Hi I have owned my house for 2 years now. We bouight it in winter so when spring came and all the water we notice major swamping in the middle of our backyard and it is a big section of it. It is so bad that I can't let the kids play back there. Any tips on how to fix this that won't be so costly. I am not sure if clay would work and then replanting grass back on top or what to do , I am stuck. Please help.:( :(

You had better find out where the water is coming from before you do anything. If you can drain it off you could order a few square yards of topsoil to fill it in, but if you want to replant the grass I would not suggest clay. Are you sure it will not dry up as spring progresses, call the previous owners or ask a neighbour to find out if that standing water is permanent. Was it there when you bought the house and just frozen over.

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Originally Posted by briannadevin

Hi I have owned my house for 2 years now. We bouight it in winter so when spring came and all the water we notice major swamping in the middle of our backyard and it is a big section of it. It is so bad that I can't let the kids play back there. Any tips on how to fix this that wont be so costly. I am not sure if clay would work and then replanting grass back on top or what to do , I am stuck. Please help.:( :(

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You may have a wet weather spring if the area around you is hilly. Regardless in order to correct this you will need a "downhill" area to drain the water. Do you have some place on your property where you can drain the water? If you can't correct the problem by properly grading the area so it will drain and eliminate the depression, you will have to install a french drain system.

This is a subsurface drainage system with corrugated 4" plastic pipe that has small slits along it's length and can have a filter sock around it. I usually find this unnecessary. It is installed in a trench, usually 12" to 18" deep. You then install crushed stone 5 and 7 size, or gravel over the pipe then fill the remainder of the trench with sandy soil. These pipes can be connected together similar to a septic field or they can all individually run downhill to an appropriate discharge area. If there is a depression that can't be removed by grading, install the french drain then add sandy or loamy soil to fill the area to an appropriate level.

Professionals that do this type of work are Landscape Architects and landscape contractors. This is also a project a homeowner can undertake. Just remember, water runs downhill. It amazes me how many people don't seem to know this. Also remember to be neighborly with where you discharge the water and it is illegal to change the flow of water onto a neighbor that previously didn't receive your runoff.