TL;DR
A French drain is a gravel-filled trench containing perforated pipe, wrapped in filter fabric, that intercepts groundwater and surface seepage and carries it by gravity to a discharge point — daylight on a slope, a dry well, or a storm connection where allowed. In yards it dries chronically wet zones and protects retaining walls; against foundations it pairs with waterproofing as a footing drain.
What it means
A French drain is a gravel-filled trench containing perforated pipe, wrapped in filter fabric, that intercepts groundwater and surface seepage and carries it by gravity to a discharge point — daylight on a slope, a dry well, or a storm connection where allowed. In yards it dries chronically wet zones and protects retaining walls; against foundations it pairs with waterproofing as a footing drain. The fabric is what separates a decades-long drain from one that silts solid in a few seasons.
Where it sits in the glossary
French drain is part of the Trade jargon group inside the ProFix Directory glossary. Browse every term in this category from the glossary index.
Why Ohio homeowners should know it
This is a term Ohio homeowners encounter when reading contractor quotes, hiring paperwork, or inspection reports. Understanding it well enough to ask one good follow-up question is usually all the protection a homeowner needs.
ProFix Directory keeps definitions short on the index page and saves the longer context — Ohio-specific rules, where the term comes from, and which ProFix tools touch it — for these per-term pages so the term is easy to cite and easy to share.
ProFix tools that touch this term
See also
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