Dry the backfill from the outside before mixing trades.

O’Fallon Quality Drainage keeps exterior yard drainage separate from interior waterproofing. Use French drain installation, downspout drainage, and sump pump discharge as the exterior file.

Exterior collection versus interior waterproofing

A yard collector along the wall can intercept roof and lawn water before it soaks backfill

A yard collector along the wall can intercept roof and lawn water before it soaks backfill. Interior membranes, interior drains, and excavation to footings are other trades. This site does not present those interior systems as work it performs. Keep proposals from blurring the boundary.

Begin by separating observed exterior water from possible interior symptoms. Photograph the grade, leaders, hose bibs, and wet line after a named storm. An exterior collector may reduce water reaching the backfill, but a proposal should not relabel plumbing, slab moisture, or interior leakage as the same exterior condition.

Footing-level drains as a different trade

A drain at footing depth beside a basement is not a shallow lawn French drain

A drain at footing depth beside a basement is not a shallow lawn French drain. It can involve structural and waterproofing scopes this website does not staff. If a provider proposes footing excavation, treat that as a separate contract with its own credentials.

Ask the provider to state the proposed depth relative to grade, footing, and finished floor, along with how excavation, wall protection, and restoration are handled. Those questions make the boundary visible. A shallow exterior surface collector and a footing-level waterproofing scope should not be compared as if they deliver the same work.

Keeping roof and yard water off the backfill

Mulch volcanoes

Mulch piled against siding holds water. Regrade that ring before blaming the soil map.

The cheapest exterior win is often leaders plus grade. Backfill clay next to a wall perches water. Extending downspouts and restoring fall away from the wall changes that perch without opening a deep trench.

Trace each source to the wall: roof leaders, surface flow from a patio, uphill turf, irrigation, and any discharge line. Correcting one source can make the diagnosis clearer, but it should not be presented as proof that every source is gone. A useful scope names the sources it addresses and those it leaves for another trade.

Clay backfill that perches water

Look up the native map unit in Web Soil Survey, then remember that backfill is often worse than the native map unit

Look up the native map unit in Web Soil Survey, then remember that backfill is often worse than the native map unit. Construction clay against a wall is a man-made perched table.

Use the soil map as context, then rely on the actual wall-side observation. Water can travel along compacted backfill, surface mulch, buried utility trenches, or a hardscape edge. The proposed collector should be located against the observed path and outlet elevation, not simply placed parallel to the wall because that is a familiar drawing.

What an exterior yard drain can and cannot do

It can intercept incoming yard and roof water

It can intercept incoming yard and roof water. It cannot promise a dry basement if water is rising through a slab or if interior plumbing leaks. Do not let a linear-foot quote imply a waterproofing warranty. This brand does not offer one.

The completion check should be equally specific: watch whether roof and surface water now move away from the wall during a storm, and record any remaining interior condition separately. That avoids a misleading all-or-nothing promise. If the exterior path works but an interior issue remains, the owner has better evidence for the appropriate next trade.

Coordination with a waterproofing contractor

If both trades are present, they should share the outlet plan so two pipes do not fight

If both trades are present, they should share the outlet plan so two pipes do not fight. Put both on the same sketch. The owner still reviews each company’s identity and terms.

Give each provider the same drawing with wall locations, existing drains, leader routes, proposed collection, and release point. Confirm who owns each penetration, pipe crossing, excavation zone, and restoration task. Coordination does not mean one company guarantees another company’s work; it means the scopes are readable before the yard is opened twice.

Evidence to collect along the foundation wall

Photograph staining, downspout locations, hose bib leaks, and grade

Photograph staining, downspout locations, hose bib leaks, and grade. Note whether the wet line is only after storms. Send that packet through contact. Weldon Spring upland lots and river-corridor St. Charles lots need different floodplain questions.

Add a simple timeline: what happened, when it appeared, whether rain was occurring, and whether a pump, irrigation system, or plumbing fixture was active. Include a wide photo that shows where water could leave the wall-side zone. This turns a vague report of a wet basement into a clearer exterior-drainage question without making a diagnosis the evidence does not support.

For quote comparison, ask each provider to identify the collection zone, proposed depth, outlet, cleanout access, protection of landscaping and walks, and the expected restoration work. Compare those items against the same photos and sketch. A longer trench is not automatically a broader solution if it does not address the observed sources or provide a verifiable release away from the wall.

At the first-rain check, photograph the wall-side grade, leader outlets, and any collection point while water is moving. Record what remains wet and whether it follows an exterior source or an unrelated interior condition. That limited evidence supports a better next decision than an unsupported promise about keeping a basement dry.

Keep any interior follow-up separate from this exterior record. That preserves the distinction between reducing surface or roof-water contact with backfill and diagnosing a condition that needs a different trade.

National French drain cost bands describe exterior collectors, not basement lining. Ask for the elevation of any proposed pipe relative to the floor and the footing, in writing.