How to Build an Extra-Heavy-Duty French Drain - Washington Twp, Michigan - French Drain Man

This is one of the biggest French drain systems we’ve built. We’re in Washington Township, Michigan, installing roughly 250 feet of French drain with more than 1,000 feet of pipe. This system uses a quad-pack design on both sides of a heavily traveled service walk, and it has to be strong enough to handle vehicle traffic while still moving a massive amount of water. The problem here has been going on for years. Water has been washing sand out from underneath the walkway, causing the concrete to settle and requiring repeated mudjacking. The new system is designed to intercept that water before it can continue undermining the walk. In this video, Robert walks through the entire installation and explains how to build an extra-heavy-duty French drain from the ground up. You’ll see: 🔵 3.5-inch French Drain Man pipe 📦 Quad-pack French drain systems 🪣 Four-way connect catch basins 🧰 Cleanout access points 💦 Yard drains for bulk water ➡️ Solid discharge pipe 🔀 4-inch wye connections 🚪 Flow gates 🌤️ Daylight discharge systems 🚗 Driveway-safe French drain construction 🪨 Small stone support around pipe ⛏️ Shallow French drain installations One of the biggest keys to making this system strong enough to drive over is the stone placement. The pipes are spaced apart so clean stone can surround them and create pillars of structural support between the lines. That stone helps lock everything together and dramatically increases the load-bearing strength of the system. The crew also ties the roof runoff into solid pipe, sizes the downspout lines appropriately, and transitions from 3.5-inch pipe to 4-inch mains where the water volume increases. This is a great video for homeowners, DIYers, and contractors who want to understand: ✅ How to build a French drain that can handle heavy traffic ✅ How to move large amounts of surface and subsurface water ✅ How to prevent washout underneath concrete ✅ How to properly support multiple pipes with stone ✅ How to combine French drains and downspout drainage into one complete system ✅ How to avoid the installation mistakes that cause drainage systems to fail If you enjoyed the video, give us a thumbs up and leave your questions about this Washington Township installation in the comments. 00:16 Drainage System Overview 01:23 The Drainage Issue 04:21 Where Trenched Dirt Goes 05:48 Catch basin Install Tips 06:57 Our Leaf Filters 07:48 Old Drainage System Parts 09:11 Perforated Pipe Difference 09:56 Project Management Tips 10:41 Sidewalk French Drain 13:25 Woven Fabric Details 14:28 Old Drainage Flaws 15:46 Our Drainage Plan 17:37 Drainage Connections Details 20:09 Starting Stone Backfill 21:02 Stopping Tree Roots 21:29 Drainage Stone Details 22:39 Handling Trenched Dirt 23:29 Connecting Downspout Drainage 24:12 Properly Installed French Drain 28:44 French Drain End Caps 30:49 Completed Drainage Connections 32:50 Backfill & Grass Coordination 34:06 Fabric & Grass Installation Tips 37:17 using Drain Sand With Sod 38:45 Cutting Fabric Around Cleanouts 39:13 Cheap NDS Grate Issues 40:42 Setting Sidewalk Slabs 42:22 Completed Drainage installation FDM's Online Yard Drain Supplies: https://frenchdrainman.com/drainage-p... ======= French Drain Man – Michigan’s Yard Water Drainage Experts. Masters in the art of constructing contained French drain systems & curtain drain systems that and fix your yard drainage problems for years to come. Over 30 years’ experience in solving yard water drainage problems in Oakland, Macomb, Lapeer, and St. Clair Counties. French Drain Man / Sherwood Landscape Construction, LLC P.O. Box 777 Almont, MI 48003 248-505-3065 https://www.frenchdrainman.com http://www.macombcountylandscaping.com Follow us on: Facebook:   / frenchdrainmanusa   Instagram:   / frenchdrainman   #frenchdrain #diy #drainagesystem #frenchdrainman #homeimprovement #diyprojects #macombcounty #michigan #watermanagement #drainage