How to Measure Elevation of Land, Slope, With a String and 2 Metal Posts: No Transit or Laser Level

I don't have any expensive survey equipment like a transit or laser level so I've got to make due with a string and 2 metal posts. Here's how I measure the elevation of the land to find out if I can drain some standing water to another part of my property. If you're trying to figure out the slope or elevation of your land and don't have the proper equipment, this is the way to do it.
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[@tannerotis]

Nice! Wife and I are doing a 140 feet of drain and was contemplating how to do just what you did. I ended up borrowing a laser transit from a friend but this is essential information for all to have in case you don’t have a transit. Thank you sir. Hope you got your water issues fixed.

[@MikeKincaid79]

Sure did, and so glad I finally did something about it.

[@Ben-hp4rs]

From an engineering standpoint, this makes makes total sense... except for one thing: Measuring up from the surface of the water at both points would only indicate the potential for the surface water to travel from pond #1 to pond #2. I think if you wanted to make 100% sure that ALL water from pond #1 evacuates to pond #2, you should measure up from the DEEPEST point of pond #1 to an arbitrary number, (in your case 41") and then measure up 41" from the surface of pond #2. Assuming pond #1 does have an exit, this method would ensure that pond #1 would never fill again once you graded the property to channel the water to pond #2.

[@MikeKincaid79]

Very very good point, thanks. After going through the whole process of digging the trench, there was in fact about 3 inches of water still in the top pond. I'm really happy with the results but need to fine tune to get rid of that water.

[@johnanderson3746]

@@MikeKincaid79 how did u dig trench and get the water to run downhill did you use and pipe or what ? Middle if my yard keeps sinking it fills w water also some on side both neighbors one in right side and one in back have higher lawns than me and their water runs off into side and back . But middle I think is just low . But right side definitely alot comes from their run off . How do I fix side . And do I just fill in low points with dirt it will it keep sinking from their run off water

[@boots7859]

@@johnanderson3746 I have a similar problem at my house. I solved it by simply adding 120 yards of dirt in my backyard, which raised it enough to allow a swale between our houses to channel the water away. If you can't do that, rent a trencher for a couple hundred bucks for the weekend and put in some drain tile.

[@benbenavente1032]

This guy is cool! Great video and thanks for sharing your skill set with all of us. Respect

[@MikeKincaid79]

Hey Ben, thanks for the awesome comment! Glad to help out.

[@ralpharvin2668]

Thanks Mike. This will serve my purpose of determining if my garden has enough slope for water runoff.

[@MikeKincaid79]

Great! Glad it helped.

[@bernietraplin9815]

Nice job, some good old fashioned ingenunity at work. As long as water still runs downhill your good.

[@MikeKincaid79]

I'm crossing my fingers, lol

[@trescccc]

THANK YOU - I was trying to recall this technique but in my case it was to determine floor elevation measurement. I had a snap line but that didn't seem quite right. Then I had the nails and string and was measuring along the string from the floor but knew I was missing something ; the level made a big difference.

[@MikeKincaid79]

Awesome! Glad this was helpful.

[@HB-yq8gy]

Thank you great video first time seeing this done with no fancy equitment.

[@MikeKincaid79]

I love old fashion techniques.

[@kirankkotha]

Ur video is as legit as it can be...u helped me solve my problem..thanks!!

[@MikeKincaid79]

Awesome! That's what it's all about.

[@fattd9725]

Awesome video Mike appreciate your time

[@MikeKincaid79]

Glad it helped

[@nataliaprakhina4274]

Valuable video. Ty! Leveling out my land for high tunnel construction. Cheers.

[@MikeKincaid79]

Awesome! Glad it helped you out. Have fun building the high tunnel.

[@user-wc2ho7im7j]

As a farmer for many years I could tell tell the difference in elevation. I found your video while trying to figure same think with my backyard however I am dealing with probably 1 to 2 inches elevation difference.

[@MikeKincaid79]

The same applies no matter the distance or height. Good luck.

[@kevinscott4081]

Have a similar problem, but at a smaller scale. Thanks for the tip on how to compare the height.

[@MikeKincaid79]

No problem, glad it was helpful.

[@train4905]

Fantastic method sir,very helpfull indeed,,steve from the uk,thanku

[@MikeKincaid79]

Right on, glad it was helpful Steve

[@obedtari8390]

Thanks Man......Nice Site Background here. Well done. Can you also demonstrate same concept of using automatc level? Cheer

[@OzGeologyOfficial]

Thank you for this! Much appreciated.

[@MikeKincaid79]

Glad it helped!

[@dean-gm1lg]

Could also use a u shape pipe /or tube to find the fall aswell

[@jonathansedgwick2940]

Hi Mike, hope I'm not speaking out of turn but would it not be simpler to just run a long hose from the top pond to the bottom one and create a syphon to get the water flowing. Gravity will do the rest. Saves digging a massive 100ft long trench ? (once you've established which is the higher body of water of course as per this method.

[@MikeKincaid79]

That would work well too but I much prefer having the trench that I dug. I haven't had to worry about standing water for several years.

[@MrAnslin1]

Hey Mike, great video! Do you have video of your construction shifting the water?

[@MikeKincaid79]

Thanks, Anslin! Here's a video about how I fixed it years ago: kzbin.info/www/bejne/aouzfH2qmLN6kKc and here's a video I just uploaded a few days ago of the final fix: kzbin.info/www/bejne/aouzfH2qmLN6kKc I think you'll enjoy them.

[@mk47k__]

This video made me subscribe.

[@MikeKincaid79]

Awesome! Glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for the sub and welcome to the family. Plenty of fun videos here on the channel!

[@hamidhamid5937]

This video helped me out

[@MikeKincaid79]

Glad to hear it!

[@daver2964]

If it works...great. As mentioned....from base of one pole to other make sure your line level is level. Now measure at point 1 from ground to string height, then measure point 2 from ground to striong height(this would be the point thats underneath the water)...when string is level, that difference in height is your slope. Keep it simple...you may need some boots.

[@mary_land0]

Awesome! Thank you.

[@MikeKincaid79]

You're welcome, Mary!

[@AndrewficationGaming]

so in 1,000 sqm flat vs 1,000sqm slope like yours .. the slope is 240meters larger? thanks

[@sarahHeRtzler1]

Cool! So I'm just wondering...do you always divide by 4? I totally forgot about this method. Thank you!

[@MikeKincaid79]

I divided by 4 because the level is 4 foot long.

[@Tupelo777]

Excellent! Now how you going to get water from high area to low area. I know you've got a plan. Hope you can share it. Thanks for video! Oops I found the solution! You've got a ton of great vids. Thank you you're awesome!

[@MikeKincaid79]

That trench I dug has opened up so much dry ground!

[@Jeremy1970Movies]

Stupid question from me: which end was the high end? The one where the level was touching the string or the other. Touching, I'm assuming.

[@MikeKincaid79]

No stupid questions here, if I remember right the end of the level that is not touching the string is the high end. The string is not level and is going downhill toward the other end of the level. Really, it doesn't matter though because you could put the level on top of the string and measure it that way from the other side and get the same result. It was just easier to prop the level up on bricks and measure with it under the string. Thanks for asking!

[@danny6905]

Thanks buddy!

[@MikeKincaid79]

No problem!

[@peterbergeris6510]

How are you directing water to that 33 inch mark? Are you trenching or building up the ground and sloping? Sorry if I sound stupid.

[@MikeKincaid79]

I trenched it. There's a video about it several years ago. Since then I cleared this entire area and had an excavator operator rework the land for better flow: kzbin.info/www/bejne/aouzfH2qmLN6kKc | kzbin.info/www/bejne/eKm5lH2OmL-mrdE

[@TheDrtimd]

Thanks for this. I'm, trying to find the fall over a longer distance (about 330ft). I'm finding it hard to tighten a line over that distance to get anything like a constant fall. I could break it into section, but suppose I made a level platform at one end of my slope, put my 5ft level on that platform, and lifted one end of it so that when I sighted along the top of the level (using it like a rifle) so that it lined up with a point at the other end of my slope. If I fixed it in that position, using a clamp perhaps, and measured down from the end of the level to the platform (I hope that's clear!) do you think I could do essentially the same calculation you use here - ie., if the distance between the elevated end of the level and the platform was 6in, could I assume that the fall was 6 inches per 5ft across the distance of the fall?

[@MikeKincaid79]

Yes, I think you're on the right track. As long as you've got a straight line, you can figure it out. 330 feet is a long distance and remember that if you go to the center of the string where it dips the lowest and then comes back up, you will be as close to the true line as possible.

[@brandonfoy9583]

Thanks so much! Trying to get my new trenches around my plots draining correctly, and my eyes keep playin tricks on me

[@MikeKincaid79]

Glad you found the video. Don't rely on your eyes. Definitely use a level and measure it. That way you will know for sure.

[@saleemakhtar1464]

Wonderful

[@MikeKincaid79]

Thank you! Cheers!

[@KA-wf6rg]

Is this correct? D = distances between posts L = Length of Level G = Gap Drop in inches = D / (L * G) ? OR (D / L) * G ? Drop in feet = Drop in inches / 12

[@jimjustjim976]

@Mike Kincaid Hey Mike, you never applied (or at least never mentioned again) that 1 inch gap which you measured on the slope from the end of level to the line. As you know multiplying by 1 doesn't change anything anyway. Lucky for you, but for myself and others who have a different number for that gap over the 4ft of the level, then we are missing that important step to then multiply that number. Nonetheless thank you for putting me on the right track and teaching me something I could use.

[@MikeKincaid79]

You're right, thanks for pointing that out. It just worked out nicely for me I suppose. If the measurement was something different than 1 inch, let's say 1.5 inches, then you would just multiply that number by the number of 4 foot lengths that I got, in my case 33. I apologize for the confusion.

[@topp352]

How are you going to direct the water Mike?Who needs GPS anyway.

[@MikeKincaid79]

Already have that video filmed. It'll be up soon. Getting that water moved sure did brighten our day up!

[@Myeah]

great video, how do you take the 2.75 ft and turn it into a percentage?

[@MikeKincaid79]

Good video idea.

[@Myeah]

Do you know the percentage?

[@luisislas2162]

@@Myeah either 1" ÷ 48" or 2.75' ÷135'

[@prescillalewete6442]

Hi Mike, on your video , you divided 33 feet by 12, where did you get the figure 12

[@MikeKincaid79]

There are 12 inches in a foot. I could have stuck with 33 inches but I wanted to convert the 33 inches into feet. 33 inches divided by 12 inches is 2.75 feet.

[@fredrickrari9338]

Good video, would you include metric units in your future videos ?

[@MikeKincaid79]

I'll keep it in mind.

[@mikeshanas]

How did you go from 33 feet to 33 inches?

[@MikeKincaid79]

It's 132 feet between t-posts. The level is 4 feet long. I've got an inch of drop for every 4 feet. The math: 132/4=33 inches. I've got 33 inches of drop across the whole 132 feet. That's 2.75 feet of drop.

[@KatherineTheGr8t]

Hi Mike, been a sub for 1.5-2 yrs and right now I'm trying to figure out what the slope from my house to the street should be. Currently it is a negative slope (don't know the terms) back to my house (no basement) but a muddy mess when it rains and a big hole near the faucet - might have a leak too (in Springfield Oregon). One guy on a YT video suggested 1" per foot, so if I have a 25' lawn from house to street 25" (or a 2 foot slope) is a lot for a "flat land" house. You just measured out a 3' slop over 132' distance. I'm trying to build up a 30' section long the front of my house while the neighbor has all this extra dirt and I have the energy. Maybe 1" for the first 10' then 1/2" for the remaining 15' ??? I don't know where to look for the recommended grade from house to street. Any ideas? Whatever you have would be great. Thanks Mike ps I told you I have changed my Hydrangeas from Blue to Pink by adding only baking soda to the soil.

[@MikeKincaid79]

I remember your baking soda comment. I'm not an expert on code in different areas but I do know that the typical septic line runs on a 1/4 inch per foot slope. I would think that should work well for your purposes too. That would give you a 6 inch drop. Much better than 2 feet.

[@KatherineTheGr8t]

​@@MikeKincaid79 Thanks Mike it's just to give me a rough idea and that works. I could get the landlord involved but I don't want my rent to go up again. $975 2bed duplex Spfld & I've been here 18 yrs. Be glad you bought when you did, you have beautiful property Orchard/Rhodies & Twin Daughters : D

[@joeselzer850]

i need a vide on how to level the back yard only about 12 feet left to right and 26 feet font to back left side is some what leveled but as u move the the left side it starts to move down like and at the 10th feet it going way down low i nee it to be all at eh same level and flat so when i put my 12 x 20 cage with a extra 5 x 5 cage at the front it will be flat on the ground it is for my cat and the ground need to be flat so that the cat does not get out from the bottom got any videos for that

[@MikeKincaid79]

Sounds like you need a lot of fill dirt. What do you have, a tiger?

[@joeselzer850]

i have a short hair tabby about 7 to 8 bl. he not big at all but as he can no longer be in the house his will be his new home he only like it in the family room and that is almost the same size he dos not like any other part of the house so making cat condo apartment aka cat enclosement will be almost the same thing just want him to have lots of room to run around. how much do u think it would cost to pay a person to to level it for me i do not know what im doing so i thinking might be better to have a person who know what he is doing

[@MikeKincaid79]

Not sure, you'll just have to call around to some contractors

[@johnwheaton7851]

Good video, only it would matter what the depth of the upper water is, hopefully it isn't deeper than 2.75 feet.

[@MikeKincaid79]

Very true. The volume of water is also part of the consideration and I worried about that a little but in the end it worked out. It turned out that when the lower pond rose to a certain level, it poured down a natural little path that ran off my property and under a culvert at the main road.

[@ronaldededribo8713]

My I know why I divided 33.75ft by 12 & Where did u get the 12 from

[@MikeKincaid79]

It's all there. Try re-watching to understand the math.

[@regsparkes6507]

Pretty slick measuring. I wonder if this old way of measuring has been checked with transit etc. ? Or even a builder's level. You could go rent one and prove the point. But that would cost money, I know,...we will soon see if your calculations are correct.

[@MikeKincaid79]

Oh yeah, they're correct. video will be up soon. One of the more exciting advancements on my property in the past 10 years. The problem is solved, the wife is happy, life is good.

[@regsparkes6507]

I will be looking forward to seeing this one Mike. I'm also thinking that the second to last part of your last sentence will be the secret to success . Cheers.

[@MikeKincaid79]

Whenever I get off track, I refocus on that one goal and suddenly life gets better. Amazing!

[@princechiewolo2837]

Hello, Is the 132 constnt?

[@MikeKincaid79]

No, it's just specific to my measurement here.

[@ussabln]

Nice Navy jacket 😀

[@MikeKincaid79]

Haha, yep. You're the first person to notice that. This was my flight deck jacket from when I was in the Navy. Right before I got out in 2001 the navy changed their jacket style and these were decommissioned so I got to keep it and have worn it ever since. Love this thing.

[@ussabln]

@@MikeKincaid79 I still have mine too and I got out in ‘94…lol

[@latenttweet]

Suppose I could do the same thing with my digital angle gauge, then just use trigonometry to calculate the drop from the angle.

[@MikeKincaid79]

There are multiple ways, with multiple tools, to achieve the results.

[@pb9243]

What would the formula be if it was 2 inches for every 4 feet

[@MikeKincaid79]

(Total length) divided by (4) times (2) divided by (12). That will give you the answer in feet.

[@michaelpina1592]

Mike Kincaid total length needs to be in feet for this formula to work. Great video!

[@jjjjjjjjjjjhjjjjjhjj]

What kind of string is that

[@MikeKincaid79]

Here's a link: amzn.to/43eZa6v

[@kevinta4539]

How do you get 132 ft

[@MikeKincaid79]

I measured the distance between where the water was and where I wanted it to go

[@fodank]

2:40 The word you're looking for is 'catenary'. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catenary You're welcome. Cheers, D.

[@MikeKincaid79]

Thanks for the lesson

[@fodank]

@@MikeKincaid79 You're welcome. Used to skipper a tow vessel. Catenary of the tow line was an indicator of many things, some of them good, some bad, but you had to keep an eye on it. In any event, good luck with your channel. Cheers again, D.

[@xxpricexx817price9]

Need to level

[@MikeKincaid79]

That's true. I guess you do need a level.

[@SirDadbod]

Wait a minute.. If u went to the middle and measured 1 inch from level.. Isn't that one inch spread across half the distance? It's only one inch every 4 ft if u went back 4 more feet and we're 2 inches high...

[@MikeKincaid79]

Go back and watch it again, it works out just fine.

[@brad346326]

Seems like 2 percent grade if you are one inch over four feet.

[@MikeKincaid79]

Cool

[@XGALAXYDRIFT3RX]

You know it's 3:30 a.m when you're watching videos like this that dosen't pertain to your life at all.

[@MikeKincaid79]

🤣🤣🤣 I know the feeling.

[@raylight8687]

Wrong you don't go to middle to measure only need to come in or along the string line a metre or so ;because of sag Working in metres is easier example 30 millimetre gap over a 1 metre level is a 3% fall one end of level [high end touching string gap at other if there is fall

[@MikeKincaid79]

Rethink that, Ray light. If you measure from the end, you will be measuring where the string is descending. If you measure in the very middle where the sag is at it's lowest, it will be even and level.

[@rosal2465]

@@MikeKincaid79 The sag will actually be closer to the lower stick and not in the middle. Next time you see an electric pole line where one pole is lower than the other you will see the sag is closer to the lower pole. But as long as you were able to determine which one is lower that's all that matter.

[@brianbetz7030]

Next video on the list; "How to add, subtract and multiply with a pencil and paper, no calculator or computer."

[@pulsedream]

Looks like 42”

[@deendoherty9674]

That's not the way I'd do it, an easier and more accurate way is to just bang one end down until the line is perfectly plumb and level in the middle with the spirit level then just measure the height at each end and subtract them and you have the fall. With your method even 5mm out at your level could be 200mm out at the end.

[@musclestonebricksolutions3059]

why divide by 12 at the end ?.

[@MikeKincaid79]

Turn the inches back into feet

[@musclestonebricksolutions3059]

@@MikeKincaid79 ?.

[@MikeKincaid79]

I had a 33 inch drop from one side to the other. I wanted to know the measurement in feet so I divided the 33 inches by 12 to get 2.75 feet. So I had a 2.75 foot drop in elevation from one side to the other.

[@musclestonebricksolutions3059]

@@MikeKincaid79 33 x 1 inch = 2.9 foot not 2.75?.

[@MikeKincaid79]

Paul, I think you need to check your math. 33 x 1 = 33. 33 inches divided by 12 inches equals 2.75 feet. I think you are confusing 0.9 with 9 inches. They are 2 different things. 0.9 of a foot is 0.9 x 12. This equals 10.8 inches. 9 inches is 0.75 of a foot.

[@rizwiriya2617]

Why u are dividing 33 with 12.

[@MikeKincaid79]

Convert inches to feet.

[@garrymuir1442]

@@MikeKincaid79 And for all us metric loving people thats approximately 838.2 mm. Good video showing a ballpark way of doing it.

[@MikeKincaid79]

Thanks Garry!

[@icemann661]

God damn with the inches and feet. Cant figure out anything... Metrics here :)

[@Ruben901]

The hell with metrics

[@soupertrooper3864]

Metrics, the new system to accommodate simple minds

[@ronnedith1]

I’m trying to understand how are you able to get the overall drop with your calculations. Length from post to post is 132 feet Length of level is 4 feet 12 inches=1 foot 132/4=33 feet/12=2.75 feet Why would you say that you have 2.75 feet in elevation per 4 foot ? Why would you say that you gave 33 feet in elevation total ? From my understanding diving the total length between the posts by the length of the level is not going to give you the drop but just a simple segments of the total length divided by 4. The only thing that is giving you the drop is the 1 inch every 4 feet. The only reason your math is working is because your drop every 4 feet is 1 inch, if it was more than 1 inch then your math wouldn’t work. So I think the math should be (This only works when is multiplied by 1 which gives you the same result) 1 inch = 4 feet X inch= 132 feet =33 feet/12=2.75 But let’s say the difference is 1.5 inches every 4 feet 1.5 inches=4 feet X. Inches=132 feet =49.5/12=4.125 Whereas if we use your calculations 132/4=33/12=2.75 it would always give the same exact result of 2.75 inches regardless of the drop. None the less, thank you for the video because this idea would help me figure out what’s the drop in my backyard for a fence installation I’m doing where I want to see how high from the ground each post needs to be at to sort of have another guide on top of the top line we need to run.

[@MikeKincaid79]

You’re welcome for the video. Trust me, the math works great. I’ve been challenged about it hundreds of times since posting this and in the end, most people finally see it and say Oh, I get it, lol.

[@ronnedith1]

@@MikeKincaid79 Mike thank you for relying, I noticed a lot of people where asking stuff such as “where did you get the 132 from ?”, “why do you divide by 12”, “why did you divide by 4?” And that’s because they didn’t watch the video twice and took the time to write down all those values. However, I understood all of those values and wrote it down and still think that dividing 132 feet by 4 feet would not give you the drop between point A and point B, the only reason it did give you the drop between point A and point B is because it happens to be that your drop when putting the level against the string is exactly 1 inch but if it were to be 1.5 inch.. then you would have to calculate that and thus multiply 132 x1.5 and then divide it by the length of your level in order to get the overall drop in inches between point A and point B.

[@MikeKincaid79]

Yes, everything you said is exactly spot on.

[@boots7859]

Nice when you don't have a tool and you can use your head and use some of that stuff we learned in school, no?

[@MikeKincaid79]

Haha, I agree 100%. We should do more of that.

[@agentjonburrows9595]

Just get a line level

[@MikeKincaid79]

What fun would that be?

[@51vvince]

you didn't take into account the curvature of the earth

[@MikeKincaid79]

LOL

[@SY-ky8xi]

Why divided by 12 again?

[@MikeKincaid79]

It's all explained in the video. Go back and re-watch it and you'll see it. This worked out great for me and helped get the exact measurement I needed. Thanks for watching!

[@SY-ky8xi]

@@MikeKincaid79 thank you Mike. You’re absolutely right! I did my garden tiles today with your way, and it worked perfectly fine too! Wish me luck to conquer my garden project!

[@wwalk632]

he assumes the land is flat - in one plane - over the distance . No ups and downs ??

[@MikeKincaid79]

No, I don't assume anything about the land between the 2 points. I think you aren't understanding the concept. Doesn't matter if you have ups and downs between the 2 points. Doesn't matter if Mt. Everest is between the 2 points. If 1 point is lower than the other then the water will flow that way as long as you have a path for it to flow down like a trench.

[@hamyncheese]

Is it me or does the measuring and calculation seem wrong on some fundamental level? Why wouldn't you set posts at set intervals (say 10 feet) and level each span between poles? That way when you get to the end you can know exactly all the changes in elevation without doing a circus act holding a level and a tape measure in mid air at the center of a 132 foot span of sagging line.

[@anymanusa]

The "wrong" is that he should've just drawn a tight level line with a string level attached to his string and just done a straight measurement from the string down to his ground. I linked him up with the proper $1.99 tool and a comment so that he knows the easy way from now on.

[@MikeKincaid79]

I think you're both missing the point, lol. I worked with the tools I had, a level, tape measure, string, and 2 t-posts. I suppose I could have gone to the store and bought all the proper equipment but that defeats the purpose of the video. Also, there's more than one way to skin a cat.

[@hamyncheese]

@@MikeKincaid79 sure pal, whatever.

[@loafandjug321]

A line level cost $1.29. Don't make it complicated just for views.

[@MikeKincaid79]

I posted this video way before I even cared about views and nobody watched, lol. There's a tool for everything. This will work if you don't have the tool though.

[@loafandjug321]

@@MikeKincaid79 You went to a store to buy t-post and no line level?