Connecting Catch Basins to Dry Wells

Call 811, the Call Before You Dig number, to have the utility lines in your yard marked. This service is provided at no cost to you, but if you damage these lines while digging, you can be fined and forced to pay all repair costs.

Mark the path for the drainage system with spray paint or wooden stakes. Begin at the end of the downspout where the catch basin will be installed and proceed to the area where the dry well will be installed. Choose a location for the dry well that drains well and is away from your home. Ideally, the dry well will be placed in ground lower than the catch basin, but if your property is flat, you can work around this by sloping the drainage trench downward toward the dry well. Avoid any buried utility lines when laying out the path of the drainage system.

Remove a layer of sod 12 inches wide from the path of the drainage trench. Soak the sod with water continually to keep it alive, as you can replant it once the drainage system has been installed.

Dig a trench in the pathway where you removed the sod that is 10 inches wide and 14 inches deep. If the area where you're installing the drainage system is flat, slope the bottom of the trench away from your home at a rate of about 2 inches for every 10 feet of run (length).

Place the catch basin inside the trench underneath the downspout to test the fit. Remove more soil from the trench so that the catch basin is about 3 inches below the surface of the ground, and has a 2-inch buffer around the sides. Remove the catch basin from the trench when you are finished.

Dig a hole at the far end of the trench for the dry well. The hole should be 4 inches deeper and 4 inches wider than the dry well. Smooth the soil in the bottom of the hole.

Cover the soil inside the trench and the hole with landscaping fabric to stabilize the soil around the drainage system.

Fill the trench with a 3-inch layer of crushed gravel. Smooth the surface of the trench, and slope it down toward the location of the dry well.

Assemble the dry well, following the manufacturer's instructions, and place it inside the hole at the end of the trench. Fill the gap around the dry well with gravel.

Measure the length of the trench from underneath the gutter to the dry well, and cut drain tile to fit. Drain tile is perforated plastic pipe.

Slide a fabric sock over the drain tile. This is a material that prevents dirt from entering the drain tile, which can clog it.

Lay the drain tile into the trench. Connect one end to the dry well, and the other end to the catch basin.

Fill the trench with gravel to a depth of 2 inches above the drain tile.

Backfill the trench with dirt, then re-plant the sod. Soak the sod thoroughly with water for one week after re-planting.