Fix 02 · Roof water
Roof water that ends at the house
A roof sheds a lot of water in a few minutes. Where it lands decides whether your patio, bed or crawl space gets it.
A downspout that stops at the wall puts all that water beside the foundation. We carry it away in a buried line to an outlet that has somewhere to go, and check where the gutters themselves overflow.
What it looks like
Wet ground or splash marks at the foot of a downspout
Mulch washed out of a bed under the roofline
A patio edge or garage slab that stays damp
What is usually behind it
Where roof water goes wrong
The downspout ends at the wall
A short elbow drops water right at the foundation, where it soaks back toward the house.
The gutter overflows
Clogged or undersized gutters spill over the edge. We tell you if the fix is gutters, not ground.
Several downspouts, one low spot
Water from two or three corners meets in the same place and has nowhere to leave.
What we would build
How we move it
We pick the simplest line that carries the water to an outlet.
Buried downspout line
Solid pipe from the downspout to a pop-up emitter or a lower part of the lot, laid at a tested fall.
Pop-up outlet
A cap that lies flat in the lawn and opens under pressure of water, so it can be mowed over.
Rain barrel or rain garden
A place for some of the water to be used or soaked in, with an overflow path for the rest.
Splash blocks and regrading
For a small roof or a gentle yard, a few inches of grade can be enough.
What decides the cost
What moves the price of a downspout line
The pipe is the cheap part. The digging and the outlet are not.
Number of downspouts
Each corner needs its own line or a shared main.
Distance and outlet
A short run to a low corner costs less than a long run to the street.
Surface in the way
Lawn is simple. A paver walk, driveway or deck costs more to cross.
Gutter condition
We can note gutters that need work, but we do not replace them.
Questions we hear
Do you install or clean gutters?
No. We handle where the water goes once it leaves the gutter. If gutters overflow, we will tell you and point you to a gutter company.
Where does the pipe end?
At a pop-up outlet in the yard, a lower part of the lot, or a place the town allows. We check where water may go before we draw the line, because sending it onto a neighbor is not an option.
Can I collect some of it in a rain barrel?
Yes. We can set a barrel under a downspout, with an overflow line to the same outlet.
Roof water at the house?
Tell us which corners are wet and send a photo. We will look at the roofline and the ground together.