# French Drain



## Cole

I personally have never installed one, but I am going to have too on an upcoming project.

For you guys that have installed them, do you charge per lf?

It will be 150' in total length.


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## denick

Cole,

The term "french drain" means different things in different parts of the country. The oldest definition I can find is that it is a trench filled with rock for water to flow through it. So you might want to describe more of what you are going to try and achieve. You might get a lot more response in E&SW forum.


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## concretemasonry

Denick is right. That is the classical term for the old style drain that was used for dewatering areas. Some are well over 100 years old and working on great golf courses.

Today, some people refer a "french drain" as a trench filled with rock/sand/etc, and a perforated pipe and fabric or a drain sock. It may be covered with top soil or with just rock to intercept surface drainage.

Big difference when it comes to cost. - Especially when someone (owner, builder, etc.) specifies something that does not work because they have no idea of what is really necessary when it comes to the details of making it work correctly.

Make sure you can prove you followed the plans or document any changes made. If there is a problem, it will show up after the job is done and memories fade.


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## POOLMANinCT

i prefer "freedom drain" ty very much


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## rino1494

For a typical french drain, I'll use a layer of crushed stone, a 4" or 6" perf pipe and another layer of crushed stone and then top it with filter cloth and backfill.

The depth and width of the trench, size of the pipe, amount of stone all vary from site to site. I always charge by the foot when doing drains. Typically I'll charge around $7 per linear ft. Like I said, this varies from site to site. Sometimes you may have to haul out the dirt which would raise the cost or you may have to fix the grass you destroyed, etc...

Also, I noticed that this is a 150' drain. This may cost more since it is a short drain. If a contractor has to come in and use up a whole day for a short drain, then it will cost more by the foot than if it was a 500' drain.


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## 4theroc

see if you can regrade the yard to correct the drainage problem first. French drain's are back breaking work and alot of the time u will need to go back an correct stuff if you dont know what you are doing. But for 150ft with gravel and 4" pipe i would charge $13.50 a foot


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## PipeGuy

Cole said:


> ...do you charge per lf?
> 
> It will be 150' in total length.


Unit costs vary greatly in consideration of both the total and average length of drain(s) installed. I always prefer a lump sum price based on anticipated costs and desired profit.

My understanding of the term "French" drain includes the notion that water collected within the aggregate filled trench section simply disipates into the surrounding soil as opposed to discharging to "daylight". An example of this might be a small floor drain at the bottom of an area way that serves a below grade door.

IMO a french drain, like a "french whore", might look good from a distance but, upon closer examination, isn't really worth a f#*k. Any decent drain needs to discharge to daylight.


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