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Gary Brady[_2_] · 18-06-2007, 02:51 AM posted to austin.gardening

wrote:
Good morning everyone,

My honey and I are in the process of looking at houses.
In the learning process of looking one at potential homes, one of the
issues that came up with buying a home is drainage.
We went to see a particular house and it was in good shape , but
noticed that there was a large pond, created by the recent rain.

I have a couple of questions here about that.
1. Where or to whom would a home owner go to about property drainage?

Probably a landscaper is a start for simple problems. For more complex
situations, a civil engineer may be required. Expect more expensive
solutions from an engineer.

2. How expensive is it to generally rectify such issues?

This is a case by case issue. If you and all of your neighbors are at
the same elevation (relatively flat)the solution could be very complex
(expensive). If your ponding area is a low area surrounded by a higher
area which is in turn surrounded by low areas, the solution might be as
simple as a small diversion ditch or swale.

3. If I get rid of drainage on my property where does the water go?
and if it goes to my neighbors can I be sued ?

The water has to go somewhere, probably across the next lot. If you
divert or change natural drainage so that it causes your neighbor to be
impacted somehow, he my well could sue you.

I've noticed that a lot of the older houses in the middle section of
Austin have subsided a bit so that the crawl spaces hold water after a
rain. I've had a few customers ask me what to do about this and I
generally don't have a solution. The sections of the block in question
are often very nearly the same elevation and if the ponding lies lower
than the curb, there's no easy way to channel the water from the property.

--
Gary Brady
Brady Construction Services, Inc.
“We Recycle”
www.bradyassoc.8m.com