Downspout and underground drain lines
In a Lowcountry downpour, the roof is the biggest water source on your lot. Here's how buried downspout lines handle it.
A summer thunderstorm can dump inches of rain in an hour, and every downspout funnels a whole section of roof into one spot. If that spot is next to the slab or crawl space vents, the ground there floods first. A buried line connects the downspout to solid pipe that carries the water out to the yard, the ditch or the curb.
Solid or perforated pipe?
For roof water, solid pipe. The goal is to move water away, not leak it back into the soil by the house. Perforated pipe belongs in a French drain. On flat Savannah lots, smooth-wall pipe helps because it keeps water moving even with very little fall.
Where can the line end?
- Pop-up emitters that open when water arrives and close when it stops
- Curb outlets into the street gutter, where the city or county allows it
- Roadside ditches or swales that already carry neighborhood runoff
- Rain gardens or low planted areas that can soak in water slowly
The City of Savannah suggests rain barrels and rain gardens as ways to handle runoff on your own lot, and advises against pointing downspouts at the driveway, where water just runs into the street.
Signs a line is clogged or broken
- Water backing up and spilling out at the downspout boot
- Gutters overflowing even after cleaning
- A soggy strip of lawn along the pipe route
- An emitter that stays shut in heavy rain
Live oaks and pine straw
Oak leaves, pollen tassels and pine needles fill gutters fast here. Gutter guards or a leaf trap at the top of each line help. Roots from big trees can also crush or invade older lines, so a camera look can tell you whether an existing line can be cleared or should be replaced.
Pricing comes from the contractor after a site visit, once they've seen how the lot sits, how high the ground water is and where the water can be sent. We don't quote prices, and any figure given over the phone before someone walks the yard is only a rough guess.
Where we connect you with help
Common questions
Can downspouts tie into my sewer cleanout?
No. Roof water belongs in the stormwater system. Rain getting into sanitary sewers is a known cause of sewer overflows in Savannah during wet spells.
How far should roof water go from the house?
Far enough that it can't run back. On a flat lot, that usually means a real outlet, not just a few extra feet of splash block.
Related services
More background: Chatham County drainage guide.
Yard still underwater a day after the storm?
Call now and a local drainage contractor will help you work out where the water should go.