You stop worrying every time it rains. No more standing water pooling against your foundation or that damp, earthy smell creeping through your vents.
Your crawl space stays dry because water gets intercepted before it becomes your problem. That means no mold growing on your floor joists, no wood rot weakening your subfloor, and no moisture feeding into the air your family breathes.
The ground around your home stops turning into a swamp. Your yard becomes usable again. Your foundation stops settling unevenly because the soil beneath it isn’t constantly expanding and contracting with every weather shift. And you’re not calling someone out for emergency repairs every spring when the heavy rains hit Pfafftown.
We’ve spent over three decades solving moisture problems for homeowners in Greensboro and Pfafftown. We’re NADCA certified, which means our team knows how water moves, where it hides, and how to redirect it permanently.
We’re not a national franchise following a script. We understand North Carolina’s Cecil soil—that red clay covering most of the Piedmont—and why it makes drainage so difficult here. When soil is already saturated before the rain even hits your roof, you need someone who knows how to design systems that actually work in these conditions.
You’re hiring people who’ve seen what happens when drainage is done wrong, and who know how to do it right the first time.
We start with an inspection of your property to see where water is collecting and why. That includes looking at your grading, downspouts, soil type, and any existing drainage attempts that aren’t working.
Then we map out where the trench drain needs to go. For most homes in Pfafftown, that means installing a perimeter French drain around the crawl space or problem areas where water pools. We excavate a trench, line it with filter fabric to keep clay and sediment out, and fill it with graded gravel that allows water to flow freely.
A perforated pipe sits in that gravel bed and collects the water, then channels it away from your foundation to a safe discharge point—usually a drainage ditch, dry well, or storm drain. We slope everything correctly so gravity does the work. No pumps. No maintenance headaches.
Once it’s buried and graded, you won’t see it. But every time it rains, you’ll know it’s there doing its job.
Ready to get started?
You get a system designed specifically for your property and Pfafftown’s soil conditions. That means accounting for the clay content, the slope of your lot, and how much water your roof sheds during North Carolina’s wettest months—typically July, when rainfall averages over four inches.
We install exterior French drains when the problem is surface water or perimeter flooding. If you’re dealing with interior moisture or an already-wet crawl space, we can integrate interior drainage with a sump pump system. Both approaches stop water from reaching your foundation and give it a clear path out.
You also get a system that works with your existing landscape. We’re not tearing up your entire yard. We trench where it’s needed, restore the grade, and make sure downspouts tie in properly so roof runoff doesn’t overwhelm the system.
And because we also handle crawl space encapsulation and dehumidification, we can give you a complete moisture control solution if that’s what your home needs. Most of the air in your home comes from your crawl space—up to 75%. If that space is damp, your indoor air quality suffers.
Most professionally installed French drain systems in the Pfafftown area run between $2,800 and $6,500, depending on how much drainage you need and where it’s going. Exterior systems typically cost $10 to $100 per linear foot, with the average landing around $25 per foot. Interior systems with sump pumps run higher—usually $40 to $100 per linear foot—because of the additional excavation and equipment involved.
The biggest cost factor is your soil. Pfafftown sits on Cecil clay, which is harder to dig through than sandy or loamy soil. That adds labor time and equipment wear. But it’s also why you need a French drain in the first place—clay doesn’t drain well, so water sits against your foundation unless you give it somewhere else to go.
If you’re also dealing with grading issues, foundation cracks, or need to tie in multiple downspouts, that can increase the scope. We give you a clear estimate after inspecting your property so there’s no guessing.
A properly installed French drain can last 30 to 40 years if it’s built right. That means using the correct gravel size, wrapping the pipe in filter fabric, and sloping everything so water flows without pooling.
The most common failure point isn’t the pipe—it’s sediment clogging the system. North Carolina’s clay soil breaks down over time, and if the drain wasn’t wrapped properly or the gravel wasn’t sized correctly, fine particles work their way into the pipe and slow drainage. That’s why we use filter fabric and clean, graded stone. It keeps the system open.
You don’t need to maintain a French drain much, but you should keep your gutters clean and make sure downspouts aren’t dumping debris into the system. If tree roots are nearby, they can sometimes infiltrate perforated pipe over time. We route around that when we can.
Yes, if the flooding is caused by surface water or groundwater seeping in from outside. A perimeter French drain intercepts that water before it reaches your crawl space and redirects it away from your foundation. That keeps the area under your home dry, even during heavy rain.
If you’re also dealing with interior moisture—like condensation or humidity—you might need more than just a drain. That’s where crawl space encapsulation and a dehumidifier come in. We can install both as part of a complete moisture control system.
Pfafftown gets consistent rainfall year-round, and the clay soil here doesn’t absorb water quickly. That means your crawl space is always at risk if you don’t have proper drainage. A French drain is the most reliable way to manage that risk long-term. It’s not a temporary fix. It’s a permanent solution that works with gravity and doesn’t require power or ongoing maintenance.
You can, but it’s harder than it looks—and if it’s not done right, it won’t work. The most common mistakes are using the wrong gravel, not sloping the trench correctly, or failing to account for where the water actually needs to go.
Pfafftown’s clay soil makes DIY installation even tougher. You’re digging through dense, heavy material that doesn’t move easily. And if you don’t compact and grade properly after installation, you’ll end up with settling and drainage problems down the line.
There’s also the issue of knowing where utilities are buried. You need to call 811 before you dig, and even then, private lines like sprinkler systems or septic laterals won’t always show up. A professional installer knows how to locate those and avoid costly damage. If you’re dealing with a wet crawl space or foundation issues, it’s worth hiring someone who’s done this hundreds of times and knows how to troubleshoot problems before they happen.
A French drain is buried underground and handles subsurface water—the kind that seeps through soil and collects around your foundation. It uses a perforated pipe surrounded by gravel to capture and redirect groundwater before it becomes a problem.
A trench drain sits at ground level and handles surface water—like runoff from driveways, patios, or areas where water sheets across the yard. It has a grated top and a solid pipe underneath that channels water away quickly.
Most homes in Pfafftown need a French drain because the issue is water soaking into the clay soil and pushing against the foundation. But if you have a sloped driveway or a low spot in your yard where water pools on the surface, a trench drain might make more sense. Sometimes you need both. We assess your property and recommend the right solution based on where the water is coming from and where it’s going.
Yes, but they have to be installed correctly. Clay soil is exactly why French drains are so necessary here—it doesn’t drain naturally, so water has nowhere to go except against your foundation or into your crawl space.
The key is using enough gravel and making sure the trench is deep enough to intercept water before it saturates the soil around your home. We also wrap the pipe in filter fabric to keep clay particles from clogging the system over time. Without that fabric, fine sediment works its way into the gravel and eventually blocks water flow.
Pfafftown sits in the Piedmont region where Cecil soil dominates. It’s moderately permeable when dry, but once it’s saturated—which happens fast during heavy rain—it stops absorbing water altogether. That’s when you get pooling, foundation pressure, and crawl space flooding. A French drain gives that water a dedicated path out, so it’s not sitting against your home waiting to cause damage.
Local Resources
Useful Links
Other Services we provide in Pfafftown
