Home landscaping around house

[redhat]

Foundation planting beds can be bad for proper water drainage away from the home. There's tons of interweb information for proper drainage fixes without hiring a contractor or spending a ton of money.

This picture shows the obvious: People invite water to drain towards and down the basement wall

I had to do something similar to below to get water away from the home. Not pretty, but clean, neat, low maintenance, and it effectively stopped our basement leaks. I put rubber pond liner under the top material to form "flashing" around the basement walls. That, and a bit of grading to move everything away. We put some potted plants on the edge to soften the looks and there's plenty of honey-do planting bed space away from the house, where it belongs.

@doitmyself -- This looks great, love it!

I have a few questions if you don't mind.
1. What size stone is that?
2. Are those bricks, and if so, any paver sand or leveler under them?
3. Did you tamp the ground before the pond liner and stone?

And rubber pond liner, like this stuff? https://www.lowes.com/pd/smartpond-84-in-L-x-120-in-W-Black-PVC-Pond-Liner-200-Gallon/1000862966

Sorry for the late reply to this, forgot for a bit. But then remembered.


Thank you all for your thoughts and suggestions!!

 

[MSCH]

Home has gardens on 3 sides of my home. It is a lot of upkeep and I'm just not super into them. This spring I want to tear most of them out and add fill to build up around my foundation. I am trying to decide what to put around the house?

Topsoil and seed it?
Put down decorative stone and either edging or maybe a brick wall up to the lawn? For stone, I believe you put down a plastic or fabric layer?

What would you put around your house?

If anyone has some pictures, that'd be great.

currently I have mulch over a layer of landscaping cloth, supplemented by doses of Roundup.

 

[doitmyself]

currently I have mulch over a layer of landscaping cloth, supplemented by doses of Roundup.

The purpose of the pond liner is to act just like metal flashing on a roof. It is water proof and directs the water away from running directly along the basement wall and possibly seeping in.

@redhat I apologize - that is not my picture, I copied it off the net (usually I'm good to point that out.) Here's my much less beautiful job below.

I used a very stout commercial L shaped lawn edging made in Michigan: https://permaloc.com/edging/permastrip/
I exaggerated the grade, maybe 1 inch drop per foot over 30 inch span (pic does not show properly).

I was very meticulous with grade stakes, strings, etc.. I dug out the sod/soil deeper than the final grade. I installed about 4 inches of "processed road gravel", which is a mix of sand/clay/stones used for road edging in Michigan. Maybe 22A, but I found these descriptions to vary across regions. I hand tamped everything during the process.

I used rubber pond liner, NOT PVC plastic. The rubber lays down flat without creases and is just better (IMO) than slippery plastic. The rubber is beyond tough/tear resistant. I believe it is similar to black EPDM Rubber Roofing Membrane, which should be cheaper because it does not need to be fish-safe. I cannot remember the mil thickness, maybe 45 mil? https://www.bestmaterials.com/detail.aspx?ID=19130&gad=1

I used 1 inch stone (remember, stone is different than gravel) purchased bulk from a landscape supply, applied the least depth I could use to not have any rubber show - maybe 1.5 inches deep?

You have to be careful your edging does not create a dam that water builds up - thus the exaggerated grade AND water exit routes.

Lots of manual work and perfectionism in my case, but it has been good for over 18 years. Back then, I had more time, less money to hire someone. Sweat equity. PRICES ON ALL MATERIALS HAS SKYROCKETED. I corrected basement leakage for well under $500 back then vs. thousands to have a contractor dig up around the house.

 

[Donald]

You need basic foundation plantings around the house. You can get low maintenance ones.

 

[redhat]

The purpose of the pond liner is to act just like metal flashing on a roof. It is water proof and directs the water away from running directly along the basement wall and possibly seeping in.

@redhat I apologize - that is not my picture, I copied it off the net (usually I'm good to point that out.) Here's my much less beautiful job below.

I used a very stout commercial L shaped lawn edging made in Michigan: https://permaloc.com/edging/permastrip/
I exaggerated the grade, maybe 1 inch drop per foot over 30 inch span (pic does not show properly).

View attachment 153835

I was very meticulous with grade stakes, strings, etc.. I dug out the sod/soil deeper than the final grade. I installed about 4 inches of "processed road gravel", which is a mix of sand/clay/stones used for road edging in Michigan. Maybe 22A, but I found these descriptions to vary across regions. I hand tamped everything during the process.

I used rubber pond liner, NOT PVC plastic. The rubber lays down flat without creases and is just better (IMO) than slippery plastic. The rubber is beyond tough/tear resistant. I believe it is similar to black EPDM Rubber Roofing Membrane, which should be cheaper because it does not need to be fish-safe. I cannot remember the mil thickness, maybe 45 mil? https://www.bestmaterials.com/detail.aspx?ID=19130&gad=1

I used 1 inch stone (remember, stone is different than gravel) purchased bulk from a landscape supply, applied the least depth I could use to not have any rubber show - maybe 1.5 inches deep?

You have to be careful your edging does not create a dam that water builds up - thus the exaggerated grade AND water exit routes.

Lots of manual work and perfectionism in my case, but it has been good for over 18 years. Back then, I had more time, less money to hire someone. Sweat equity. PRICES ON ALL MATERIALS HAS SKYROCKETED. I corrected basement leakage for well under $500 back then vs. thousands to have a contractor dig up around the house.

Thank you for all of that info. Yours still looks great! You say you’ve had it in for 18 years. I see your in Michigan. Similar climate to Western New York. Do you ever have issues with weeds growing in the stones from any sediment or dirt collecting? Or do you spray with weed killer or solution?

I know round up is some nasty stuff.

 

[doitmyself]

I make a point to mow with the grass clippings blowing away from the building to lessen organic debris buildup. Weed seeds are in the air in abundance. Occasionally a weed will manage to germinate in the crack next to the building. Weeds growing in the stone itself is not a problem. Every few years I edge the lawn next to the aluminum with a flat spade to keep that manicured. I like low maintenance.

Once, I had a mole get under membrane and make a mess. Just an annoyance of living in the country, critters, bugs, etc..

I use Roundup very occasionally. I respect it the same way I do gasoline, which is probably more dangerous (actually I wear rubber boots and gloves using Roundup). Best for another topic.

 

[MSCH]

I use Roundup very occasionally. I respect it the same way I do gasoline, which is probably more dangerous (actually I wear rubber boots and gloves using Roundup).

yeah, you seen too many advertisements for ambulance chasers looking for victims with Mesothelioma.

probably ought to wear breathing gear too.. and with gasoline because gasoline is nasty friggin stuff too...

 

[redhat]

I make a point to mow with the grass clippings blowing away from the building to lessen organic debris buildup. Weed seeds are in the air in abundance. Occasionally a weed will manage to germinate in the crack next to the building. Weeds growing in the stone itself is not a problem. Every few years I edge the lawn next to the aluminum with a flat spade to keep that manicured. I like low maintenance.

Once, I had a mole get under membrane and make a mess. Just an annoyance of living in the country, critters, bugs, etc..

I use Roundup very occasionally. I respect it the same way I do gasoline, which is probably more dangerous (actually I wear rubber boots and gloves using Roundup). Best for another topic.

Awesome, thanks again, Really looking toward this route. Maybe some potted plants on top of the stones I'm thinking.

 

[doitmyself]

I built a planter box with trellis on the non-public side addition to make it less sterile looking (hasn't received post winter cleanup yet). In my case, I was trying to stop basement leaks by diverting water away from the foundation and avoid costly solutions. Google "drip edge landscaping", building edge drainage" etc.. Here's a whole treatise on proper house water diversion: https://yr-architecture.com/keeping-water-out-7-design-techniques-to-control-water-movement/