: I'm about to dig a couple of drywells to catch roof runoff, and was curious if it was necessary to fill them with gravel, and what the purpose of the gravel is. I thought to use open bottom barrels of some sort for the wells - those with tops strong enough to avaoid caving in. Is that all the gravel is for, strength? Seems like it takes up a lots of space that water could be ....

: -Andy

Andy,
A drywell allows water to perc back into the ground. Holding water in barrels doesn't allow that. When the wooden lid rots, you have what amounts to a trap in your yard. The gravel filled drywells, a hole filled with large washed rock, covered with filter paper and dirt can be walked on.

• Re: Do drywells need to be filled with gravel? bob figuero 09:46:30 12/30/01(0)