Pool Deck Drainage Questions ...

[madyogi]

We have these roughly 3-inch by 1-inch slotted drains that run along our pool deck. I recently had a guy come and pressure wash the rear of our house and the pool deck, and he blew those drains out, and in the process discovered I have some serious issues with getting the water/debris to move. Additionally, we have had problems with water pooling up and dirt washing up onto the corner of the patio pictured below.



This is the corner where we have the most issues with water pooling and with debris (mostly dirt/mud) backing up onto and across the pool deck. That drain was completely impacted with mud, and I had to dig a trench (which you can see in the other attached photo) so the pressure washer could finish his work without water just standing on the pool deck.

I am currently thinking I can route the water away from the drain end and into a small catch basin with a top grate to handle excess water coming from the lawn, then ultimate direct the water from the catch basin down a pipe, maybe 5 feet away to a larger dry well style installation. See the other attached image for a wider look at things.

Two questions: 1) what can I use to hook into the end of that drain and direct the water off toward the catch basin, and 2) does this plan sound reasonable or am I missing a better/easier solution?

Thanks!

 

[bmoreswim]

I think these are the fittings you need. Specifically the deck drain end adapter. Stegmeier Deck Drain Grating System - 1.6 Inch Width Overall seems like a good plan. The key is that the dry well is of sufficient size. Or, best case is if you can daylight the pipe downhill in a good location.

 

[madyogi]

Thanks for the link! I don't really think I can daylight the pipe with a downhill slope the whole way, just too much going on in between and more distance than I want to cover honestly. What do you think is a reasonable size for the dry well?

 

[bmoreswim]

I honestly don't know. If there were no water being absorbed by the ground from the dry well, the size would need to be what is falling on the concrete, which can be a massive amount. So the dry well would likely not retain it all. However, some does absorb as it comes in. That said, it should be as big as realistically possible to have the desired effect of holding rain from most events. A deluge will likely still overwhelm it.

Several feet in diameter by 4-6' deep?? Lined with proper fabric and filled with stone? Or can you use one of those massive black corrugated tubes that are several feet in diameter? I'm really out of my league on the specifics, but the general thought is correct. Hopefully someone with real-world experience can weigh in.

 

[madyogi]

Yeah, so any rain is already overwhelming what we currently have, so it's hard for me to imagine it being worse. I doubt I'll go 6' deep, but I think 4 is definitely in order, with proper fabric, stone underneath and surrounding a bucket or some other receptacle to which the french drain pipe will be run. I have considered using just a 5-Gallon bucket from home depot with some holes drilled in it, and probably some flexible pvc coming out the top that terminates above ground further downhill. Of course, the 5-Gallon bucket will not be enough to tolerate a major rain event, but it would have to be better than what we currently have, and if I can create an overflow downstream with some flexible PVC, that may keep it from totally backing up.

Thanks for your help so far, and hopefully someone else with some experience can chime in. I'm planning to make this happen this weekend if at all possible.

 

[bmoreswim]

This one is available on Amazon for like $80. The link below is to the manufacturer.

Dry Well Kit & Drainage System | Residential & Commercial | NDS

 

[madyogi]

Wow. That's significantly more capacity, with still basically a 3' by 3' hole, though it'll have to be a little deeper to accommodate pipe slope. Thanks again for the link! I'll post updates here as I can.