Advice Needed: Best Way to Drain Water from Driveway Channel Drain

agentsab on 04/10/2024 - 16:55
Last edited 06/10/2024 - 20:47 by 1 other user

Hey team, I'm after some advice on how I can manage the water drainage on a channel drain I have on the end of the driveway at the front of the Garage.

Previously it had a black hose with holes in it sitting in the drain and the hose went all around the side and back of the garage where the water supposedly drains into the dirt however this looks quite ugly with the hose going over the lawn to the rear of the garage. Plus this wasn't even working because the channel was filled with dirt and I just cleared it out and the water is sitting there.

I'm wondering whether there is a way I can connect the channel to the existing downpipe for the garage gutter and is this allowed.

I've attached two images for reference.

Image 1
Image 2

Thanks in advance!

Edit:

Thanks everyone for your suggestions and advice. I did some further digging today and discovered that there is a pipe that looks like it was supposed to be connected to the channel drain. It is heavily blocked with mud and I discovered further down there is a break in the pipe so looks like I'll have to dig a fair bit of it out and replace the pipe then figure out how to connect it to the channel. There is a PVC pipe containing power cables that goes to the Garage so the drain will have to cross over on top of it.

Image 3

• 

  mapax on 04/10/2024 - 17:04

  What is the round hole on the righthand side of the gutter?

  • 

    agentsab on 04/10/2024 - 17:51

    I think it's an old post.

    • 

      mapax on 04/10/2024 - 18:33

      The horizontal hole?

      • 

        agentsab on 04/10/2024 - 18:59

        Oh if you're referring to the pipe on the other end of the channel drain that's connected to the downpipe on the other side of the garage. So water flows into the channel drain from the downpipe on the other side.

        • 

          mapax on 04/10/2024 - 19:23

          +1

          @agentsab: That’s the one. The gutter must get a fair amount of water in that case?
          Double check that there isn’t a partially blocked stormwater connection in there, but if there isn’t you will probably need to get a pretty big soak

• 

  nocure on 04/10/2024 - 17:23

  +1

  That channel will be connected to the stormwater somewhere, second pick looks like an old carport/shadesail post. Start digging.

• 

  jv on 04/10/2024 - 17:33

  +1

  Best Way to Drain Water from Driveway Channel Drain

  Gravity…

  • 

    Yummy on 04/10/2024 - 18:04

    Or OP can sucky sucky…

    • 

      aragornelessar on 04/10/2024 - 19:21

      Username checks out…

  • 

    azonki on 05/10/2024 - 07:52

    This is correct.
    If you can't grasp the concept of gravity, get a plumber or a landscaper to advise.

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  thatonethere on 04/10/2024 - 17:37

  You could try to plumb it into the downpipe - the risk is that if there is any blockage - the water will come out the channel drain. Other option is to quietly drain it into the street?

  • 

    MS Paint on 04/10/2024 - 17:42

    +1

    I'm guessing the channel drain is below street level.

  • 

    agentsab on 04/10/2024 - 17:53

    The channel drain is at the rear of the property and below street level so draining to the street isn't an option.

    • 

      Rako on 04/10/2024 - 22:37

      Perhaps you could pump it to the street?

• 

  Malik Nasser on 04/10/2024 - 18:26

  How to install garden drainage

• 

  Euphemistic on 04/10/2024 - 19:05

  Hard to say what to do without knowing how much catchment this drain is for and what the overall lay of the land is.

  You need fall for the water to drain.

  If its kinda been working, and doesnt catch much water you could dig a trench, feed the ag pipe (rippled holey pipe) into it, cover it with gravel and make a soakwell for the water to drain into and soak away gradually - not great in clay though.

  If it catches a lot, probably needs to go to stormwater via the dowpipe system.

• 

  randomusername2017 on 05/10/2024 - 01:44

  -1

  this looks quite ugly

  Sorta blends in 🤔

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  Davo1111 on 05/10/2024 - 02:18

  What's the down pipe connected to?

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  GordonD on 05/10/2024 - 08:30

  I had/have this problem. The guttering downpipe comes down right next to the front of the garage, From there it went into a stormwater drain that ran alongside the drive to the gutter. But, and I didn't realise what had happened until the next big rain, some guys doing some work excavated right up to the drive, meaning they cut through the stormwater pipe either without realising or admitting it, and refilled the whole area with the foundations for a light pole. Now the rainwater pools in front of the garage and backs up into it. A complication is at the street end the pipe is just under the ground and trucks keep crushing it. The proper fix is for me to pay to have the whole length of the stormwater drain dug up and replaced, with steel pipe for the last few metres where it crosses the footpath. The easy fix was an area of paving that had gaps between the blocks so the rainwater pool forms, but fairly quickly drains into the ground. We get little enough rain here that gutters and stormwater drains should never have been required. The water is better let soak into the ground, and filter down into the groundwater. It saves watering with drinking quality water.

  So if I was the OP, I'd start by getting a concrete drill and drilling holes in the bottom of that drain so as much as possible of the water would drain down through them into the ground under the concrete. Sure, they'll steadily block with dirt, but water drains through dirt.

  • 

    Euphemistic on 05/10/2024 - 13:28

    drilling holes in the bottom of that drain so as much as possible of the water would drain down through them

    Probably not advisable in a clay soil environment. The qet amd dry cycle of clay can cause movement of foundations.

    • 

      GordonD on 05/10/2024 - 18:45

      The qet amd dry cycle of clay can cause movement of foundations.

      There don't appear to be any foundations in this case. Just concrete slabs. That said, my neighbor has the problem that the concrete paths around his house are slowly moving away from the slab the house is built on, leaving a gap. But that's because one was laid, then the other next to it. They aren't tied together.

      • 

        Euphemistic on 05/10/2024 - 20:00

        Foundation/slab, same same. If it moves, itll end up being a problem.

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  saltypete on 05/10/2024 - 09:59

  Get water to flow away from the LH end - where the water is pooling. Cant tell from the photos if this is a suitable area. If its not near foundations, and ideally near trees that will send that water back into the atmosphere, consider putting in a big, deep hole filled with rocks as a sump to collect runoff and let it soak into the ground.
  Keep in mind that gravity will decide where your stormwater eventually goes. It needs to soak in somewhere on your property or youll be sending to your neighbour.
  Whatever you do, it will need maintenance- lift the grate in front of the shed and clean dirt ect out. Do it Autumn and Spring. If whatever system you have is full of dirt it isnt going to work.