This Urbandale homeowner in the Aurora Heights area had persistent standing water in their backyard after every rain, with downspouts dumping directly at the foundation. The soggy conditions were creating foundation concerns and making the yard unusable for weeks at a time during wet seasons.
Iowa's clay-heavy soil drains poorly and Polk County's relatively flat terrain means water has nowhere to go on its own. The home's original grading had settled over the years, and the downspouts were depositing thousands of gallons of roof runoff right against the foundation walls each storm.
Our team installed a comprehensive drainage system including extended downspout drain lines routed underground to a pop-up emitter at the property edge, a channel drain across the driveway apron to intercept surface water, and corrective regrading around the entire foundation perimeter.
We used a mini excavator to trench through the clay-heavy Iowa soil and lined everything with filter fabric to prevent clogging. This complete drainage solution gave the homeowner a dry yard within hours of a rainstorm and eliminated the foundation water risk that had been building for years.