Service · The Colony & north Dallas suburbs
Drainage & grading
French drains, regrading, and standing-water fixes. If water is why the last lawn died, new sod on top of it will die the same way.
Blackland clay does not forgive bad grade
North Texas sits on heavy clay that swells when it is wet and shrinks hard when it dries. It drains slowly by nature, and when the grade runs the wrong way the water has nowhere to go but into the lawn, the beds, or the foundation.
The symptoms are easy to recognise once you know them. Water standing more than a day after rain. A permanently soft patch. Moss or algae in one section. Grass that dies in the same spot every year no matter what you put there. Mud that never quite dries out along a fence line.
None of those are sod problems. Laying new turf over them is the most expensive way to find that out.
What we actually install
French drains. A gravel-packed trench with perforated pipe that collects subsurface water and carries it somewhere useful. This is the most common fix we install and it is what several customers have specifically written about.
Regrading. Reshaping the slope so water runs away from the house and off the lawn rather than pooling. Sometimes this alone solves it and no pipe is needed.
Surface drains and catch basins. For a defined low spot that collects water fast, a basin tied into a discharge line moves it before it sits.
Downspout extensions. The cheapest fix on this list and the most commonly skipped. A downspout dumping against the foundation will undo everything else.
What drives the price
| Factor | Why it matters | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Length of run | Trenching is the bulk of the labour | Higher |
| Where the water can go | A legal, sensible discharge point is the hardest part of most designs | Higher |
| Depth and soil | Hard dry clay trenches slower than moist soil | Higher |
| Obstacles in the path | Irrigation lines, tree roots and utilities all slow a trench down | Higher |
| Doing it with a sod install | The yard is already open and the crew is already there | Lower |
Fix the water before you pay for sod
If standing water or runoff is why the last lawn died, new sod on top of it will die the same way. On a lot of the sod jobs we quote, the drainage fix is the part that makes the grass last — so we look at where the water goes before we price the turf.
Where we do this work
The Colony · Frisco · Plano · Carrollton · Little Elm · Lewisville · McKinney · Prosper
Questions we get asked
How do I know if I need drainage or just better sod?
If water stands more than 24 hours after rain, or the same patch dies every year regardless of what you plant, it is drainage. We will tell you which one you have at the quote before we sell you either.
Where does the water actually go?
Somewhere that will not create a problem for you or a neighbour — a street, an alley, a swale, or a daylight point at the low end of the property. Finding that point is the real design work.
Will you tear up my whole lawn?
A French drain means an open trench along the run, and we sod or seed it back. If you are re-sodding anyway, doing the drainage first means no double work.
Can you fix water coming from my neighbour’s yard?
Often yes, by intercepting it at the property line. Tell us at the quote because it changes the design.
Do you do foundation drainage?
We handle surface and shallow subsurface water around the house. Structural foundation work is a different trade and we will say so rather than take the job.
Free estimate
Send a couple of photos and we will usually have a number for you the same day.
(214) 998-0636Request onlineRight now: late September
Drainage: any month. Fall is a good time — you find out what works before winter rain.
Related services
Office
6876 Fryer St
The Colony, TX 75056
Mon–Fri 7:00am–6:00pm, Sat 8:00am–4:00pm
Tell us what the yard needs.
Send a couple of photos and we will give you a real number — usually the same day, always before we schedule anything.
Prefer the phone? (214) 998-0636 · Mon–Fri 7:00am–6:00pm, Sat 8:00am–4:00pm