This is truly remarkable! Not only are you building an amazing solution for the situation, but you're also thinking 10, 20, 30 years down the road! I love it! At my company, Solid Built Construction, our goal is to Build Beyond Standards.... I've been using Prosoco fast flash, kerdi and all kinds of high performance solutions since 2010.... but, I'm always learning more and aiming to build better.... your videos are amazing! Thanks Steve! #keepcraftalive

If you have a budget like many of Matt's projects seem to, for a build on a site similar to this one, do you think it would make sense to use Form-A-Drain for the footers AND a French drain system about 3/4 of the way between the footer and grade?

Water is the enemy of buildings. Proper site planning and landscaping for drainage is key. Large roof overhangs protect doors, windows and siding. Proper below grade drainage systems move water away from the foundation. Rain screens protect walls from excess moisture. Cutting corners in these key areas will come back to bite you. Too many time landscaping is an after thought for builders but proper site slope must move water away from the building.

@stevenbaczekarchitect9431 why isn’t the black waterproofing carried all the way to the top of the foundation wall? What’s the rationale for stopping? You mention the waterproofing is up to the grade level but over time you know some homeowner is going to add dirt for plants etc. and the grade will get altered slightly plus I also see this exposed foundation area on homes and wonder what happens when that heavy rain storm hits on a vertical, what’s stopping the concrete from absorbing water? Thanks!

Replacing the dirt back fill with stone… does it affect the frost depth? Will the footers still be protected when back filled with stone vs compacting dirt?

Hey Steve, quick question - under the 3/4 gravel, is there anything to channel water to the perforated pipe? I know some have used and EPS sheet product or something similar to minimize the chance that water by-passes the drain. Just wondering if you found that necessary here. Thanks for all the vids!

Love the solution.

in your opinion, where's the best location to place the drainage pipe, below the footer (not directly under it), next to the footer or just above the footer in the if a crawl space slab is 1 foot above the footer. thanks

With gravel from top to bottom, how does this effect frost protection for the footing? Isn't it the more typically used dirt layers that provide enough insulation to prevent the ground from freezing at the footing?