Variation on a French Drain?

[DrYattz]

We have a ditch very close to where our driveway enters the highway. A culvert carries water downstream under the driveway and into the 3' x 6' ditch, where it continues into another culvert under the highway. After harassing the highway department for years and watching it erode and deteriorate, they finally repaired it a few days ago, but it's still ugly, and is certain to erode again in heavy rains.

So I want to run 2 or 3 pipes (8") from the one culvert into the other, with some gravel beneath and beside them, wrapped in landscaping fabric, over which I'd put some larger rocks, covered by topsoil, over which I'd lay sod. (Thus making the ditch vanish altogether into my lawn.) Most of the water would run through the pipes; any that didn't would drain into the gravel beside and below, and from there it would drain into the culvert under the highway (or into the soil below the ditch).

Will this work?

 

[Sylvan]

How about making a form sides and bottom and cement it so gravel below or from the sides cannot enter the drain and leave an opening on top for water Jettng

Or just make a cement form with galvanized wire lath

 

[Sponsor]

 

[DrYattz]

Sylvan, thanks for responding.

What you are describing is effectively a storm drain box, right? Could put a grate on top to drain surface rainwater?

 

[Sylvan]

Exactly this way it can still drain water and have easy access

 

[John Gayewski]

I think I would just line it with rip rap and fabric. I'm not sure"they" will let you modify the highway easement without a professionally engineered system, which they would want to approve. Not only would this have to hold a semi but it'd also have to have the capacity to drain all of the surface water from the surrounding area.