National Asphalte installs the French drain that keeps water away from your foundation, in Laval, on the North Shore and in Montreal.
This perforated pipe, laid in stone at the base of the foundation, collects groundwater before it gets into the house.
It then carries the water to the storm sewer or to a sump pit, a pit in the ground where the water collects.
How the drain collects groundwater
After a heavy rain or during the snowmelt, the soil around the house soaks up water. That water pushes against the foundation and can get in through the smallest crack. The French drain gives it an easier way out. It enters through the holes in the pipe, then follows the slope to the outlet.
Signs your drain is no longer doing its job
You can’t see a drain. When it can no longer keep up, the signs show up in the basement.
- Water shows up at the bottom of the basement walls after a storm.
- White salt deposits mark the foundation concrete.
- A damp smell lingers in the basement.
- Water forms puddles along the house.
These signs don’t always come from the drain. A yard that slopes toward the house can also cause them, and grading fixes that.
How we install your French drain
We do the work from the outside, in a trench along the wall.
- We dig a trench along the foundation. The excavator digs down to the footing, the concrete base the foundation sits on.
- We remove the old drain, if there is one. The new one goes in at the base of the footing, with its slope.
- We lay the perforated pipe in stone. It keeps a steady slope all the way to its outlet. A filter fabric wraps it and keeps soil from clogging its holes.
- We cover the drain with stone, then fill the trench back in. The soil goes back in place, with a slope that sends water away from the house.
Your window wells, installed in the same trench
When the trench is open along the wall, it is the right time to install or redo your basement window wells. National Asphalte also does window wells, so one excavation is enough.