Easy Tips to Manage Stormwater Runoff

Depending on where you live, you may experience heavy rainfall several months a year. This means you get a lot of stormwater runoff, which can lead to landscape erosion on your property. You can wait for local ordinances to address the situation, but this may take a long time. If this is the case with your home, it would be in your best interest to learn how you can manage the stormwater yourself.

Learning a few tips and techniques in water runoff mitigation affords you better control of your landscape by reducing water accumulation that may otherwise cause erosion. And by protecting your landscape, you also keep your home safe and secure. To help you out, our roof repair and installation team at American Roofing & Construction, LLC shares how you can achieve this.

Taking Care of the Runoff Problem

It helps to understand how water runoff is created and where it originates on your property. Keep in mind that any water that doesn’t get soaked into the ground becomes runoff, especially during heavy rainfall. Runoff is also more likely to happen on hard surfaces such as sidewalks, streets and driveways, which is easily recognizable as the little water streams flowing toward the nearest drain.

Your gutters are designed to capture the stormwater runoff coming from the roof. If they’re installed by a professional roofer, they’ll effectively do their job of redirecting the water toward the floor drains. But to ensure that they won’t overflow, they should be big enough to handle the amount of rain that frequently falls in your area. Otherwise, the runoff can cause localized flooding that can ruin your lawn and landscape.

Additional Drain Solutions to Consider

In addition to having a solid roof and gutter system to channel stormwater runoff, you may also consider these measures to further minimize erosion and landscape damage:

• Add more permeable materials. If you’re making some big changes to your property, consider upgrading your driveway, patio or pathway to a more permeable material. Some of the best examples include gravel, mulch, aggregate base and even crushed seashells. And if you’re willing to spend more on your renovations, asphalt and permeable concrete are also effective.

• Install a dry well.  Also known as an infiltration trench, a dry well is a gravel-filled underground storage area that can capture water runoff. Most of the runoff will come mainly from your gutters and is stored in the void spaces between the gravel. This will let the water slowly filter into the ground or flow out through an underdrain.

American Roofing & Construction, LLC is a leading local roofing company you can rely on for your roofing and gutter needs. Call us today at (251) 379-9712 if you live in Mobile, AL, or (205) 223-2469 if you live in Birmingham, AL. You can also fill out our convenient online form for a free estimate.