capacity in a relatively small footprint. So, the challenge in St. Louis, Missouri is the high clay content in the soil… oftentimes this limits the effectiveness of the systems. We recommend always having overflows on dry well systems. Overflows can include a simple pipe installed to a lower elevation, or an external pumping system to pump off excess water during rainy months.
Moreover, our crews build dry wells from scratch and we also install the patented NDS Flo-Well® Engineered Dry Well systems.
Permeable Pavement
The Permeable paving helps to protect sewer system loads by delaying surge flow during heavy rain events while also filtering the water prior to entry into the sewer systems. Moreover, these sustainable drainage systems have a positive impact on water quality.
Paved surfaces for both pedestrians and vehicles can be made of porous materials that enables stormwater to flow through the material. So, we also install nonporous blocks that are spaced so water can flow between the blocks.
The key to a long-term successful permeable pavement project is the subsurface drainage system (below the pavement) and the system components / design, etc.
Channel Drains
The Channel drains are used for draining hard surface areas such as pool decks, parking lots, sidewalks, patios, driveways, etc. So, we can install any type of channel drain ranging from a 2″ channel drain on a pool deck to a large channel drain running across a parking lot or municipal street. Moreover, channel drains are a common component of drainage systems in St. Louis MO.
External Sump Pumps
The External sump pumps are sometimes necessary when the grade is such that water cannot be drained using gravity or utilizing an existing storm sewer. So, in these situations, we have the technology and skillset to install a reliable sump pump system on the exterior of your home or business. We only recommend external sump pumps when there is no other option for water relocation.
Concrete Drainage Inlets
Heavy stormwater flow negatively impacts parking lot areas, large lawn areas and many other property settings. So, we can install one, or a series of large storm water inlets to drain a patio area or a multi-acre business complex. Is MSD stormwater management systems not enough for your property? So, contact us today for a solution to your water problem.
Dry Creek Beds
Stormwater control is typically not a beautiful thing… why not add a decorative dry creek bed to make your water control more of a landscaping feature? So, we have the access and the skill to source and install the best decorative rock, boulders and plantings to make your dry river bed for drainage a beautiful focal point on your property.
Window Well Drainage
The Window Wells are commonly used on basement windows. Due to these windows typically being positioned lower than the surface grade, this is a perfect place for water to accumulate. So, once it accumulates, the water either seeps through the window frame or down the exterior foundation wall and then breaches the foundation footing leading to water in the basement. Moreover, not only do we have basement window well drainage solutions to capture the water, we have new window well solutions ranging from heavy duty plastic to decorative stone or block. Contact us for your professional window well drainage system installation today!
Pool Drainage
The pool area drainage issues are common. Water typically accumulates around the area and causes issues to the integrity of the pool. Moreover, we all know that major repairs to a pool can be extremely costly, ongoing, and inconvenient to those that want to enjoy the pool. So, the good news is that we have pool drainage solutions for pool deck surface water, routing backwash discharge lines to ideal locations, subsurface water removal, external sump pump systems, etc.
Swales & Berms
Swales and berms are common components of yard drainage installation projects. Moreover, these methods are used to direct water flow by creating a smooth trough (swale) or raised area (berm or sometimes spelled burm) to control and direct water flow. So, our yard grading experts determine the yard level of the grade that needs to be achieved and then utilizes specialized grading equipment to make the swale grading or berm creation a success.
Road Culvert Piping
Many roads, highways, driveways, railways, etc. have pipes under them to carry water from one side to the other. These are called culvert pipes. Culvert pipes must be large enough to handle the amount of water flowing through the area and must be strong enough to support heavy traffic loads. Contact us for professional culvert installations today!
Our Drainage Process & Best Practices
Drainage Project Management
We have systems in place to manage our relationship with you from your first contact with us all the way through post-project review. We have designated drainage consultants, production managers, quality control measures, designated drainage crews and specialized equipment to complete any sized drainage project.
Drainage Supplier Relationships
Our company maintains vendor relationships like we do with our ongoing clients. Moreover, this ensures our company and our clients the best, up-to-date materials, installation technologies & techniques, pricing, and timeliness of parts and materials while sourcing the material for your project.
On-Site Drainage Consultation
The first step in getting your drainage project completed by us is to meet on-site at your property. SO we can discuss your water issues, how it's impacting your property and your goals in solving them. Moreover, one of our drainage project consultants creates a comprehensive written project proposal & plan to solve them once and for all. We can create a drawing plan, but there are engineering fees associated with these types of plans.
Drainage Project Scheduling
Once your project is accepted, it goes into our production department and placed on our workflow schedule. Moreover, depending on the time of year, your project will be scheduled between 2 weeks – 16 weeks out from the day we received your accepted Project Order Form.
Our Drainage Crews
Once we have come up with a plan and agreement, our crew arrives to implement the solution we proposed. Moreover, our crews are equipped with tools similar to a utility company. Aslo, we execute the project as proposed and as expeditiously as possible.
Precision Drainage Installation
Our crews have all of the necessary tools and equipment to ensure your stormwater project is a success. Moreover, we use lasers and transits to measure the grades during drainage system installations. So, all trenches are compacted with heavy duty, specialized compaction equipment… So there’s no settling once we’re finished with your project.
Professional Drainage Piping Techniques, Maximized
When installing our drainage projects, we implement the absolute best techniques to maximize water flow efficiency within every system we install.
Drainage Team did a tremendous job with the drainage work they performed at my house. Not only did their solution correct the issues I had, but they were very clean, professional, and the job was done in a timely manner. I would use them again in a heartbeat!
Jim - Wildwood, Missouri
Everyone involved with our storm water project from start to finish was a pleasure to deal with. The entire team was extremely responsive, professional and competent. I hope I have an opportunity to work with the Drainage Team again.
Kathy K. - St. Louis, Missouri
“ We bought a house the Drainage Team had previously worked on. Their backyard drainage work was first class and they’ve been outstanding in helping us with our questions as we get to know our new house. If we need additional drainage help, Drainage Team will our first call!! ”
— John F. – Ladue, Missouri
“ Professional and competent. They do very good work. Much appreciated. ”
— Paul R. – Kirkwood, Missouri
“ We had the drainage team complete a big project at our home and we couldn’t be more satisfied. They are clear and fair on pricing and do fantastic work. The guys on the job explain everything they are doing, are thorough in their work and clean up after the job each day. I highly recommend this company. ”
— Alicia S. – Wildwood, Missouri
" Drainage Team not only did a great job installing my sump pumps but their service after a pump went bad was outstanding. Checking the weather, Nathan prioritized my job on short notice since a storm was forecast for the next day. Their work is great, prices are good and service is outstanding. I wish I’d known about them when I had my former house! "
— Jim L. – Ballwin, Missouri
Drainage Materials We Use & Replace
Schedule 35 SDR
N-12® Dual Wall
Single Wall Corrugated
Clay Pipe
Heavy Duty Sewer & Drain Pipe
99% of our drainage projects are constructed using this heavy duty pipe. Moreover, schedule 35 Sewer & Drain pipe (SDR35) is the technical term. So, this is the same material used underground throughout new subdivisions today to transport stormwater runoff.
Many people ask “why not Schedule 40 PVC”… “It is thicker and stronger?” Schedule 35 is designed to be more flexible than Schedule 40. Therefore, it can withstand shifting, settling, and less breaks due to changing soil and weather conditions. Moreover, with Schedule 40, when the soil shifts, the connections will pull apart, the pipe can actually fracture during cold winter weather.
Therefore, when installed properly by a professional contractor, SDR35 is one of the very best drainage piping options available on the market today.
N-12® Dual Wall – HDPE Drainage Pipe
N-12 Dual-Wall Pipe is a great drainage solution. Especially, when large piping is needed for drainage culverts under roads, long large pipe runs, etc.
Dual Wall N-12 pipe was first Introduced in 1987, and is manufactured by ADS (Advanced Drainage Systems). Moreover, this pipe has a smooth interior wall and corrugated exterior, offers exceptional hydraulics and strength. Also, Dual Wall N-12 is manufactured using application-specific high-density polyethylene.
DO NOT USE Corrugated Single Wall Piping… Upgrade Today
We do not recommend using the flexible corrugated plastic drainage pipe (solid or perforated) for any commercial drainage applications, residential downspout drains, lawn area drainage, or garden drainage systems because it commonly (more often than not) gets clogged up with roots, soil, shingle particles, leaves and animals can easily plug it up.
These pipes are very cheap and we like to call them “temporary pipes” (like if your basement is flooding you can use these pipes until you have a professional drainage system installed using PVC piping). We have never removed a single wall corrugated pipe that was clean… they always have debris caught up in them (we have dozens of pictures like the ones below).
Corrugated flexible plastic drainage pipe is an “okay” fit for farm fields where very long lengths need to be installed, and done so very cheaply.
Clay Pipe Replacement
Clay pipes were commonly used for gutter downspout piping and drainage in the late 1800’s well into the early 1900’s. Clay pipes that are still in place today are susceptible to tree roots entering through the loose or deteriorated connection joints and causing breakage and crumbling of the old clay pipes. When there’s faulty pipes (which many are because of age) the property owner often times doesn’t know that there is water escaping these pipes underground and causing foundation issues and possibly water seepage in lower levels of the building.
We highly recommend upgrading clay pipe drainage systems.
Our Drainage Specialization = Your Benefit
Techniques
Equipment
Disturbance
Compaction
Restoration
Drainage Piping For Efficiency
On all of our drainage pipe installations, we use 22.5 degree connections, 45 degree connections. Moreover, WYE connections to always speed up water flow to allow for the most efficient confluence of drainage components. Therefore, its inflow and discharge during heavy water flow situations.
Some Of Our Specialized Drainage Equipment
Our drainage crews are equipped with the right sized equipment for any sized project. Moreover, from drainage systems next to a pool deck, or installing a series of concrete storm sewer inlets on a new construction site, we have the right equipment for your drainage project.
Minimizing Disturbance Is Our Primary Focus
While our team is planning and mobilizing to start your drainage project, our crews first priority is minimizing disturbance through our access points on your property. Moreover, we use heavy duty plywood, track-mats, and other technologies to ensure the least amount of disturbance and impact during your drainage project installation.
Mechanical Compaction To Prevent Settling
When we leave your drainage project, there’s no settling. Moreover, we use mechanical compaction equipment to ensure that wherever our drainage systems are installed, the pipe is backfilled and compacted to maximum compaction. Therefore, our compaction equipment is similar to what you see on a utility company crew.
Site Restoration. Your Property Looks Beautiful Again… Within Days.
When our crews finalize your drainage project installation, we aim to restore your site to perfect condition. Moreover, we install high quality select grass seed, straw roll / erosion netting, or freshly cut sod from our local sod farm partners.
Your Budget. Our Drainage Solutions.
Over the past 27+ years of performing professional drainage piping and stormwater control projects, we have analyzed pricing data to generate this general budget outline. This should help you determine the budget size you may need for your project. (All estimated dollar amounts are presented in $1,000.00’s. K = $1,000.00 USD) We cannot give you an exact estimate until we meet you for a drainage project consultation.
PROJECT TYPE | RESIDENTIAL | COMMERCIAL |
---|---|---|
Downspout Piping | $5K – $15K+ | $5K – $50K+ |
Drain Grates | $5K – $50K+ | $5K – $50K+ |
French Drains & Trench Drains | $5K – $50K+ | $5K – $100K+ |
Dry Well Systems | $5K – $20K+ | $5K – $50K+ |
Permeable Pavement | $15K – $50K+ | $12K – $250K+ |
Channel Drains | $10K – $20K+ | $10K – $50K+ |
External Sump Pumps | $5K – $15K+ | $10K – $50K+ |
Concrete Drainage Inlets | $10K – $20K+ | $10K – $50K+ |
Dry Creek Beds | $5K – $15K+ | $5K – $50K+ |
Window Well Drainage | $5K – $20K+ | $5K – $25K+ |
Pool Drainage Systems | $5K – $15K+ | $5K – $50K+ |
Swales & Berms | $5K – $20K+ | $5K – $50K+ |
Road Culvert Piping | $10K – $20K+ | $10K – $50K+ |