The Importance of a Percolation Trench

Percolation trenches serve a great purpose to maintain the flow of water around your home. While there are many different exterior waterproofing systems available, percolation trenches are an effective and affordable solution.

Percolation trenches help manage the water wasted from flushing the toilet, showers, washing machines, and other household water sources. It also helps manage stormwater runoff and creates a drainage system in your yard. To manage your water flow more effectively, consider installing a percolation trench from LRE Foundation Repair

What is a Percolation Trench?

Also known as an infiltration area, a percolation trench is a shallow excavated trench filled with gravel or crushed stone. Its primary purpose is to infiltrate stormwater through permeable soils into the groundwater aquifer.

Based on their design, the gravel helps slow down the water runoff as it pours into the ground, which helps avoid flooding. Without a proper percolation trench installed, excess water would pool up on the ground and cause flooding in your yard. The trench works as an infiltration system to filter the water before it enters the ground.

A percolation trench is similar to a dry well, which is also a large hole in the ground filled with gravel. Both systems help manage water waste and filter it into the ground.

Functional and Aesthetically Pleasing

Percolation trenches serve an important water management purpose and they can also blend in nicely with your landscaping. As some exterior water drainage systems can have an unnatural look in your yard, percolation trenches tend to be more aesthetically pleasing with the gravel in your yard.

The main function of a percolation trench is to filter the water as it goes into the ground. This helps filter out any pollution in the water before it enters the ground, keeping the soils healthier.

Percolation trenches also help improve the water quality in connecting rivers, streams, or lakes. The gravel creates a natural filter that prevents any pollution or debris from entering the ground. From there, the filtered water enters other bodies of water nearby without the harmful impacts of pollution.

Erosion Control

Percolation trenches also help with erosion control. The trench helps prevent downstream erosion and prevents the loss of soil particles. Without the percolation trench installed, the excess water would soak into the soil and cause them to become dislodged. The trench helps prevent erosion and keep the soils in place.

Percolation Trench Installation

While a percolation trench can be installed by the homeowner, it's important to leave this job to a professional. There are several details and techniques that must be achieved in order for the trench to work properly. If a certain step is missed or not installed properly, it could impact the effectiveness of the trench.

1. First, the ground must be excavated to make room for the gravel. The size of the hole depends on the area that needs to be covered, which your representative from LRE Foundation Repair will help determine.
2. The trenches need proper ventilation, so pipes must be connected at the end of each trench.
3. The gravel or stone is then poured into the excavated area and back filled with the soil that was dug up.

To avoid system failure, it's important that the distribution stone is very clean to avoid dirt and debris buildup on the bottom of the trench.

Traditionally, a flexible land drainage pipe was installed in percolation trenches to help with the flow of water, but it does more harm than good. This pipe is ribbed and can create hollows, making it difficult for the water to run through.

Installation time depends on the size of the trench, but most jobs can be completed in just a few days. During your free estimate, your LRE Foundation Repair representative will walk you through the process and will be able to provide a size recommendation and an accurate timeline.

Percolation Trench Installation from LRE Foundation Repair

If you're in need of a percolation trench, rely on LRE Foundation Repair for quality and professional installation. There can be many errors made when installing percolation trenches, so it's best to leave it to a professional team like LRE Ground Services, Inc.

We have served Florida residents since 1989 and we are happy to provide a free inspection for you.

Contact us today for your free inspection on percolation trench installation!