# Lawn Grading Cost



## LawnGuyLandSparky (Nov 18, 2007)

Is this a new home? If existing, are there any signs that the current grade is inadequate like leaking basement, flooding in crawlspace, etc? What kind of "inspector" ?


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## leroyme (Apr 1, 2007)

LawnGuyLandSparky said:


> Is this a new home? If existing, are there any signs that the current grade is inadequate like leaking basement, flooding in crawlspace, etc? What kind of "inspector" ?


I am assuming a general home inspector, used to inspect a house prior to its sale. I used one to make sure I wasn't buying a "lemon" of a house. It is common practice when purchasing a house. 

I had this problem when I bought my house. I had the seller fix the problem as a condition of the sale. He bought 2 tons of fill dirt (pretty cheap, I'm guessing) and applied a small mound at the base of the house, sloping it down over about 10" from the foundation. He was so kind, he left the remaining 1.75 TONS of dirt RIGHT NEXT TO THE DRIVEWAY! I ended up making a little bit more of a grading from the house, and made the mound higher, sloping about 1.5' from the house. The rest of the yard took care of most of the rest of it. I also used the dirt for small gaps in the bottom of the fence. If you can use a shovel and a wheelbarrow, you won't have to pay that much. It does take a while, though. The (roughly) 1.5 Tons of dirt tok about 20 trips or more with a full wheel barrow. If you need extensive work on the grading, I'm sorry, but I can't help you. 

Good luck with it!
Matt


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## srinik (Feb 4, 2008)

LawnGuyLandSparky,
House is 7 years old. There are no significant leaks in basement. But, I do see a couple of damp spots on basement walls. House Inspector is ASHI ceritifed and advised me to get the regrading before I close.

leroyme,

Thank you for the information. I will ask my agent to talk to seller and get some $$$ credit at the closing. I am not sure how much should I ask. May be I'll talk to local landscaping company and get a rough estimate for this kind of work.

Regards,
Srini


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## LawnGuyLandSparky (Nov 18, 2007)

The reason I asked is this... while it is common to get homes inspected, it is also common for home inspectors to point out the insignifigant, the non applicable, or downright incorrect "flaws." To become a "certified" inspector, you need to take a tes and pay $85.00. 

Rest assured, even when inspecting the "perfect home" built by an anal retentive homebuilder for himself, an inspector will find something to tear into just to justify his presense. Perhaps the inspector tagged this issue (and others) with a grade of "MUST be done, Should be done, or Recommended to be done?" 

Ideally, a structure sits on a property with the grade declining away from it. That is but a rule of thumb. How would you accomplish this in a city where homes are 10' apart? Do you think it's necessary if the soil is very sandy and couldn't form a puddle even if you opened a hydrant? And what about the millions of homes built into hillsides? I'm just giving you food for thought, to keep this issue in perspective. 

Realistically, you could spot damp spots in a basement even after regrading. Basements are not built to be watertight. There is nothing under the floor slab to prevent water from seeping upwards. If there is no evidence of actual flooding, the report should state such.


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## srinik (Feb 4, 2008)

Hi,
Thank you for the info. The inspector said "recommended". I am a first time home buyer and I am nervous about all these things. Your reply made me happy. Thanks again!

Sri


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## 4misammi (Apr 23, 2009)

*lawn grade*

The grade on your lawn should be 1/4" for every foot. (or 1 inch gradual drop for every 4 ft of lawn).
Therefore, your lawn should gradually drop 1/4" for every foot the lawn extends away from your home. This will allow the rain water to flow away from your home keeping your basement dry and not allow for any puddling of water around your home.


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## leroyme (Apr 1, 2007)

Well, after owning my home for about 2 1/2 years, the grading in the front has much to be desired. From the street, the lawn has an uphill slope, as it should. Then, about 3/4 of the lawn to my house, it suddenly levels off and then slopes back down towards my house! Around my front window and garden area get SWAMPED, and to add to the lawn drainage, we have our gutter drains shooting right to the same area! The main roof gutter drain has a concrete landing to prevent the water from making a huge indentation in our lawn, but the water deteriorates the soil underneath it and the front porch! We've filled it in several times, but it keeps happening. Our sump pump is going CONSTANTLY! We finally bought a battery backup sump pump, in case the power ever goes out. My wife looked online, and found a pump for $140 at Lowes... $310 later, I have a reliable backup! :furious: If power went out without the backup, our basement would start to flood within 10 MINUTES! I have noticed that of the 3 pipes dumping in the sump, only the front one (towards the front of the house) is pouring water into the sump! This makes me think that I could save myself a lot of grief if I fill in that front lawn area!

Ironically enough, as I was installing the backup pump, my wife yelled down to me telling me that the roof was leaking!!! 


Being a homeowner has it's ups and downs. That night was a definite downer!


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## runoff (Sep 20, 2011)

*lawn grading cost*

When foundations have been backfilled, they usually have sloping away from the house. But as time goes by, the backfill settles and you are left with a level grade or sometimes even a negative pitch to the foundation. When this happens you can expect your sump pump to be running continuously. You must always maintain a sloping away from the house. Ideally, six inches of fall within ten feet from the house. If storm water is continuously running down the outside of the basement walls , you will see damp spots on the inside of the walls.


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