Regardless of the fact this is a high dollar house, that French drain job with all that exterior wall detail insures that basement has a near zero chance of leaking! That is high end work on a high end house! Very good job, first rate! Do it once and do it right!

There is so much miss-information on French drains on the Internet but not this, finally someone doing it right, great job!

My favorite comment now that i saw somewhere else : Waterproofing takes up only 1% of the construction cost but if not done correctly can be responsible for up to 95% of damages.

Perfect! I love that there were more than products featured. The step by step process is a great addition to the normal product review. The length of the video was longer, which is perfect because you had great content. I hate a rushed video that leaves me with more questions than answers

I'm not a fan of french drains because of sediment clogging, but i must say , this is one of the best french drain jobs i have ever seen. Very high quality work.

Wow. this is great. I love the dedication to doing things right. The guy Bryan obviously knows his stuff.

Excellent video. I tried myself in my house and the results were fantastic!

Enjoy your videos. Great openers. Clean and right to the point.

What a great product and process of installation.

Ohh La La!! I’m going to retro fit this on my 1806 stone house! Thanks Matt!

Great video would love to see more on a remodel version of this...buying in CO. Looking at how to improve house, add Radon mitigation, waterproof and condition attic and crawl space...

Glad to see a vid on French drains 👍

Very informative video! Thanks for sharing Matt.

Hey Matt, awesome video. Great step by step.

Thanks for the video! Incredible job! In my opinion, the best drain concept I've seen!

Super dope...need that in Portland....great vid

kind of relaxing listening to brian's voice

Bulletproof foundation drains, bravo.

You guys are unbelievable the best I just learned so much from you guys

This is invaluable information. You excel at finding the best builders and subs.

This is so good! Thanks for posting!

GREAT subject and video. I built an underground home (3 sides and top covered with earth) 38 years ago. I wish we had these technologies back then.

In Finland we install the dimples on the inside, because of possible condensation against the cold ground. I guess in a warm and humid climate it's reversed.

great sound, great video, good work Matt!

There’s a saying that the more you know, the more you know you don’t know. Matt is a treasure trove of information. Somehow as soon as I have a question he’s already made a video on it.

Dimple membranes called as drainage sheet are one of the most versatile and effective materials for waterproofing of the buildings. It is (HDPE) High Density Polyethilen based and provides speed in your construction projects, sustainability and environment friendly solution.

Liking the FD system, I did something similar in 12/17 after being fed up with 2"-3" of water in the basement every time we got a heavy rain. FD was set 7' away from foundation, 6.5' deep (about a foot lower than the floor of the basement). 62' was cleared and 3 tunnels were done (driveway, walkway, water/sewage/gas lines). A $600 budget kept me from using adhesive, had to use fabric anchors every 18" to wrap up the burrito. True test was on 8/17/18 when we got over 5" of rain in a day, which would've resulted in at least 4" in the basement last year. Not a single drop this year.

I am really impressed by Brian's methods. Bombproof. Very attentive to detail. Great job buddy. BTW, were you ever a pro-wrestler? You should have been.

Awesome video. After 2 layers of septic rock, is that back filled with dirt or does the rock come all the way up to the grade?

I used a product called Form-a-drain to make the footings for my house. It's a rectangular french drain piping system that also acts as a form.

I recently purchased a house and I've been enjoying your channel and getting renovation ideas. I need to move water away from the foundation in my new place and I've thought about using board with the dimples. Do you know if there are applications in which that board can be placed horizontally towards a drain tile about 5 or 6 feet away from the foundation? I'm thinking of starting the board against the foundation (below grade) as show here for about a foot and then angling it horizontally towards the drain tile. Tough to explain. Main thing is to figure out if that drainage board can be run horizontally with run.

Your show is like This Old House on steroids!

I truly miss the luxury of having a walk-out basement - here in Dallas, basements are few and far between, which is unfortunate, as a basement offers a nice controlled environment that comes in handy during the sweltering 100+ degree summers, as well as offering storm-cellar safety during the frequent spring storms

Thank for the great videos. Qustion, what about underground water coming up and soaking through your foundation slab? Have you done any protection for that and is that an issue at all?

Love the clean out on the drain pipes

I've built on some unique projects. But - it seems that there aren't a lot of Generals and subs that care to do things right. This is a great example of a great contractor. Thanks for the video and detail. The steps, the products, and why you wouldn't use other products were all great. Thank you!

ANOTHER MARVELOUS VIDEO FULL OF MARVELOUS 411!

Sceptic rock. Been looking for name if rock someone we using for landscape and was giving some away. Now I now!!

I really like the cleanout idea and this system! Thank you! The only question I have is about the french drain holes. You mentioned that the caliche soil is very fine so you protected the top of the drain with layers of rock and filter fabric, but what about the bottom, where the actual holes are? You only have a single layer of filter fabric between the ground and the holes. If the holes are facing up, you have all that protection above it. I understand most water will come from the top down, but any water working up from the ground and any standing water around the filter fabric at the very bottom could eventually compromise that single layer, inviting that caliche soil in, right? Also, all that weight of the rock and earth on top seems like it would push those holes extremely tight against the ground, possibly eventually sealing them off with built-up soil and dust from the rock. Why make the water fight to get in the holes? I've heard the arguments for holes facing up and down, but I think holes on both sides are the best idea, especially in this case. Thanks for the video!

French drain with clean out!?!?!? Badass.

What if you want to insulate your basement with rigid foam on the exterior? What's the best way to go about that when you have the dimple mat?

Here is how to make the best French drain system ever. Tools needed for this job. Block saw, brush, drill, hammer, shovels, and a rake. First step is to find where water is coming into the house. On this house where the block meets the slab had a gap. I filled it with water proof epoxy. Let dry then put black tar base water proofing over it and also put it along the block where it meets the footer. Put pipe down and cover up. Always make sure the pipe is going down hill so water will fall.

5 STAR Draining system seriously 🎯💯🤙🏽

Great video. Great system. Thanks.

Great video as usual

You guys make me want to build in TX

Any tips on applying dimpled membrane around plumbing that penetrates the foundation wall? Currently adding a french drain to my 80-year old house. My water intake is 3.5ft down in the middle of the wall). Do I just need to cut the dimplemat vertically? Do you do anything about the seam?

What slope does the French drain need to be on when it’s going around the footer?

Of course you have a kick ass video about French Drains, seems any Construction related video I can think of you have cotent for that.

This looks like the drainage installs made in Sweden in the 70s. The drainage pipes aren't below the house foundation and makes it possible for the concrete to suck water. The plastic wrap around the house looks pretty much like the infamous swedish product "platon" with some modifications. The blue goo makes it impossible for the ground water that have been sucked up in the walls to escape out, so the only way is to dry to the inside of the wall which will make damages inside the building. Take a look at "isodrän" or "pordrän" for superior swedish drainage systems which solved these problems in the 80s.

That is exactly how i did my basement waterproofing, but i did a 10ft setback all crushed rock all the way up.

I have not heard from other builders about corrugated black drainage pipe collapsing. I have tile drains in my farm fields that are 40 years old. The ones I dug up are good. Granted, they are only 3-4 feet deep but I have 10 miles of them.

Done the right way! Not cheap but worth every cent!

Well done!!👌🏼

Thanks so much for the video but there was no mention of sump pumps or if they’re needed.... Also pro/cons on running gutters down to perimeter drains or separate drainage all together.... Thanks Matt for your great video and informative methods to building a great home

Great job!

I was hoping the guy in the red shirt would wrestle Matt.

Most basements will have a humidity problem due to outside or humid house air entering warm air gets in to the cool basement like when you take a shower the bathroom mirrors fog up. It’s worth it to install a goops dehumidifier for the whole house

Mattt you are the Man 💪

Do you have any recommendations on brand/weight for quality filter fabrics/geotextiles? Also, looking at the perforated PVC it looks like it is solid core PVC instead of cellular/foam but I don't know that I have seen perforated solid core - am I correct in assuming that foam core is sufficient to withstand the backfill dependably? Great videos by-the-way, I enjoy your showing of best practices as opposed to the same old junk most others seem to utilize. :)

Someone might of already asked this question, but what product is used for the membrane that was painted on? And what is the product they applied to the membrane afterwards?

Great video. Correct way to do it!

That is the best system I have ever seen.period. 🇦🇺⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Seeking permission to direct our viewers to this particular video it supports our philosophies.

This is the French drain of my dreams.

Is there any specific type of adhesive, like brand you would recommend and system to spray it onto the wall? Thank you!

Great video Matt, wish more guys took pride in their work the world would be a better place.

This is amazing

@5:02 I'm a little confused as to where those pipes end up connecting. Do they go to a sump pump or are they meant to collect water and just drive it into the soil, thus keeping it away from any contact with the walls?

Great video! Can the drain mat be spray adhered to exterior XPS? Our basement is insulated on the outside with 3" XPS. Thanks!

Very nice. I would add that the only thing that the perf pipe really does is provide a pathway for whatever clean out maintenance activity you do over time. If your geotextile truly keep sediment out of your septic rock, the septic rock “burrito” will be the pathway for any water...not the perf pipe. Imagine your bathtub full of septic rock and a 5’ length of perf pipe at the bottom. Turn the shower on. Is the pipe REALLY doing anything?

I believe the "killer french drain" was the most efficient and ubiquitous execution device during le revolution.

Can you do a video on wood foundations? I have a 1990 house with a partial slab / wood foundation house. I want to protect it, but I’m a DIY guy.

And how do you connect the black pipe of the MiraDrain to the white, Sch40 pipe? Just T-s? And every how many feet do I need to have the black MiraDrain drain pipes in place?? Thank you!

Good job !

wow. great way to do it!

Would you recommend a drain system outside along the foundation of my house or in my crawlspace around the foundation wall before I encapsulate my crawlspace?

It's only works with flat walls though. Older homes that have a rock base that does not work with. Do you have anything for those kind of walls?

The system makes sense but correct me if I'm wrong shouldn't the pvc sit on top of stone not directly on the bottom of the filter fabric?

Brian is one big dude!

What weight fabric do you recommend for a french drain?

I love how he non-Ironically said, " If you have 5 million dollars to build a hill country house..." I'll just go drown myself in a french drain system now.

Does all this external waterproofing create an issue with moisture internally, with the basement walls? i.e. damp. Is that solved by ventilation? Whats a good system?

Looks good missed the part does it day light some where ?

Our house is built in the 1940s and the french drains needed to be repaired since we are seeing some dirt coming into the drain. However, we don't where the french drain goes or if there is any layout plan for it ever exists since the house if very old? Where should we start,? Should we talk to the landscaping company or plumbing company instead? Thanks for your help.

The weep holes go on the bottom because everything down there is denser than water, this helps keep dirt from entering, and filling up, the pipe. At least this is how my father explained it. Has anyone dug up an old one of these? How did it do? ( I also think Bryan is right about using schedule 40 instead of that soft stuff. That soft stuff is just going to flatten into uselessness.)

It looks like the perf pipe is sitting on the top of the footing. If it is, the cold joint between the stem wall and the footing will see water before it's carried away in the drainage pipes.

Where in relation to the footer is the drain pipe installed?

In some applications, to reduce stress on a below grade foundation wall or retaining wall, use Polystyrene foam blocks as fill.

How does the water come out of the pipe? Is it put in on a slope?

Mr. Brian Long, excellent job. May I add, water is not the best solvent, but the universal solvent. Bio diesel or vegetable oil are faster, so possibly they are. the best solvents. Your drainage design is impeccable . I commend you.

Matt, can you tell me the name of your intro / exit music on this video?

Cleanouts are a good idea (and quality builders do that as a matter of course), but need to use long-sweep fittings to allow the snake to work - don't see that on the cleanout riser pipe.

What are you supposed to do if you're having basement leaking problems and the house is 60 years old? I only have 1 wall that's a problem here in Michigan, and it is on the side of the driveway... which is pitching towards the house now

Aren't the dimples supposed to face in?

How far out from the footer do you run the french drain? Should it extend 5 ft then end into a "gravel pit" should you run it into a bucket with a sump pump?

My question is this, where in texas are they building a house with a basement? I grew up in Houston and have been through the entire state and never saw a basement.

Fantastic!!!!!!

@mattrisinger are there any dimple mat products that provide drainage to both sides of the dimple mat? Looking for product that promote both drainage but also prevent hydrostatic pressure. A dimple mat with filter fabric on both sides and frequent weep holes will allow front and back side drainage and prevent any hydrostatic pressure. All the US products I've found don't offer all those features

What about the slab? how do you waterproof under it? foam isnot good?