Independently published Your Guide to Yard Drainage Solutions and Landscaping to Prevent Water Damage: DIY Instructions for Grading, Trenching, Drainage Systems, Erosion ... Through Strategic Gardening and Hardscaping

Why I picked up this drainage guide

A wet spring left my side yard spongy and my garage slab showing hairline cracks from repeated splashback. I grabbed this drainage guide looking for a practical roadmap—something that would help me evaluate the problem, choose an approach, and execute it without over-engineering. After reading it cover to cover and trying to apply its advice to my property, I came away with a clear sense of what this book does well and where it falls short for DIYers.

What’s inside

The guide is a compact 73 pages, written in straightforward, non-technical language. It’s organized around the core strategies most homeowners end up considering:

• Re-grading soil to encourage flow away from structures
• Trenches and French drains to intercept and convey water
• Swales and berms to redirect sheet flow
• Dry wells and soakaways for infiltration
• Rain gardens and plant choices to slow and absorb runoff
• Hardscaping options like permeable pavers and edging to manage surface water
• Basic erosion control using mulch, groundcovers, and geotextiles

The most valuable part, for me, is its consistent emphasis on elevation and flow paths. It hammers home the idea that water moves with gravity and that the best solution often starts with reshaping the surface subtly rather than jumping straight to pipes and basins. It also encourages checking your work after a storm and iterating, which is good practice on any drainage project.

What I liked

• Clear principles: The guide keeps the big ideas front and center—slope away from structures, protect foundation lines, avoid sending water to your neighbor, and plan for overflow. That framing helped me step back and map my site logically instead of chasing one-off fixes.

• Broad menu of options: If you’re trying to understand the landscape of solutions—what a French drain is, how a swale functions, where a dry well makes sense—the book does a decent job outlining the purpose of each and where they shine or fail.

• Landscaping as part of drainage: I appreciated the sections on using plants and hardscaping strategically. Rain gardens, deep-rooted natives, and permeable surfaces are often overlooked by folks who go straight to PVC and gravel. The guide reminds you that soft solutions can reduce the size and cost of hard infrastructure.

• Short and approachable: You can read it in an evening and come away with a mental map of your options. For a homeowner starting from zero, that’s not nothing.

Where it falls short

This is where my expectations and the book’s scope diverged. I went looking for a working plan and found more of a primer.

• Limited how-to detail: The book describes components but doesn’t walk you through the build. For example, it explains what a French drain is and when you might use one, but offers little on pipe sizing, aggregate gradation, fabric selection, trench depth/width, or outlet protection. If you’re hoping to take this outside and start digging, you’ll be hunting for missing specifics.

• No visuals: Diagrams and photos are essential for drainage because flow, slope, and layering are spatial. This text-only format makes it harder to translate concepts into action. A cross-section of a properly constructed drain or a plan view of a swale would go a long way.

• Not a design workbook: There are no calculation steps, rules of thumb, or templates. You won’t find guidance on how to measure slope accurately, perform a quick percolation test, estimate capture volume, or size a dry well based on roof area and rainfall. I ended up sketching and calculating on my own and cross-referencing other sources to feel confident.

• Sparse project sequencing: The book outlines components but doesn’t lay out end-to-end project plans. A “start-to-finish” example—say, redirecting gutter discharge away from a foundation with a combination of grading, a short drain, and a small rain garden—would make the material feel actionable.

• Light on safety and codes: Trenching safety, utility locating, discharge rules, and setbacks get only passing mention. Anyone doing work near property lines, sidewalks, or public drains will need supplemental guidance.

How it performed in my yard

After reading, I surveyed my property, flagged low spots, and used a string line and stakes to check slope away from my foundation. The guide helped me prioritize re-grading a swale along the fence line before committing to buried pipe. That alone improved standing water after the next storm.

Where I ran into friction was execution. The book didn’t help me choose between perforated versus solid pipe for a short run, recommend stone size for the drain bed, or clarify when to use fabric around the trench. I had enough experience to make those calls, but if this had been my first drainage project, I would have felt stuck. The lack of drawings made it harder to communicate a plan with my partner and to price materials quickly.

Accuracy and practicality

Nothing in the guide struck me as misleading. The general advice—manage sources (downspouts, driveways), shape the surface, intercept where needed, and plan for overflow—is the right sequence. The plant-based solutions are grounded and encourage using vegetation as infrastructure, which is a smart way to tame smaller problems.

The problem is that drainage is detail-dependent. A good French drain fails with the wrong stone. A swale that’s too shallow becomes a muddy gutter; too steep and it erodes. Without specifications, a lot of DIYers will either overbuild expensively or underbuild and revisit the same problem after the first heavy rain.

Editing and design

This is an independently published book, and it reads like one: clean enough, but plain. The prose is clear, sections are short, and the tone is friendly. However, the absence of photos, diagrams, and checklists hurts usability. A few labeled drawings, material lists, and quick-reference tables would multiply the value without bloating the page count.

Who will benefit

Consider this guide if:
- You’re at the very beginning and need a quick orientation to common drainage strategies.
- You want help deciding whether your issue is primarily a grading problem, a conveyance problem, or an infiltration problem.
- You prefer a concise overview to dense engineering manuals.

Look elsewhere (or supplement this book) if:
- You want step-by-step builds with dimensions, material specs, and photos.
- You’re tackling anything beyond light grading and short drains.
- You need help with calculations, sizing, or code compliance.

Value

As an overview, the book has value: it can save you from leaping into the wrong fix and steer you toward simpler, surface-first solutions. As a hands-on manual, it’s undercooked. Given its length and lack of visuals, I see it as a primer you read once rather than a field guide you keep at your side in the yard.

Bottom line

This drainage guide is a clear, friendly introduction to how water moves around a property and the toolbox homeowners can draw from to manage it. It helped me reframe my problem and choose a smarter first step. But it stops short of being a true DIY manual. Without drawings, specs, and step-by-step builds, it leaves too many decisions to the reader, especially on projects where a few inches—or a few millimeters—matter.

Recommendation: I recommend this book as a quick primer for beginners who need to understand options and principles before choosing an approach. I don’t recommend it as your sole resource if you plan to install drains, swales, or infiltration systems yourself; pair it with detailed installation guides or local extension resources for the specifics. If you go in with that expectation, you’ll get your money’s worth as an orientation tool. If you want a one-stop, step-by-step DIY playbook, this isn’t it.