Here's the thing most homeowners don't get told: the work that decides whether your patio, sod, and plantings last happens before any of them go in. It's the grading and drainage. Skip it, and you're building on top of a problem.
North Texas clay holds water, suburban lots are flat, and storm runoff has to go somewhere. If the grade doesn't direct it away from the foundation and toward drainage, that water ends up under your patio, in your lawn, or against your house — and it takes the hardscape and plantings with it.
What grading actually does
Grading is reshaping the ground so water flows where you want it. With a mini skid steer, Durascapes levels the lawn, shapes the slope away from the foundation, and creates the path runoff takes off the lot. It's the difference between a patio that sits level for years and one that heaves and pools after the first wet season.
- Levels low spots where water would otherwise pool
- Slopes runoff away from the foundation and slab
- Creates the base condition the patio, sod, and beds are built on
Where drainage comes in
Grading handles the surface. Drainage handles the water that gets into the clay and the low spots grading can't fully fix. French drains collect subsurface water and move it off the lot. Surface drains and channel drains catch the hard runoff from downpours. Swales and dry creek beds move water naturally across the yard.
Durascapes installs the drainage that matches the way water actually moves on your lot — not a generic fix, the one that works in a real McKinney storm.
The order that makes it last
- 1.Grade and shape the site
- 2.Install drainage where the water flows
- 3.Build the hardscape on a proper, drained base
- 4.Lay sod and plant into prepped, drained beds
When a crew skips to step three or four, the patio heaves, the sod patches out, and the beds drown. When the order is right, everything on top of it lasts.
If your yard pools, your patio has settled, or you're planning a new build in McKinney or Plano, let Durascapes grade and drain it right first. Request a consult and we'll show you where the water's going now and where it should go instead.