If the basic grading around your how wasn't done correctly at the build or over the years has settled badly... the best option would be to get it graded again.... but this is also the most costly and destructive to any existing landscaping you have in place.

Since no one else has jumped in… here’s my take. I am not a pro… so take that into consideration. But if I had a similar problem.. This is what I might do.

Adding porous soil on top won’t help. This would include sand, many “topsoils” you can buy at big box stores, or most likely any “dirt” you can buy at a big box store. Many times these aremade from organic materials which will break down over time and you will end up in the same spot. They typically don’t have much mineral content which won’t degrade.

Assuming you have clay soil… you would want to add more clay soil to match the clay soil below your top soil. The dense clay is what will direct your water in any directiong. So you could scrape back the decent top soil you have until you get to the subsoil and then add the new clay soil….. Increasing the slope. Then pull the decent top soil back. You could find a source for “clean fill dirt” or just find some cruddy clean dirt from construction site to get the “clay” that you need. Or you can get it delivered. It’s a lot of work.

Another option would be to add a french drain of some sort. There’s many youtube videos on this process. It’s a lot of work too!

You have any pictures to give a better idea of your issue?

Is clay the type of soil where you live? If so look for construction sites with piles of dirt (clay) and talk to the foreman to see if you can have a load or three delivered. The closer you are, the better. Finding fill in Central Ohio is not the easiest but with time and effort, can be found. Can also try pool companies and perhaps CL.

:eek: (free clay that has been dug out)

Hi Emerie, the short answer is probably yes but i'd rather start by letting you know where you can get it for free :)

At least here in Michigan top-soil is typically about two feet deep, so if you dig below that you should find a much higher clay content as worms and microbes and roots from plants have removed most of the biomass. If you've ever dug a trench for wiring or drainage or to install porch or fence-posts then you'll recognize the difference as it's harder to dig out the clay than topsoil.

If you have a yard and you're trying to drain water away from your house, then there are other areas to which you are trying to drain the water typically about two feet away from your foundation, if you plan to install drainage where i live it's suppose to be below the frost line which is over two feet deep where i live.

If you have the means I would suggest removing the topsoil from the areas around your house and putting a thicker layer of high-clay content sloping away from the foundation. I'm also not a professional landscaper but you can google landscaping suppliers and ask what kind of dirt they sell, i know when a house is demolished it usually appears to be high-clay content soil that they use to fill it in. Best wishes,

Hi Emerie, you can try changing the topsoil. Find the best soil for gardening around the house then change the topsoil.

Making slop is a great option. However, for heavy rainfall, you can use shade. This is quite common.

Hope you find the answer.