Building a Hybrid Open Drain/French Drain System & Making it Look Like Decorative Rock Landscaping

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[@chrishanes4310]

Most of us would consider this "rough work", yet you still treat it as if it were surgery. You never cease to amaze me with your precise approach with anything you do. Your results always show the care you give to each project. I appreciate your efforts and please keep the content coming. I look forward to each episode.

[@93Martin]

I recently learned that the French drain doesn't hail from France. The name comes from a man named Henry Flagg French from Massachusetts. He didn't come up with the idea himself, but described it in a book "Farm Drainage" in 1859.

[@andrewalexander9492]

Yes, I just recently came across this same information myself.

[@jenniferwhitewolf3784]

Love this trivia... true origins👌

[@hunterdan2002]

You were watching just a few acres, weren't you?

[@crb456]

Or Practical Engineering.

[@andrewalexander9492]

@@crb456 Yeah, Practical Engineering was where I heard that. I couldn’t remember where that was until you mentioned it.

[@OldRedTractors]

That is going to be an awesome shop. Can't wait to see it finishes

[@tonygough8713]

Good job Sir, you didn’t cut any corners on the drainage system for sure . thanks for your videos. Take care

[@colleenogrady5708]

My daughter thinks I'm odd for watching your videos, but I honestly enjoy all of them. I think part of it is the technical side as I'm a mechanical engineer, another part is they're relaxing and well done. I appreciate that you keep it on topic too. Thank you for doing what you do and just being you.

[@michaeldurling793]

Nice work and your perimeters look great.

[@michaelbaumgardner2530]

As someone who has done this a couple of times in 60 years,you done a a fine job.

[@GavinY]

Now I'm eagerly waiting for a heavy rainy day to see it all working

[@Mr_Springy]

Interesting job and attention to detail 👍🏻

[@steveschumacher5470]

add this to the long list of things that if you want it done right, you do it yourself. nice job

[@yamonda900]

You're work is amazing mate , you are a perfectionist .

[@jeffmc7946]

Looks great!

[@lordcaptainvonthrust3rd]

That looks really really good, Squatch. I know contractors who wouldn't be as neat and tidy 👍

[@themalewhale59]

Very thorough. I hope we are going to have a video in a rainstorm showing it in operation. 😊

[@ImpHalla66]

We got a good close shot of Squatch's favorite boots. I wanted to suggest a fund from members to get him a new pair, but those of us that know, a well broken in pair of boots cannot be replaced. I'm also curious why Squatch does not cut off the remainder of the rubber grip on his dirt pounder?? A quality job requires a good plan, and some patience. Nice work Squatch.

[@googleuser1036]

Dang you make me feel my age. Enjoy it while it's here for you!

[@rogerallen6644]

Here’s where the KZbin “expert” in me wants to say “I woodna done that”. He’s very disappointed right now. Very well done! Absolutely immaculate!

[@RobertBrothersJr-dc7nr]

Toby, very nice video on how to do a French drain. You installed the drain like you do everything with the utmost detail and precision. You do an excellent job on anything that you do. Thanks for another fantastic video.

[@aussiedazvk4djh889]

You'r not just a pretty face Squatchy. You have put a lot of thought into the drain. 👍

[@michelbrodeur6055]

Agreed.

[@michaelscriffiano9267]

Nice job Toby

[@curtislowe4577]

Although it would only be a few seconds of content I'd like to see that oldest drain outlet during a heavy rain event now that it will be collecting roof runoff also. I don't know any Minnesota rain sayings but take your pick: Rainin' cats and dogs Toad strangler Like a cow peein' on a flat rock Turd floater

[@davidsmith-ee8cb]

The texture and color of the "dirt" looks a lot like Oklahoma red sand dirt. Good job, I admire your exacting approach, do it right once and relax has been my mottow as well!

[@stevea9604]

By the time it gets clogged up…Your grandkids will be learning how to do this 👍🏻🤩😀

[@JohnSmith-pl2bk]

You can get the 360 degree perforated pipe in double wall... very smooth on the inside to allow the rush of water to carry the silt down to the end of the pipe with the normal flow of water.... corrugated exterior as for the single walled pipe... but with far greater crush resistance.... iplex nexusflo as an example

[@gregorycross612]

Nice and clean installation! The barn project is looking great

[@Thomasgarrick113]

Looks like yal are getting some rain today good test for the drainage system we got some rain yesterday really helped

[@squatch253]

Yep started raining about 4 this morning and supposed to continue all day - should be a good test for the new drain 👍

[@libsrdum]

With all of those lines going into a 4" line you may exceed the capacity. I had to take out the 4" collection pipe and replace with 6". It worked fine until 2 weeks ago when we got 6 -7 inches of rain in 2 hours. The system couldn't handle it. I hope you'll do a follow-up when you get a heavy rain. You do great work in everything you do.

[@squatch253]

The saving grace so far has been the double 4” drain pipes that I put into the original 3 years ago, up to this point I’ve yet to see water running out of the pipes at the daylight end - so far just the 4” deep rock layer I’ve got under them has handled everything. And being perforated their entire length, what one can’t handle will find its way out and enter the other one 👍

[@wsbrand]

Nice work. It sure doesn't feel like three years have gone by since you made the french drain.

[@plainnpretty]

Very nice work you done a excellent job building these drains you shouldn’t have any trouble with them for a long time. Thanks

[@edkeniston4786]

Nobody can say you aren’t a hard worker! I haven’t seen anyone compact material like that in a long time. Everything looks really good, just like we all knew it would. Hurry up though, winter’s coming! 😂

[@rontroester3786]

Very educational video! Giving me ideas how to solve the water drainage issues around my house. Thanks Squatch!

[@shaneharrison4775]

Lol my dad Put in French drains in a lot of places when I was a young boy until I hit my 25th birthday and they totaled 22 drains while dad did the digging I did the mapping and measuring . Loved being able to learn that stuff.

[@mikeembrey9176]

Great job very neat 👍🏻🇺🇲

[@dougkubash8673]

Great job!! Lots and lots of work but it is done right!

[@6point5by55]

I never imagined that installing a drain could captivate my attention for 25 minutes. But of course a Squatch253 drain video could. Good work Toby.

[@clydeschwartz]

Excellent video the drain system is looking really nice you gave a very good explanation of how to do the job 👍

[@JamesLeatherman]

You and Pete from Just a Few Acres Farm are cornering the market on drainage videos

[@philipr7686]

Aching inside, "The missed Lake Superior agates in the rock beds!" Most of my agates have been found in similar rock beds while spraying lawns. I tried some 'gravel glue' on the gravel driveway at the lake. First time trying it to control a washout in the drive, and where the drive meets the street, keep the loose gravel from migrating into the street. Haven't been back since July 4 weekend. No idea if it works. Permeable it says. This is a long way of suggesting to try it on the rock beds to keep the stones in place. Some on youtube suggest thinning Elmer's white glue, which is cheaper. Apply with a pump sprayer.

[@kevinf92]

As a guy who has worked around and repaired a lot of gutters(and the damage they cause that is often out of sight), I wouldn't give you a dime for any of them. Your system will work far better for far longer than any gutter.

[@bobcrone6151]

Looks fantastic! And thanks for the explanation on perforated pipe! Makes sense and very clear description!💪🏻

[@guifrakss]

Very interesting

[@rickyjessome4359]

Great video Toby! I don't think you will need to worry about water issues for a long, long time. Cheers

[@BillTheTractorMan]

Thank you Squatch for sharing this process. I am in the acquiring stage of land to put a building on for my tractor hobby and playing with my tractors. I am loving the drainage ideas I am learning from these videos.

[@stevea9604]

Sure looks sharp all around…You could be a showcase for how to get this done 👍🏻😀👏🏻

[@charleswelch249]

I like the way you are controlling the water. There is no maintenance, and the appearance will blend in with the build. Hopefully, you can move in sometime before winter hits us.

[@deannajoseph]

I like how water flows West from one side and East from the other. - It's the great water shed.

[@squatch253]

Both sides go to the east 👍

[@markhelseth253]

@@squatch253 I really like the revision on the lean-to side to direct water to the south. As you noted, water doesn't like 90 degree corners as orignially designed at the north end. Good call. I can sleep nights now. 😉 Hopefully, we'll see ya at Nowthen on Saturday morning.

[@FRRitter]

Such a well thought-out project Toby! It's a treat watching it unfold. Can't wait to see the structure in use.

[@nandi123]

Looks great. I hope you will video the runoff when you get a big downpour.

[@anthonyhoult152]

Hi Toby, you clearly work to the same standard I do and you should be proud of what you have achieved. The finished results so far already look amazing. Nothing wrong with being meticulous with how you go about each job. I love doing a job and making sure everything is spot on and central to the last 18/1" Already looking forward to your next video 👍

[@josephperkins4163]

Professor Toby, Water Progression Thought Pervious Soil 101. I haven’t had a better instruction in my life! Keep them coming!

[@janking2762]

1140, very elegant backhoe operator…

[@samuelspade889]

That’s what I did around my house 30 years ago… still works, no issues.

[@cspfitch]

Thank you for sharing your video I have installed a French drain myself but now I know where I went wrong. I’ll definitely be doing the next one this way!! Thank you.

[@paulfazekas7475]

Great job the barn-ground work top notch just one thing missing the vintage fire hydrant alongside walk-through door haha greatjob top notch 👌

[@ron827]

Very well engineered but I am disappointed there was not a foldover lock used somewhere. :)

[@brycewiborg8095]

I think in those terms too. Roofed the house, and installed a water softener this summer. I probably won't need to do that again. Tussen Takk.

[@SuperMAZ007]

Excellent work Toby. Soon you can move your machinery into the new building. Im sure this space will allow you do tackle some projects that need room and space to work with.

[@jmailbell]

You got just a few minutes of thinking involved in that project, enjoyed the video!

[@raincoast9010]

hand tamping, that's a good workout!

[@criswagemansbophadoung8081]

Great video.. thanks for sharing.

[@ricksmith-iw2op]

Nice job. Looks great.

[@bombardier3qtrlbpsi]

Nice job as always. Thanks for sharing your ideas for water run off!👍

[@paulforster4133]

Good work, Squatch

[@markkatemcghee2381]

Nice work.

[@seniorelectrician6831]

looking good! I agree on the snow issue, I put steel facia on upside down over the house gutters so snow does not rip them off.

[@davidkimmel5153]

Interesting. Thanks

[@jstutzman1301]

Water always seeks its level.

[@kenskip1]

I wish you good luck with the corrugated pipe. The ribs will slow the drainage. Gate City Foundation Drainage has a lot of information on this topic.

[@daleolson3506]

And it pops out of the ground.

[@aserta]

Nice, clean work!

[@robertamerrick2000]

Doing that stuff IS HARD!!!!

[@jayfojtik5262]

As always. Such a great video. Well thought out and extremely well explained! That’s for sharing all your knowledge.

[@paul4124]

Very interesting and very well explained. ❤🇦🇺

[@raincoast9010]

Good job!

[@arthurirwin8235]

Well done!

[@gjetips]

What a great job you are doing. Your shed is the envy of many. I may have missed this but I am curious about the location of the lean-to section. Is it facing North? I'm really interested why you decided to put it on that side of the building. Thanks for all the time you put in to your videos - I look foward to each one.

[@squatch253]

A couple of reasons why I put it on the north side - first reason is because that’ll give everything under the lean-to maximum shade from the sun year-round with the main building blocking most of it already. The other main reason is because we get most of our snow buildup on the south sides of our roofs due to the Lake Superior “wrap around” effect, the weather comes in from the west but starts to spin when it hits the warm lake. Because it takes all summer for Superior to warm up and all winter for it to cool back down, the winter storms hit it and react, and we usually get it from the south due to where we’re situated.

[@gjetips]

@@squatch253 It was the snow I was thinking about. Coming from the southern hemisphere I would never have guessed that you don,t get the bad weather from the North!

[@raincoast9010]

really nice!

[@RobertBelt-x6d]

Greetings from Germany... Pretty much the way it is done here in Germany and works quite well. Only difference is the rain gutter system is a norm some residential areas collect the water in (For Example) a 5000 liter tank or approximately 1300 Gallons of rain water. Often used as lawn & garden watering and sometimes used as sewage flushing.

[@RobertBelt-x6d]

PS: The double wall cover culvert is a good idea to remember for heavy traffic area. Plus your explanation makes perfect since.

[@dustyfarmer]

With your downpipes you can run a length of galvanised chain instead in the outlet of the gutter & the rainwater will follow it.

[@jacobbuckley8232]

Id put some type pf water proofing on the 2x around the bottoms the exposed to the weather.

[@SandBoxJohn]

Person I know collected the water off the roof of the home he built in the 1960s in much the same way. The difference being, the trench the stone was placed in was roughly a foot and half deep with no drain tile in it, the trench was wide enough to allow the southwest corner on the back of the house to drain directly in creek.

[@raymondlyon2660]

Nice work!!!

[@toowey22]

The shop looks great. Do you plan to pour concrete aprons at the door openings?

[@squatch253]

Yes, possibly as soon as next summer but I didn’t have the budget for them this year 👍

[@justinmijnbuis]

Top job

[@lukestrasser]

Looks like that Shelby Stanga sounding hay cutter man needs to pay your property a visit!

[@squatch253]

Yes, aren’t we all just so lucky…🤦🏻‍♂️🤣

[@lukestrasser]

@@squatch253 TURTLE SOUP TONIGHT

[@Mr19chuck49]

😊😊😊

[@coltnavrat7383]

Hi Toby watch every video been thinking about ya

[@hammertime7834]

work hard to work harder

[@johngibson3837]

Hey up mate in beginning ov video rake was leaning on shed with head on ground which is bad as if stepped on will smack you in the face, red shed works is looking great

[@Michael_CS615]

HINT - If you are going to bury a pipe for water runoff there will eventually come a time when there is mud buildup and/or root invasion. The easy way to clean is high pressure jetting - BUT - to do that there should be an easy access point both at the start and end of the pipe. And any direction change must NOT be at 90 degrees.

[@squatch253]

Like I said near the end of the episode - no water system is without its own unique set of problems, my goal here is to hope that they stay away until after I’m not around to have to deal with them lol 👍

[@matthoward923]

If that french drain doesn’t move enough water, your going to need an Ark😊

[@mtronics]

oh boy would the rock crusher be nice. decorative crushed rock... AND you have nearly unlimited supply LOL!

[@stephenpeterson7479]

Some cities don't have that good of drainage.

[@wagon9082]

Good video

[@ericcorse]

Bang up job, looks pretty darn nice. how is Senior's garage project coming along?

[@TheAde71]

Meticulously planned and executed.

[@1crazynordlander]

Nice!

[@vincentdunne7197]

Hi squatch, I have a question , it my be dumb, but what are you using for water storage? I think you once said you planned on living here, man cannot live without water. Good job 👏 👍

[@squatch253]

We get all the water we need from the wells we drill on our properties here - so much flows underground that we don’t try to capture any of the above ground runoff. They call this the “Land of 10,000 Lakes” because we have water on top of water just sitting around lol 👍

[@johnentinger6524]

does the fabric on top of the tile hinder the water from getting to the tile on a heavier rain? I have had 3- 3" plastic pipes that shallow ,with overloaded semi's(beer) run over them for 20 years! , not even egg shaped.

[@squatch253]

When new, this filter fabric is rated at 135 GPM water flow rate through it, but over time as it catches (filters) the fine debris that gets carried along with the water, that flow rate will be reduced. It’s like any other filter, it will get dirty and need replacing eventually 👍

[@cometcountry1974]

20:50 Was that the unofficial Minnesota state bird? LOL That camera angle sure makes the misquotes look big!😊

[@colin8532]

I believe the answer is yes, BUT, unlike all other state birds, they are not protected. In fact, people are encouraged to kill them! LOL

[@squatch253]

lol that was a deer fly - nasty buggers that’ll bite as soon as they land and make you puff up so bad that if I get bit on the back of my hand I won’t be able to see my knuckles 20 minutes later 🤦🏻‍♂️ But the mosquitoes have really died back by this point in the summer 👍

[@tater_relocater]

Better leave a site map for future generations

[@squatch253]

After I tip over someday I’m not too worried about what the next person will do lol 👍🤓