A gravel-filled hole is a dry well, and it works only when the soil underneath it can absorb water faster than the hole collects it. On ground that drains, a properly sized one solves a wet spot. On ground that sheds, it is a bucket that fills up and stays full.

Whether a soakaway empties here

74% of the mapped ground in Clinton takes water in rather than shedding it, at up to 13 inches an hour at its fastest. This is the best ground in the area for exactly this approach, and it is why a gravel-filled hole is a reasonable first move on many lots here rather than a false economy. Size it against the roof or paved area feeding it, keep fabric between the stone and the soil, and put an inspection pipe in so you can see it emptying.

The reasoning behind that

A dry well is storage plus infiltration. The stone holds a volume of water temporarily; the soil at the sides and base is what empties it. If infiltration is slow, the storage fills on the first storm and has not emptied by the second.

Sizing follows from that. The volume has to hold the runoff you are directing into it long enough for the surrounding soil to absorb it, which means it is set by the infiltration rate and the area draining to it — not by how big a hole is convenient to dig.

Two details decide how long it lasts. Fabric between the stone and the soil keeps silt out of the voids. An inspection point lets you see whether it is emptying, which is the only way to know it is still working.

A dry well also has to sit well away from foundations and above the seasonal water table. Below the table, it is already full before the first drop of rain arrives.

More on this: Yard and Lawn Drainage in Clinton, UT.

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