Fort Wayne’s French Drains
French drains installed the meticulous way, the right slope, stone bedding, gasketed pipe and cleanouts, so the water problem is solved for good.
Drainage done so you never think about it again
A French drain is simple in theory and easy to get wrong. Done right, it quietly moves water away from your house and yard for decades. Done wrong, it clogs, settles or never moved water in the first place. The owner is genuinely particular about the details that decide which one you get.
That means the perfect slope so water actually flows, pipe and structures bedded in stone so nothing settles, gasketed pipe that resists root intrusion far better than glued joints, animal guards, and cleanouts placed where you could service the system if you ever needed to. It is the difference our drainage customers notice and remember.
French DrainsFrom a single drain to a whole system
We install everything from a single yard drain over a wet spot to a full system, multiple downspouts, a yard drain and a sump line tied together and run to a ditch, hundreds of feet of pipe, tunneling under sidewalks and around utilities. Whatever the scale, every connection is made to last and built to be cleaned if it ever needs it.
If you have water pooling in the yard, against the foundation, or in the basement, the fix starts with a look at where the water comes from and where it needs to go. The owner figures that out before any trench is dug.
Done right, the first time.
Good excavation is hard to see once it is finished. The owner checks it while it is still open, before anything gets covered.
What to expect working with Short Excavating
The thing customers tell us they appreciate most is that there are no surprises. When you call about french drains, you talk to the owner, not a salesperson reading off a script. He listens to what you are trying to accomplish, comes out and walks the site, and gives you a real number based on what he actually sees on the ground rather than a guess over the phone.
From there the work is done the way it should be done. The owner runs and oversees the equipment, the job gets checked as it progresses instead of after the trucks have left, and the site is left clean and graded when it is finished. It is the kind of careful, hands-on work that comes from one person being accountable for the result instead of a property being handed off to whoever is available that week.
Whether your project is a quick job or a big one, residential or commercial, you get the same standard and the same straight conversation. If something comes up mid-job, you hear about it from the owner directly, with a plan, not a surprise on the invoice. That is how every french drains job gets handled.
No surprises, start to finish.
You call the owner
Tell him what you are working on. You talk to the person who will actually run the machine.
We walk the site
The owner checks the access and where the water goes, then prices the job on what he actually saw.
We do the work
Clean, careful work with the right equipment, checked as it goes in, not after the trucks leave.
Final grade, cleaned up
We leave the site graded, tidy and ready for what is next, and we stand behind the work.
French Drains across the Fort Wayne region
Short Excavating is based in Fort Wayne and handles french drains within roughly a 120-mile range across northern Indiana and into Ohio and Michigan. That covers Hamilton, Boone, Hendricks, Hancock, Porter and LaGrange counties in Indiana, Delaware County in Ohio, and Livingston and Oakland counties in Michigan.
Wherever the job is, the standard does not change. The same owner who walks a site in Fort Wayne walks one two hours out, sets the plan to the property, and stands behind the work. If french drains turns out to be part of a larger project, the owner handles the rest of the sitework too. See our full list of services or service areas.
Get a straight answer on your french drains project
A price given over the phone is a guess, and guesses on excavation tend to grow once the bucket hits dirt. The owner would rather come out first. He looks at what you need done, checks access and conditions, and then gives you a number he expects to hold. There is no pressure to sign once you have it.
It is also worth saying what we will not do: we will not talk you into work you do not need, and we will not cut the parts of french drains that decide whether it lasts just to come in low. If a smaller fix solves your problem, the owner will tell you. That straightforwardness, paired with the careful hands-on work, is why so much of what we do comes from referrals and repeat customers around Fort Wayne and the surrounding counties.
Why french drains done right matters
Excavation is one of the few trades where the cheapest bid is almost never the best deal, and french drains is a clear example. So much of the work is buried, graded or compacted that you cannot see whether it was done right until a season or two has passed. By then a corner cut to win the job on price has become your problem to pay for twice.
That is the whole reason Short Excavating is built around one accountable owner. He is on the controls, he checks the work as it goes in, and his name is on the company, so the parts that decide whether french drains lasts are the parts he is most particular about. It is why our customers describe the work as meticulous and keep our number for the next job.
Questions, answered.
If yours isn’t here, just call the owner and ask.
What makes a French drain last?
The details you do not see, the slope, stone bedding, gasketed pipe and cleanouts. Those are exactly the things the owner is particular about, and they are why our drainage customers say they never have problems again.
Can a French drain fix water in my basement?
Often, yes, by intercepting and redirecting the water before it reaches the foundation. The owner looks at where the water is coming from to design the right fix, which may be a French drain, a foundation drain, or a combination.
Why gasketed pipe instead of glued?
Gasketed pipe resists root intrusion far better than glued joints, which is one of the most common reasons drains fail over time. It is a detail that costs a little more and lasts a lot longer.
Do you install cleanouts?
Yes, typically every hundred feet, so the system can be cleaned and serviced for the life of the property if it is ever needed. Most installers skip them. We do not.
How much does a French drain cost?
It depends on the length, depth, what it ties into and the obstacles, sidewalks, utilities and the like. The owner looks at the water problem and gives you a real number.
Need french drains? Call the owner.
One call, straight answers, and a real number for the job.
Talk To Short Excavating Inc
Call or send a note about your project, and the owner will get back to you with a real number.