LANDSCAPING
Beyond driveways and paths, some homeowners are choosing to add more SuDS-type drainage to their gardens. French drains for instance, where a perforated pipe is surrounded by gravel in a trench to distribute and slow the flow of water into the ground, should be lined in a non-woven geotextile. Though traditionally constructed of rubble, crates are now recognised as a more effective way to construct a soakaway. As well as large- volume crates for new residential or commercial developments, smaller ones are being installed in individual gardens.
The plastic, cellular crates are installed underground, surrounded by aggregate. However, they must be wrapped in a non-woven geotextile to allow surface water which has been directed into the crate to slowly infiltrate into the ground while preventing soil, silt and fine sediment moving into the crate. Without this membrane, sediment would build up inside the tank, reducing the volume available to store stormwater.
The wrong fabric
One of the most common mistakes we see is the use of woven geotextiles around soakaway crates. Without the relevant knowledge, builders or homeowners look at the relative prices and
decide that a woven geotextile is the best bet. But since they are far less permeable than non-woven geotextile, water will infiltrate very slowly into the ground and the whole system could even back up during heavy or long-lasting rainfall events. Similarly, installers may choose a woven fabric to go under a gravel driveway due to cost. This will not necessarily cause issues, but where the intention is to increase natural drainage and decrease volumes of water flowing into drainage systems, it is not the best solution. It can also be easy to select the wrong fabric for rain gardens, which can be positioned to take water from a downpipe or at a low point in a garden. Although, by design, rain gardens should contain plants that can tolerate moisture, they should also be designed to drain within 24-to 48 hours of a downpour. Although a gardener might instinctively think of using a weed control fabric, such as our Weedtex or Landtex, a rain garden would function moat effectively with a non-woven geotextile such as Draintex.
While it’s understandable that homeowners want to reduce the maintenance requirements of their outdoor spaces, prolonged rainy periods in the winter and the promise of more intense rainfall events during the summer months is forcing
Above and right: Using a permeable surface on a driveway reduces the volume of water flowing into drainage systems.
people to rethink their gardens. Using fabrics that allow water to drain into the earth – rather than overwhelming the sewer system and water courses – can make a significant difference to individual properties and to the greater good. BMJ
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March 2026
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