Poor Yard Drainage: 7 Signs That it’s Damaging Your Home & Yard
Are you worried about the state of your yard? Typically this time of year is great for those that have been waiting all winter to enjoy the sunshine and their beautiful yard. However, this time of year can also be a bit of a nightmare for those with inadequate water drainage around their property. Not only can poor water drainage affect the quality of your yard and your time spent enjoying it—it can also damage the structural integrity of your home. This includes the foundation, the crawl space, the floors, and even the roof. This is why it’s so important to learn the signs of poor yard drainage around your property.
Signs of Poor Yard Drainage
- Yard soil is eroding
An excessive amount of water will weaken your yard’s soil to the point that it begins to drop and slide away. This is called erosion. Fissures or holes in the soil, as well as places where the soil seems to have fallen, can be indicators of erosion in your yard.
Erosion can destroy your garden beds, but it can also cause even more serious harm when it happens near walkways, patios, or foundations. If the soil beneath a walkway or patio wears away and washes away, the walkway or patio will collapse. Now imagine this happening close to your home’s foundation. Too much soil erosion near a home’s foundation can leave the foundation exposed and put your home’s structural integrity at risk.
- Topsoil moves every time it rains
If there’s too much water to be absorbed by the soil or if there isn’t a clear path for the water to go, then it will wash over the topsoil and mulch in your yard. That soil can then end up being pushed into walkways, gulleys, dips, or even onto drain covers, causing them to get clogged. Sequentially, clogged drains will only worsen the drainage problem that already exists in your yard.
- Water pooling around gutters and downspouts
Gutters and downspouts are designed to keep water from flowing down the side of your house and collecting around the foundation. If the gutters are too small or clogged with leaves and debris, then water will start to flood over your gutters and pool around the foundation. Other indicators that your gutters aren’t working as they should include paint peeling off your home in vertical lines, dirt or mud streaks on the side of your gutters, and mud splatters on your home’s siding.
- Wet crawl space
Even though your crawl space might be “out of sight, out of mind”, it’s important to know that a wet crawl space is dangerous for your home. A damp, wet crawl space creates the perfect environment for mold & mildew to grow, for pests to live, and for wood rot. Not only do these negatively impact your home’s overall indoor air quality, but the weakened structural integrity can affect the framing of your house, as well as the floors and roof.
- Your wood floor is warping
As previously mentioned, poor yard drainage can lead to water intrusion in the home. Water in the crawl space can erode the soil in and around your home’s foundation. This water intrusion, in addition to cracks and movement in the foundation, can cause your floorboards to bow, warp, or pop out of place.
- You have a clogged drain
Due to storms, winds, and natural occurrences, debris like leaves, dirt, and trash will inevitably end up in your yard from time to time. While it may be a pain to clean it up, it’s imperative to do so because it could clog your yard drains and prevent them from working properly if left in the yard.
Choose Jersey Shore Crawlspace Enhancement
Water should never be “accepted” in the crawl space environment. Constant exposure to standing water breeds bacteria, increases your relative humidity, and saturates your wood with water over time leading to mold growth. This in turn also weakens your wood structure and attracts termites, pests, and rodents due to the moist environment.
Regardless of the conditions within the crawl space, we can help! Our systems are designed with the challenges of living here on the Jersey Shore in mind. Prior to any action being taken, we offer a comprehensive crawl space evaluation to monitor the moisture conditions within your crawl space, all the while ensuring that your home is not at risk for common issues such as poor drainage.
We perform this evaluation 3 times throughout the year to stay in front of seasonal issues, monitor the moisture conditions, and service your vents to ensure proper ventilation. With over 20 years of dedicated service for our fellow neighbors here on the shore, trust your crawl space with the Jersey Shore’s Crawlspace pros!
Complete the form below and one of our representatives will be in contact with you shortly to schedule your evaluation.