* Interior installation requires digging around to the foundation footing, while an interior drain goes around the basement perimeter, below floor level.

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Cutting a trench in the basement slab along the perimeter of the foundation, laying pipe in the trench to move water from the interior to the exterior after digging your trench, fill it with a few inches of crushed stone.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cover the stone with water-permeable landscaping fabric to discourage weed growthNext, lay piping into the trench.

Orient the pipe holes downward. Counterintuitive though it may be, French drains work by allowing water to flow into them from below.

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​Wrap landscaping fabric around the pipe to keep dirt and roots from obstructing the system.

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Finally, infill the trench with gravel to grade. Alternatively, infill with gravel to a point a few inches below grade, then add dirt to span the remaining distance.

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Although covering the pipe complicates future maintenance efforts, doing so allows the French drain to be completely concealed.

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