Weeping Tile Replacement & French Drain Installation
Water creeping in along the bottom of your basement walls, or a yard that turns to swamp every spring? We replace failed weeping tile and install French drains, after ruling out the cheaper fixes first.
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Weeping Tile Systems & French Drains
Same materials, different jobs. Weeping tile protects the foundation and a French drain dries out the yard. We install both, and we’ll tell you which one your problem actually needs.
Exterior Weeping Tile Replacement
We dig to the footing, pull the old pipe and lay new perforated pipe in clean stone under filter fabric, usually alongside a new wall membrane.
Interior Weeping Tile
When digging outside isn’t practical, we cut a strip of basement floor, lay pipe inside the footing and run it to a sump.
Yard French Drains
A shallow trench of pipe and stone that collects water from a soggy lawn, a low corner or the foot of a slope and sends it somewhere useful.
Clay Tile Replacement
Many older homes still have clay tile laid end to end. Once silt and roots get into the gaps, we replace it with modern pipe.
Sump & Outlet Tie-Ins
New drainage has to end somewhere. We tie it into a sump or a proper outlet so the water actually leaves.
Wall Repair & Membrane
With the wall exposed, we repair cracks and add a waterproof membrane, so the drain and the wall are fixed in one dig.
Weeping Tile vs. French Drain: Which Do You Need?
Both are perforated pipe bedded in clean stone, which is why quotes mix up the names. Ask any contractor, us included, exactly where the pipe will sit and how deep. Our guide to what weeping tile is and how it fails goes deeper.
Weeping Tile: The Foundation Drain
It sits down beside the footing, at the very bottom of the foundation. Its job is relieving water pressure, so groundwater drains away instead of pushing through your basement walls. Water along the floor-wall joint after a hard rain makes it the prime suspect.
French Drain: The Yard Drain
It runs shallow, wherever surface water collects: a soggy patch of lawn, a low side yard, the foot of a slope. It carries that water somewhere useful. On its own it won’t fix a wet basement, but it can take load off the foundation drain.
Signs You Need New Weeping Tile or a French Drain
Drainage problems leave a pattern. These are the ones we look for before recommending anyone dig.
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Water along the base of the wallSeepage at the floor-wall joint in several spots, not down one crack.
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Wet hours after the rain stopsLate water is rising groundwater, which makes it a drainage problem.
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A sump that’s gone quietIf the pump barely runs in a storm, water may not be reaching it.
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Orange sludge in the pitRust-coloured slime can mean iron ochre clogging the pipe.
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A lawn that never driesStanding water or squishy ground days after rain is a French drain job.
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An older home with clay tileDrainage from before the 1960s is often clay, and well past its prime.
How We Replace Weeping Tile and Install French Drains
We’d rather sell you a downspout extension than a dig you don’t need. Here’s the order we work in.
1. Rule Out the Easy Stuff
Downspouts, grading, window wells and the sump pump get checked first. Plenty of “failed weeping tile” turns out to be roof water.
2. Find the Problem Walls
We pin down which walls are actually taking water, so you’re not paying to dig the whole perimeter for one bad side.
3. Dig, Rebuild, Backfill
New pipe in clean stone with filter fabric, a membrane on the wall where it’s needed, and backfill that drains instead of holding water.
4. Test & Restore
We run water through the new system, confirm it reaches the sump or outlet and leave the site tidy. Written warranty included.
What Weeping Tile & French Drains Cost
Drainage work is quoted per linear foot, and depth, soil, access and whatever sits on top of the trench all swing the price. Use these southwestern Ontario ranges as a guide, not a quote; ours comes as a free written quote, priced wall by wall.
A full perimeter adds up fast on a typical house, so we’d rather fix the wall that’s actually leaking than dig all four. If the wall needs work while it’s exposed, see exterior waterproofing.
Exterior Weeping Tile
About $250–$450 per foot with membrane. Depth, access and restoration move it up or down.
Interior Weeping Tile
About $100–$200 per foot, including breaking out and repouring the floor edge.
Yard French Drain
About $40–$100 per foot. Shallower than foundation work, but the outlet matters as much as the trench.
Sump Pit Added or Moved
About $1,500–$4,000, more with a battery backup.
Fix the Drain and the Wall in One Dig
A drainage-only crew replaces pipe. On Point Masonry Repair and Waterproofing is a crew of waterproofers and masons, so with the wall already exposed we can repair cracks, membrane it and sort out the sump in the same job: one crew and one bill instead of three trades.
- Diagnosis Before DiggingThe cheap fixes get checked first, every time.
- Wall and Drain TogetherCracks, membrane and pipe in one excavation.
- Fully InsuredCovered on every dig, big or small.
- Written WarrantyDrainage work backed in writing.
- Free, Itemized QuotesPriced wall by wall, so you see where the money goes.
- 4.9 ★ on Google70+ Google reviews from homeowners across SW Ontario.
Weeping Tile & French Drain FAQ
Straight answers before anyone starts digging.
How much will it cost to install a French drain?
Plan on about $40–$100 per linear foot for a yard French drain around southwestern Ontario. Foundation drainage costs more: roughly $100–$200 per foot for interior weeping tile and $250–$450 per foot to replace it outside with a membrane. Every quote we give is free and itemized.
Can I install my own French drain?
A short, shallow yard drain, yes, as long as you have a real outlet to send the water to. The usual mistakes are no slope, no filter fabric and a pipe that ends in a pocket of soil. Weeping tile at footing depth is different: deep trenches beside a foundation are dangerous to dig and easy to get wrong.
How deep does a French drain need to be?
Usually 18 to 24 inches for a yard drain, deep enough to catch the soggy layer while keeping a steady fall to the outlet. Weeping tile is a different animal: it sits at the footing, often six feet or more below grade.
What are the downsides of a French drain?
The big one is clogging. Silt, roots and iron ochre work into the pipe over time, so a drain with no clean-out is hard to service. It also only moves water: it won’t fix a crack or a failing wall, and a badly placed one just moves the puddle.
Is it better to replace weeping tile from inside or outside?
Outside, when you can get at it. Exterior replacement fixes the wall and the drainage together and keeps water off the concrete in the first place. Interior weeping tile is the sensible choice when a deck, a driveway or the house next door is in the way.
Do I need to replace all my weeping tile?
Usually not. Drainage tends to fail in stretches, so the fix is often one side of the house or a single corner. We’ll show you why we think a wall has failed before we quote it, and we won’t price the whole perimeter without a reason.
Can a French drain connect to my sump pump?
Usually we’d rather not. Piping yard water into your basement sump adds load to the pump in every storm. A French drain normally runs to its own outlet at a lower point on the lot, or another outlet your municipality allows.
What Homeowners Say After the Water Stops
4.9 ★ on Google from 70+ Google reviews. A few from homeowners who called us about wet basements and exterior digs.
I’ve had water coming into my basement for years and had previously had 2 other companies come in and try to fix the problem, to no avail. … I am so happy to report that for the first time ever, I am confident that my days of bailing water out of the basement are over.
We recently hired On Point Masonry to repair a foundation crack from the outside, and we couldn’t be more impressed! … The team’s professionalism stood out at every step: they worked efficiently, kept the site exceptionally clean, and were very considerate of our close proximity to the neighbors, ensuring there was no impact to their properties.
We had Dave and his crew waterproof the one side of our foundation. They were polite, efficient, reliable and very knowledgeable. I recommend On Point for all your masonry repairs. Thanks Dave and crew for all your hard work.
Weeping Tile & French Drain Service Areas
Based in Paris, Ontario, we replace weeping tile and install French drains across SW Ontario:
Request Your Free Drainage Quote
Tell us where the water shows up and when (during a storm, in spring melt or hours after the rain stops) and send photos if you can. We’ll give you an honest read, including whether you need us at all. Rather talk it through? Call (519) 802-2138 or email [email protected].
Water at the bottom of the wall? Let’s find out why, free.
Weeping tile, French drains and exterior waterproofing from a Paris-based crew, with a written warranty on every dig.
Call (519) 802-2138