Standing water against a slab or the house is the most common upstream cause of concrete trouble on Waco clay — and five different trades claim the fix. Here's how to sort out which one you need, and what each costs.
The Houston Black clay under most of McLennan County swells when it's wet and shrinks when it's dry. When water pools at one edge of a driveway or along one side of a foundation, that side swells while the rest stays put — and that differential movement is what heaves panels, cracks slabs, and sinks corners. The clay guide covers the soil; this page covers the water that sets it off.
The practical rule: fix the concrete without fixing the water and you'll be fixing the concrete again. Every leveling or repair-or-replace decision should start with "where does the water go?"
"Drainage contractor" barely exists as a business category around here. The work is split across trades, and calling the wrong one wastes a trip charge:
| What you're seeing | Who to call | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Water pools on the driveway, or runs toward the garage slab | Concrete contractor | Surface slope is the problem — regrade, channel drain, or re-pour with fall |
| Yard stays soggy; water runs across the lawn toward the house | Landscaper / drainage crew | Grading, swales, and French drains are yard work |
| Downspouts dump right at the foundation | Gutter company or handyman | Extensions and buried downspout lines — the cheapest fix on this list |
| Doors sticking, cracks in brick or drywall, slab corners dropping | Foundation repair company first | Movement has already happened; stabilize, then drain |
| Water backing up out of a drain, or a sewer smell | Plumber | That's a pipe problem, not a drainage problem |
Most real jobs are two of these. A driveway that ponds because the yard drains toward it needs the yard fixed and the concrete resloped — get both looked at before either is quoted.
| Fix | Typical range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Downspout extensions / splash blocks | $50 – $300 | DIY-able; solves a surprising share of "foundation" water |
| Buried downspout drain lines to daylight | $500 – $2,000 | Per run; gets roof water well away from the slab |
| Regrading soil around the foundation | $500 – $3,000 | Restores positive slope away from the house |
| French drain | $20 – $50 / linear ft | Typical residential run $1,500 – $6,000; deep or full-perimeter systems $3,000 – $10,000+ |
| Channel / trench drain across a driveway | $30 – $100 / linear ft installed | Typical $1,000 – $4,000; concrete-contractor work |
| Catch basin + drain line | $300 – $1,500 per basin | For a low spot that can't be regraded |
| Re-slope and re-pour a driveway section | See pricing guide | When the concrete itself is pitched the wrong way — cost guide |
Ranges reflect typical Central Texas pricing; every job is quoted in writing. Rock, tree roots, and how far the water has to travel to daylight move drainage bids more than the linear-foot rate.
Drainage work has a natural order, and skipping to the expensive step is the classic mistake:
Our lane is the hard surfaces: channel and trench drains set into the driveway, re-sloping or re-pouring sections that pitch toward the house, catch basins in patios and walkways, and pairing drainage with a slab lift so the fix holds. Yard French drains and mass regrading are landscaper work, and if that's what your water problem actually is, we'll tell you so rather than sell you concrete.
Send a couple of photos of where the water sits an hour after a rain. We'll tell you whether it's a concrete fix, a yard fix, or someone else's job — and quote the part that's ours.
Call (254) 457-3838