First off, I would like to thank you for returning to the forum with the construction details. It's seldom we get to see the results of a discussion. You say that you probably removed more dirt than indicated in the plan (12 - 15 truck loads). Looking back on the thread and my files, I don't see where I posted cross sections or did the dirt calculations to determine the quantity that would need to be removed. Considering your cooperation, I wish I had done that for you. Anyway, looking at the plan, my eyeball estimate would be somewhere around 60 to 80 cy. If the truck was a five yard dump, 12 to 15 loads seems about right. The plan had an elevation of 98.29 for the top of the retaining and a grade of 97.4 at the center of the swale at the wall corner. The difference of 0.89 ( 10.5 inches) looks to be about what your photos show was constructed. In other words the grading seems to be very close to what Yardvaak and I suggested. The ditch between the patio and upper wall looks to be a little overdone. All that is needed there is a very shallow swale below the patio grade and extra depth will make maintenance more trouble. Have you had enough rain to confirm that the new grading has eliminated water getting to the deep drainage protecting your house foundation and brick retaining wall? I'm curious what your plans are for the old garden area and the slope between the swale and the upper retaining wall. There is also the issue of soil preparation for new grass.

Okay, here is a specific proposal as an alternative to Class 2 Base Rock, with the application being a paver base rock layer. Combine 3/8 inch pea gravel together with coarse fill sand. It is yet to be determined what percentage of each the mix should have. I am hoping that this would give good compaction with a tamper tool, and would be easy to move around to get it to level. 3/8 inch rock is going to be much easier to move than 3/4 inch rock. One thing I notice is that the pea gravel below has rounded corners. True crushed granite has sharp edges. Does it matter for compacted base layers? One open question is whether a compaction layer really needs a lot of microscope powdery fines of the type you see in Class 2 Base Rock. I do see how that powder gets the base very stable when it is compressed. But it also slows down the drainage. At this point, I am just hoping to solicit feedback from people with experience. Pea gravel photo here: Fill sand photo here:

Rob - I’m about to do the same thing but multiplied by several gutters Plus a channel drain between new pool and house. How did it work for you? I’m using schedule 40 PVC of course, and considering pouring my patio right up against my crawlspace which would in case the vertical run of PVC going up to my gutters. Just wondering how this would hold up with natural concrete shifting over the years. Of course I could just leave at 12 inch radius of rock around the circle entry point at the patio but I like the idea of solid clean concrete.

I cannot answer your primary questions. I have some drainage issues myself. I will just mention that I think I have read that a house should have 10 feet of "positive grade" which is generally evaluated in terms of percentages. So, for example, 10 feet is 120 inches, and 5% of 120 is 6, so a 5% grade would mean the soil at 10 feet from the house is 6 inches lower than the soil at the house. A professional visited my site recently and recommended a 2% grade, but then later I found an online article recommending a 5% grade. Hopefully other people will jump in and give you more information. Drainage issues--ugh!