How to operate an excavator-to install a French drain

How To Do A French Drain. Using Ford L9000 and Yanmar vio80 excavator to do a French Drain Install for an excavation project | DigginLife21

[@ccmch31]

Always fun to have the customer standing over you.

[@fillowtree5505]

Nice to see you working with a rake for the finishing touches. A machine can’t do it all. Love the channel.

[@DigginLife21]

Thanks for watching. I really appreciate it.

[@metalfabman5477]

It's just amazing how much work 1 man can accomplish with a couple peaces of equipment that he knows how to run! Great job Todd. Really enjoy watching your expertise on machinery, thanks for your videos!

[@karlwalton7687]

A little hand work always makes for an honest days living !!!! Nice job looks great

[@BFRandall]

I'm liking your editing--set up, starting real time, then time lapse through the tedious parts--then real time for the interesting bits--then a summary and conclusion. It would be awesome to come back when it's raining and show it in action. Well done on this video.

[@DigginLife21]

Thanks for the feedback my friend!!! It really does help me to make better videos for all of you.

[@BFRandall]

@@DigginLife21 you're really reminding me of a deep-south version of Andrew Camarta. His NY accent is just as strong as your NC drawl. Love them both. Andrew's editing is the bomb. You are both very good teachers. Keep it up. Hopefully you can make enough to be worth your time and trouble.

[@bradnavratil360]

I remember doing a job like that and there was a big fur tree and it was in way so I cut it down and so was picnic table it was cemet so we got out the jackhammer and took care of it Those were the good old days👷🍺🍺🍺🍺🍺

[@kenbarnes8958]

In aprox. 1920 my grandfather installed several sections of French drains to drain about 1/2 mile of bottom land. He didn't have plastic pipe so he used a lot of pine poles. He dug it with mules and a drag pan. The ditch was about 6 feet wide and 4 feet deep. I can't imagine that much work even with modern equipment. It was still working good until we sold the land in the 80's and the new owner planted pine trees all over it just as it was originally. All that work gone.

[@ohiovalleypondandexcavatio2114]

I always use a 24 inch bucket do my French drains it works great when they have a big rain. And I use a pipe with the wide cuts in it with a sock over it and I use fabric in the bottom gravel then pipe cover with gravel and wrap and staple the fabric the topsoil sand mix works amazing. French drains are a big money maker up here in Ohio because of all the clay.

[@DigginLife21]

Thanks for the input my friend

[@michaelkoop6731]

Great work it turned out like I expected it would. That's how I'd do it too. I've not had one fail yet. Like ur videos very much. Thank u again.

[@DigginLife21]

Always great to see you in the comments

[@brentking-gmailking2570]

Great job Todd.... That should last the customer a long time. I love diet Dr. Pepper too. Have a Blessed Day Brother.

[@DigginLife21]

Thanks Brent!!!

[@alanabney8504]

I love doing french drains

[@poorfarm-nn6ii]

If you are going to do much of that hand raking. You can’t beat come along , like you would use for concrete. Doesn’t hang on roots. Cleans hard surfaces pretty well. Will probably never use a rake again.

[@eliteearthworksllc]

Nice work my man! That will do the trick 👍🏻

[@DigginLife21]

I hope so!!!

[@Cody_Buck]

Brother you make some fantastic content. Watching this video made me feel like I could start doing French Drain jobs to start my business! I do have a couple questions. Do you get utilities marked before you dig? I work in the city of Little Rock for rhe sewer department and we always have to get utilities marked. Also, does your machine have a float function on it or are you just super good at back dragging gravel?

[@arkansasunpluggedlife]

Hey man. Arkansas here. Just wondering if you use washed gravel? I’ve heard that it really needs to be washed, smooth stone. Maybe 1”-1.5”. Great video.

[@justinbailey8845]

How do you go about finding utilities? If customer is unsure of any? Is that what 811 does? Not sure if they were for private property or public property only.

[@justinrobertson1590]

Thanks for the informative video. Ideally, how deep should a French drain be or does that depend on different variables?

[@DigginLife21]

Usually 12-18 inches

[@fivestring4653]

Good job ole feller 👍. Wondering , did you put a box on the end of the solid wall . It's hard to see the grade on the video. What was the purpose of the solid wall ?

[@gayle4804]

Boy they had their nose right there with you, Wonderful job

[@jacklabloom635]

I had to install a French drain around an in-ground swimming pool that would float the liner due to hydrostatic pressure from ground water. The 12 inch wide French drain did the job. The liner never floated again. I hired a guy with a ditch witch on the back of a tractor. The ditch witch dug a 12 inch wide trench 3.5 feet feet deep. I did the rest of the work myself.

[@DigginLife21]

They will do the job!!!! Thanks for sharing🙏🏻

[@jdq79]

So I’ve been watching you for a while now and I don’t think I see you do many jobs like this and it brings up a couple questions. Do you just not get the opportunity to do this type work or do you not look for it or do you normally try to avoid it? Is there “idea” work that you prefer to do over others? Please refer me to a previous video if this s something you’ve discussed in the past.

[@smokeeater1769]

Great job brother, I assume that it's safe to drive over this drain without crushing it?

[@fivestring4653]

It's safe

[@diggerupdude2484]

Hi Todd was wondering how would you bid a French drain job like this one and how long is this drain? I was just thinking about this a couple days ago and how to bid this type of job. Love the channel man. How long is your flat deck and can you carry both tractor and excavator at the came time or is this a weight issue or length issue ? Thanks helping spread the word for friends to ring your bell. Keep up the good work man. Look forward to the next one.

[@DigginLife21]

Anywhere between $2k-$3k. This one was about 85 feet long. Its a 25 foot trailer. I can only carry one piece of equipment at a time. I can fit my tractor and a roller at the same time. Thanks for watching🙏🏻

[@arlingtonguy54]

@@DigginLife21 😩 I’m going do a 100’ French drain tomorrow and drastically underbid it. Live and learn.

[@benkenobi671]

@@arlingtonguy54 My quick bid formula for shallow French drain construction is $35/linear foot (I have seen bids as low as $10/lft but wouldn't care to guess on the quality) with 1 clean-out and 1 pop-up or exit fitting (which can be several things like an angle grate)... If you need additional cleanouts, catch basins (not the box), storm inlets, etc. - that's all extra. It takes about 1.16 cuft at 14-inches deep or about 1.5 cuft at 18-inches deep of gravel per linear foot at 12-inches wide. I'd have to go dig into job notes to give you a good number on the filter fabric, but I'd guess about 1/2 sqyd per linear foot - on average - wider or deeper drains may take more. Oh, and I don't use corrugated from the big-box stores... I buy Baughman Tile virgin corrugated material... The ONLY corrugated I'll use now.

[@themikemetzger]

Loving the channel! Are you able to disclose the ball park number of what you bid this size of job for?

[@grangerclark3536]

What size gravel are you using for this? I enjoy watching your channel.

[@Grubbtree]

Very good

[@groove4507]

4th! Lol great vid

[@DigginLife21]

Thanks Groove!!!

[@Demy26]

🚁🚁🚁🚁

[@joeylowry6219]

Honest days work.

[@itzOLE3]

As professional as we want to be, there's always something that is goofy... like unrolling a perf pipe lol

[@DigginLife21]

True story

[@LitlD]

I'd be worried that the folks will drive on that side and find that they will sink a tire into that gravel. Walking traffic or tracks won't make much of a divot, but a tire will start spinning and digging quite easily.

[@jasonmonroe5981]

Do you call 811 on a shallow dig like this?

[@Zerkini]

first

[@joeshmoe7789]

Why a french drain? Was there a ground water problem? Why not a surface drain of some type? How was the yard pitched? Where was the roof water going? Was there a drainage system already in place? Where does it discharge? You installed a french drain designed to collect some surface water, but never said why?

[@RyJones]

Oh man don’t let that one guy see you. He’s really passionate about French drains

[@DigginLife21]

Ry Jones Apple Drains?! I love watching that guy

[@RyJones]

@DigginLife21 nah, French Drain Man. He’s really passionate

[@python3574]

He also doesn’t know how a french drain actually works.

[@fergusonlandmanagementweld3696]

I like the video, but the music is straight out of a Barnie Show Playlist.....I had to watch with my sound OFF!

[@detailgrandma22]

I found this channel in search of possible drainage solutions but Im at a loss at how this works in any way. A pipe buried and capped so nothing can get in it to even drain??? Doesnt seem to be anything but tearing up the yard. What did I miss??

[@themikemetzger]

The initial pipe he laid is perforated, meaning it has holes all around the entire pipe, which allows the water to seep into the pipe and run down to the end of the driveway. The cloth keeps the dirt/silt from getting through to the gravel, other wise it would slowly clog the gravel and holes in the pipe, thus slowly destroying its ability to evacuate the water out of the area though the pipe. Hope this makes sense

[@Vanlifecrisis]

He capped the end above the house, the end down by the road is open. Water goes thru gravel, then fabric, then holes in pipe to travel down channel of pipe.

[@madbikerwolf8664]

Doesn't wrapping the perforated pipe with plastic seriously reduce the efficiency? I thought the whole point was that water would seep into the pipe and flow out and not erode the soil. By covering the pipe, water will flow over the edges of the pipe and make runnels on either side below the gravel.

[@DigginLife21]

It's not plastic. It is a mesh that water can pass through

[@joeshmoe7789]

French drains collect ground water which accumulates slowly so wrapping it protects it from collecting mud and the rocks from getting clogged with silt. Surface drains need to collect water quickly so the fabric will slow it down. This appears to be a french drain that doubles as a surface drain for small amounts of surface water.

[@Ful-OGold]

I hate it when clients watch me

[@roadrash90]

Man I know you can't do anything to that tree but, man don't you just think to yourself though, like god I'd love to hop my boom of it as hard has I can lol. I hate tree's or bush's in my way that I can't touch.

[@DigginLife21]

true story

[@caseyjames5774]

What is the prefered depth on a french drain?

[@DigginLife21]

18 inches

[@caseyjames5774]

Awsome thanks!

[@bluegrallis]

@@DigginLife21 Wouldn't that depend on the climate? Up here in N Illinois, we have frost that can go to four feet, depending on ground cover, snow cover, and temperature.

[@DigginLife21]

@@bluegrallis that’s a really good point!!! I’m am not sure about that. I do know that in upstate New York they do them at 18 inches

[@bluegrallis]

@@DigginLife21 I know of people that use a"french drain" for gray water. I had one here when I bought the place. It was probably 30 inches below grade and had cement blocks stacked on either side, with 2' by 4' by 2" pre formed cement blocks on top. It worked OK, till it got a coating of grease and washer soap all around, then acted like a sealed contained.

[@kenskip1]

What happened to Brandon?

[@DigginLife21]

Decided to move on

[@kenskip1]

@@DigginLife21 I am sorry to hear this. I thought that you had a "Keeper" If I wasn't pushing 65 I would be knocking on your front door.

[@DigginLife21]

@@kenskip1 Yeah me too. He's a great guy and a hard worker. I would wish him only the best in his future.

[@alexsilvers3221]

Can’t stand when people watch you work lol

[@g157fasdf9]

you don't need to use level? how to ensure the water won't back up from the pipe/hose?