Drainage System Installed to Protect a New Screened-In Addition

When a screened-in porch gets added to a home, the drainage picture changes. The new structure redirects roofline runoff and can interrupt the yard's natural flow. Without a plan for where that water goes, it pools up right where you don't want it - next to the foundation and the new addition you just invested in.

Here's what we were working with on this one. Water had no clean path away from the structure, so we mapped out a system to collect it at the source and move it out. That meant trenching the side yard, running corrugated drainage pipe the full length of the run, bedding it in gravel, and tying everything into a catch basin that outlets to the street. Every connection was made deliberately so the system flows in one direction and doesn't back up.

The catch basin grate sitting flush at the front curb line is the end point of the whole system. That's where the water exits. From the downspout extensions at the back of the screen enclosure all the way to the street - it's one continuous path with nowhere for water to sit and cause damage.

This kind of drainage work isn't complicated, but it does need to be done right. Pitch matters. Pipe placement matters. Where the outlet lands matters. Get any of those wrong and you've just moved the problem somewhere else instead of solving it. We do this type of dirt work and drainage regularly, so we know what to watch for.

If you've got a new addition, a low spot in the yard, or water hugging your foundation after rain, that's not something to wait on. The longer standing water stays close to your home, the more damage potential builds up.