Water problems can damage your home and lower its value. A French drain system might be the answer you need. Let’s see how these drainage systems keep water away from your house.
What Is a French Drain?
A French drain is a trench filled with gravel and a pipe with holes that moves water away from wet areas. Despite its name, it doesn’t come from France!
We can put these drains inside or outside your home. Outside drains help with yard water, while inside systems protect your basement. At B-Dry Boston, we use French drains as a key part of our basement waterproofing solutions.
How French Drains Work
Water always takes the easiest path. French drains use this fact to protect your home.
The system starts with a trench that holds gravel and a pipe with small holes. When water seeps into the ground, it finds the gravel and flows into the pipe. Then gravity pulls the water downhill to a safe spot away from your house.
For basement systems like our B-Dry System, water flows to a sump pit where a pump moves it outside. We place the pipe in stone 6 inches below your basement floor with a vinyl barrier at the base of your foundation wall to catch leaks.
Benefits of French Drain Systems
French drains offer many ways to protect your home:
- They stop water pressure from building up and cracking your foundation
- They help keep soil moisture levels steady so your foundation doesn’t shift
- They prevent soil from washing away and leaving your foundation without support
- They keep your basement dry during heavy rain
Knowing their basement will stay dry gives many homeowners real peace of mind.
Interior vs. Exterior French Drains
You have two main choices for French drains: interior or exterior.
Exterior drains go around the outside of your foundation. We dig down to the footing level, make a gravel-lined trench, place the pipe, and cover it with more gravel. These work well to stop water before it reaches your walls.
Interior drains, like our B-Dry System, go around the inside edge of your basement. We break through the floor, dig the trench, put in the drainage pipe with gravel, and seal it up again.
Many Massachusetts homeowners pick interior systems because they don’t mess up landscaping and we can install them in any weather.
Do You Need a French Drain?
Watch for these signs that you might need a French drain:
- Standing water in your yard that doesn’t drain away
- Damp basement walls or floors
- Your house sits on a slope or in an area with heavy rain
- Cracks in your foundation that get worse over time
- You want to finish your basement, or have had flooding before
Don’t wait until water damage gets bad โ fixing it early saves money.
Get Professional Help
While some home projects are doable, French drain systems require professionals. Our team at B-Dry Boston has the tools and know-how to install a system that will work for years.
Since 1986, our patented B-Dry System has protected homes across Massachusetts from water damage. We’re ready to help keep your home dry, too.
Contact us today for a free check of your water issues and a custom French drain plan. We’ll help you keep your home dry and safe.
