{"id":2632,"date":"2019-07-09T18:49:37","date_gmt":"2019-07-09T18:49:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thehouseofrocks.com\/gallery\/?p=2632"},"modified":"2019-07-09T18:49:45","modified_gmt":"2019-07-09T18:49:45","slug":"dry-creek-beds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thehouseofrocks.com\/gallery\/dry-creek-beds\/","title":{"rendered":"Dry Creek Beds"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Spring\/Summer of 2019 is on record as one of the wettest\nin recent history. As a result, homeowners have discovered drainage and erosion\nissues they didn\u2019t know they had! A dry creek bed could be a perfect solution\nto protect your property while giving you peace of mind when that next\ntorrential rain comes through the area. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The goal of a dry creek bed is to create a natural-looking\nyet functional space for areas that commonly flood or hold standing water after\na big storm. Dry Creek beds still look great even when the weather is nice\nwhile being relatively maintenance-free. The process is surprisingly easy, but House\nof Rocks can also refer you to a quality landscape company to design and\ninstall the creek bed for you. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

How To Build<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

  1. Figure out where the water currently pools and flows. You can easily tell if you pay attention during a rainstorm or you may notice areas of clear erosion after repeated rainfalls. <\/li>
  2. Design the overall scope of the creek bed from start to end. Be sure to have plenty of random curvature for that \u201cnatural\u201d appearance. Many people will use rubber hose to create and adjust an outline of what the area will look like and mark the area with spray paint once the shape is determined. Figure out a good area for the excess water to be directed to. You\u2019ll want to avoid re-directing water into your neighbor\u2019s property and public access areas like sidewalks\/streets. You should check with your local Public Works department before channeling water into the storm drain. You may also consider a dry well if there are simply no areas to direct the excess water. A dry well is a deeper hole with a plastic basin filled with rock that will collect water and allow gradual absorption into the surrounding soil. More on dry wells<\/a> <\/li>
  3. Call your local utility hotline to mark possible underground utilities.
    Kansas: Call 811
    Missouri: 1-800-DIG-RITE<\/li>
  4. Dig! This is where you can call a professional excavate the area and give you a blank canvas or you can rent equipment through a local rental service such as Anderson Rental. If your area needs a dry well, we recommend contacting a professional. <\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    Digging a trench to a max depth of\napproximately 8-18\u201d while being careful to dig the area about twice as wide as\nit is deep. Width and depth should also account for the amount and intensity of\nthe water. A dry creek bed will not be of much help if it is too narrow or\nshallow to accommodate a big storm. The surface should be relatively flat with\nangled sides for the larger rocks to rest on. The leftover soil from the\ninitial dig can be put to use to raise the sides while using a hand-tamper to\nmake them solid. <\/p>\n\n\n\n