a drainage problem that needs fixin

[andrewj]

here's my problem: my property has a runoff ditch that my driveway crosses over. the runoff ditch is about 2 hundred meters long. It is mostly a foot and a half deep, and does not drain well. seems that after a rain it holds water in portions for weeks, slowly leaching it out instead of draining it.

my firt thought was to just rent a backhoe and (or mini ex) and re-dig the ditch and try to improve the downward slope.

then I wondered if it would be possible to install some sort of "french drain" type pipe and then cover it up.

what would you guys do? if your recommendation is just to re-dig the ditch, would you go fo ra narrow "V" so I could mow both sides, or would you go for a solid U with strait sides that I may be able to straddle and mow.

I will thank you dearly for ANY advice you can give me! thanks.

 

[chim]

I made a drainage ditch approx 300' long at the one side of our property. It is a shallow "V" that is just on my side of a fence row. There's no need to cross it, and I maintain it by approaching it from the side with the FEL and scooping out any silt or stuff that accumulates there once or twice a year.

Without seeing what your situation is, it's hard to say what I'd do. One thing to think about would be to lay fabric in the ditch, fill it with something like 4" ballast, then cover it with fabric. The fabric would keep the silt out of the spaces between the stones, and the low end could be brought to daylight to allow it to drain.

I'd avoid having a narrow straight-walled trench because it sounds like a good way to have someone break a leg or equipment................chim