Proper Drainage Means a Healthier Landscape

Poor grading and drainage can create multiple problems for your plants and your home. Keep the water flowing away from your space with our trained drainage experts.

Landscape Drainage Solutions for Northern Virginia Homes

Perfect Landscapes identifies where water pools or flows toward your home and resolves it with proper grading, swales, and landscape drainage systems, including drainage piping suited to your property. Our approach keeps water moving away from your lawn, plant beds, and foundation, preventing the damage improper drainage can cause.

Northern Virginia has every type of soil and all types of terrain. If the slope of your residence is too steep it could send water right to your home. If it’s too flat or has dips it could retain water creating pooling. At Perfect Landscapes, we have the knowledge and equipment to correct these problems. Proper drainage is essential to prevent unnecessary damage and cost. The landscape architects Perfect Landscapes will provide you with a landscape that is beautiful and efficient.

Landscape Drainage Problems

Water can pool on your property, which is not only annoying, but it can be bad for plants. It can also be a breeding place for mosquitoes.

Water can also flow towards your house, causing moisture to seep into the basement or damage the outside of the house.

All of this water must be channeled properly. There are various methods of doing so. The best method depends on your particular setting and land contouring.

Lawn Drainage

The easiest way to deal with lawn drainage problems is to slope all land, patios, walkways, etc. away from your house. The minimum slope that we work with is two percent, or 1/4 inch per foot. As an example, the grade at a spot four feet away from your house should be one inch lower than the grade at the house. This will assure that water will be directed away from the building. This requires re-grading if your land slopes towards your house.

Landscape Drains

A swale, or trench-like depression, can also bring the water to a landscape drain. This is a contained device with a grate cover. The water enters these types of landscape drains, which are set at lower elevations. A solid pipe can also be connected to the container, so that when the water enters this area drain, it flows into the pipe. The pipe should be pitched at two percent.

The pipe should also be sized correctly to carry the amount of calculated water. The pipe then leads the water away to a desirable area. This may be a wooded area, a drainage pit, or even a rain garden.

Landscape Drainage With Pipes

Sometimes water must drain to an area where there is planting beds and no lawn. In this case, you can install a perforated pipe, which is simply a solid pipe with holes on the top where water enters. This then connects to a solid pipe which leads the water away from the area.

Landscape grading can be carried out in various ways, but it is something that should be considered, if possible, in conjunction with your landscape design. This way, your landscape can be created for both aesthetics and function, and drainage problems will be eliminated. At Perfect Landscapes, we believe it’s best to do it right the first time and that it’s better to prevent problems instead of fixing the damage after.

You can see some of our retaining walls and drainage work in our gallery by clicking here.

Why Northern Virginia Homeowners Choose Perfect Landscapes for Drainage Solutions

Since 1996, Perfect Landscapes has helped Northern Virginia homeowners resolve standing water, runoff, and grading concerns with property-specific drainage solutions. Our team assesses each site’s slope and soil before recommending an approach that works with your existing lawn and landscape.

Serving Northern Virginia homeowners since 1996
Licensed and insured Virginia Class A Contractor
Solutions tailored to your property’s slope and soil conditions
Drainage designed to work with your existing lawn and landscape, not disrupt it

Please note that many counties require extensive documentation and permitting for drainage work and this can impact your total project cost.

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*Please note that design renderings and landscape plans are not included in the free consultation and can be created for a fee.

Where We Work

Bringing Exceptional Outdoor Living to Northern Virginia

From custom landscape design to complete outdoor living environments, our team proudly serves homeowners throughout Northern Virginia. Explore your community below to learn more about the landscaping services available in your area and discover how Perfect Landscapes can transform your property.

Aldie
Ashburn
Belmont Ridge
Brambleton
Broadlands

Centreville
Chantilly
Great Falls
Herndon
Lansdowne

Leesburg
McLean
Potomac Falls
Purcellville
Reston

South Riding
Sterling
Vienna
Waterford

Perfect Landscapes Frequently Asked Questions

How do I know if my property has a drainage problem?

Common signs include water pooling on your lawn after rain, water flowing toward your house instead of away from it, and moisture appearing in your basement or along your home’s exterior. Pooling water can also attract mosquitoes and harm nearby plants.

What causes poor drainage in a yard?

It usually comes down to grading. If your yard’s slope is too steep, water can rush toward your home. If it’s too flat or has low spots, water has nowhere to go and pools instead. Northern Virginia’s varied soil types and terrain make this a common issue across the region.

What is the difference between grading and drainage?

Grading is shaping and sloping the land itself so water naturally flows away from your home. Drainage refers to the systems, like swales, landscape drains, and pipes, that capture and redirect water once grading alone isn’t enough. Perfect Landscapes typically evaluates both together for a lasting solution.

What is a landscape drain, and how does it work?

A landscape drain is a grated device set at a low point in your yard where water naturally collects. Water enters through the grate and connects to a pipe that carries it safely away from your property, whether to a wooded area, a drainage pit, or a rain garden.

Can drainage solutions work in planting beds without hurting my landscaping?

Yes. In planting beds, we use perforated pipe instead of solid pipe. Water enters through small holes along the pipe’s length, so it can drain the area without disrupting your existing plants, then connects to solid pipe that carries the water away.

Should I fix drainage issues before or after installing new landscaping?

Ideally, drainage should be planned alongside your landscape design, not addressed after the fact. Correcting problems in conjunction with design work ensures your yard is both functional and visually cohesive, rather than fixing damage after it’s already occurred.