How to drain the foundation of a private house on a plot with your own hands on clay soils: Review + Video

It will be about how to drain the foundation around a private house on clay soil with your own hands, because the ground water, especially when there is a large amount of them, over time erodes the foundation support structures, which can lead to collapses of the structure, subsidence and flooding of basements. The outer part of the foundation under the constant influence of water is subjected to the most serious destructive loads for a year. Moisture fills microcracks and in winter, under the influence of low temperatures, it freezes and expands, from which the foundation gradually begins to split.

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In autumn and spring, due to constant temperature changes from minus to plus, the existing cracks increase, and in addition, new ones appear. To avoid all this, it is necessary to build a drainage system in a timely manner.

Cases when foundation drainage is simply necessary

But here a natural question arises: what if the groundwater runs low enough? Do you need foundation drainage in this case?

In fact, each example should be considered separately. Here we can only cite cases when foundation drainage is simply necessary :

1. Your basements are below the groundwater level, or if the floor is less than half a meter above the water level ...
2. Your basement is in clay / loamy soil.

   If so, then the water level does not matter.

3. Your basements in clay / loamy soil below 150 cm from the horizon. In this case, the water level is also indifferent.
4. Your building is located in the capillary humidification zone.

So, it is necessary to drain the foundation if your supporting structure is in critical proximity to groundwater, or if the water level is so high that visually the area of ​​the site seems to be swampy.

If on your site there is dry soil, and the level of groundwater during floods and rains does not exceed the critical mark, then it is quite possible to do without waterproofing the foundation with drainage.

Rules for preparing for drainage work

If you assessed the situation on your site and realized that there is nowhere without intervention, then before proceeding with the foundation drainage with your own hands, you should stipulate some more rules.

1. Firstly , all work should take place in the summer - for obvious reasons.
2. Secondly , it should be understood that the process will be time consuming and long from 2 to 3 months.
3. Thirdly , care must be taken to prevent moisture from entering the drainage system if the weather deteriorates.

   For example, arrange a canopy made of polyethylene or boards.

4. Fourthly , if you have weak ground, you need to take care of strengthening it with the restraints in advance designs.
5. Fifth, it would be a good idea to dig up the foundation and examine its depth and shape.
6. Sixthly , in the land registry you will need to find out the location of underground sources and groundwater.
7. Seventh, observe where more moisture accumulates on your foundation.

And finally , prepare in advance a diagram of pipes, wells, etc., stock up on everything you need for drainage.

Preparation for waterproofing

Before, rather than directly approach the wall drainage, you should perform some preparatory work on waterproofing.

1. First, as mentioned earlier, you need to dig out the foundation. In this case, it is necessary to clean the foundation slabs from the earth and old waterproofing.

2. Give the foundation time to dry.

Selection of materials for drainage

Pipes

Drainage pipes should be chosen from ceramic , asbestos cement or plastic.

We advise you to opt for plastic pipes, since they are not inferior in reliability to other competitors, but they are much easier to install.

In addition, other types of pipes have a number of significant disadvantages, such as susceptibility to blockages, a short service life (less than plastic ones) and the need to drill holes for water inlet on our own.

Plastic ones, on the contrary, will last a long time, thanks to the ribs of rigidity they will be able to withstand pressure changes, they are extremely easy to transport and install - they weigh little and bend well.
The inner walls of such pipes are smooth, which increases the ability of self-cleaning. Well, and of course, the optimal price-quality ratio.

Perforated pipes with stiffening ribs are best suited for laying the drainage system, which will ensure an even distribution of the load on the pipe. Such pipes are laid to a depth of 5-6 meters, which makes it possible to drain the foundation of any house.

The diameter of the pipes is selected based on the degree of soil moisture: a high level of groundwater - 10 centimeter pipes, no - 16.5 centimeters.

Wells

In addition to pipes for the foundation drainage device, we still need wells ...

We need two types: revision and collector wells.

Revision wells are used to control and clean the system from blockages. In case of blockages, a pump goes down into the well and cleans the pipes. Revision wells are installed at the intersection of pipes of every 2nd turn and every 50 meters on straight pipes. Usually such wells have a diameter of 60 centimeters.

The collector well is the final reservoir of the system - the collected moisture gets into it. The tightness of the structure excludes the possibility of leaks and release of water masses.And water from such wells can be used both for irrigation of a land plot and redirected into an open reservoir.

In addition, for our drainage system you will also need: fittings, plugs, adapters and elbows. We connect all this with sealing gaskets.

Calculation of the drainage system

When you have stocked up with all the necessary materials, you can start calculating the drainage system of our site. We need to calculate the depth of pipes and wells and the optimal slopes of the pipelines.
Usually, the foundation drainage is arranged 0.3-0.5 m below the supporting structure.

The pipes should be installed at a slope so that the water from them quickly reaches the collector - usually 20 mm. , for each running meter.

Find the highest and lowest points of the area. In the upper (as a rule, the highest corner of the building) we will place the place of accumulation of water, and in the other we will put a well for receiving. In this way, we will create a natural slope, which will save us from having to buy additional pumps.

2 ​​shovels - a shovel and a bayonet, a pickaxe, a perforator and a wheelbarrow for removing the earth and bringing in gravel.

Basic work

So, let's get started.
First, we will dig trenches for laying our system, while retreating 1 meter away from the foundation. Let's estimate the width of the trench - it should be 20 cm larger than the pipe diameter.

When laying pipes, do not forget that the drainage must pass half a meter below the supporting structure.

We compact the trench with a sand pillow by 10 cm - check the slope, it should remain the same.

We put wide strips of geotextile fabric on the sand so that its ends protrude beyond the boundaries of the trench. Next, we fill up large gravel around the foundation - it conducts water perfectly.

Only after all this, we lay the pipes, while making sure that they lay down with a slope to the lowest point of the system. With the help of fittings, we connect the pipes, just in case, we wrap with electrical tape and fall asleep 10 cm.

, With gravel. Then we sew the ends of the geotextile with threads.

Install the collector at a distance of at least 5 m from the house. It should be located between the pipe and groundwater levels. About a meter below the pipes.

We also cover the pit for the collector with geotextile fabric and only after that we install the well itself. To eliminate the bevel of the well in the bottom of the tank, you need to drill several holes and fix it tightly. After that, cover it with gravel and then earth.

Unfortunately, it is not always possible to stay within the proposed scheme.

In exceptional cases it is necessary, for example, to buy additional equipment.

For example, imagine that your tank for receiving water is above the level of the pipes, you will have to, among other things, install a drain pump. It will forcibly distill water masses.

If the depth of the pipes is higher than the freezing depth of the soil, it is necessary to install a heating system using a heating cable. This will keep your drainage system free from freezing during the winter.

Thus, if you want to drain the foundation with your own hands, it is not the easiest, but quite doable task.

( 5 marks, average 5 of 5 )