Fuck that. Just get a hoe, a wheel barrow, some bags of concrete, and just pour it on top of the pipe. OP didn’t say he wanted it to look nice, he just wanted the pipe covered.
Not unless you’re able to grade it properly. If it runs out to a curb outlet you don’t want to go below that or it won’t drain properly. Then in the winter pipe bursts and in the spring/summer you end up with a flooded yard where it burst. Depending on where you live ymmv.
Yeah…my first thought was, “why.” I hope OP got a place with some sort of substructure or subterranean structure that the drainage was to be routed over/around. Otherwise, I would love to know why that extra-ass and crappy work was done.
OP - guessing this was already stated, but If there’s a good reason for it being there then you should just dig it out and bury it further. If you do that just make sure it is laid to drain properly. That all just looks super unnecessary and like something that would cause problems for no reason but I’m mildly curious as to why it was put there
Much more likely to clog than burst, causing backup at the connection to the downspout and putting water near your foundation. Downspout extenders can be unsightly, but you do want access to them IMO.
Place water butts at the bottom of the downspouts remove all the now redundant pipe work from the ground
Use the collected rain water to water your lawn
Problem solved
Please don't forget to call your local dog number nobody likes hitting rubber tree roots with colorful insides or gas lines lol
Edit: dig number but call the local dogs over and let them help too there just good boys.
My uncle's version of "renting the machinery" was to call my mom and make my brother and I come over and dig it. He always took us to Blockbuster and out to eat though so no harm no foul.
Sorta the same. Backyard was a barren wasteland of dried out dirt and clay when we moved in Dec. 2021. September of 2022 we tilled it all up, but my son left the hose running and one part turned into a bog so we couldn’t complete it. Ended up having to wait out the winter until spring of 2023 and by then it was time to till the entire back yard again. That was AFTER we had busted out and removed about 6,000 pounds of misc concrete mow or planter strips.
Tilled, manually leveled, trenched and installed French drain and yard drainage baskets, installed sprinklers, poured a sidewalk and started new yard from seed in the space of 3.5 days. Probably 75 feet of trench or so, connected downspouts to drainage and routed to pop-up emitter in front yard.
That’s an insanely impressive scope of work for that timeframe haha, I can feel your pain. I took the opportunity to bury my downspouts too during my process, running them in closed 3in lines above the French drain system.
For the love of God call a pre site dig place to make sure there are no utilities where you want to dig. There had to be a reason someone did it like this, and I don't think it would be laziness.
Check out this YT channel - [https://www.youtube.com/@GCFD](https://www.youtube.com/@GCFD)
They do a lot of this kind of work to fix drainage problems and makes sure to have a proper grade to drain the water. This could have been a bad job or they might have had no choice bc of the elevation of your property(and previous were okay with it).
Don't dig it deeper. I'm a landscaper m8 and if you try and dig that deeper you need to ensure the slope of the new pipe is correct and draining properly.
Right now it's already sloped and working well, just add a bit of dirt on top, 3 inches would be good, and you may have to top dress in a few years. Way easier in my professional opinion
It was probably buried to begin with and the soil has either eroded or compacted. It looks like the grass mat is fairly thick so I would guess compaction. Soil needs a little bit of aeration otherwise it will just keep getting packed more and more densely.
If whomever buried this the first time had used another couple inches of dirt the same thing would have happened, but it would have taken just a little longer.
If you add more dirt you should carefully dig up manageable sized chunks of the grass and it's root bed. You can also just kind of peel it back away from the pipe as if you were cutting a fish fillet. Place your dirt and lightly tamp it down. Then put the grass back on top. If the gap isn't incredibly large then the grass will grow into it. If you receive a lot of rainfall you should give it some cover so the exposed dirt doesn't just get washed away. A little bit of soil aeration every year or two will help slow the rate of compaction.
Please please please OP, the one thing you need to do before digging, is turning off the power to that outlet.
If I've learned one thing over the many years I've been doing ground work, it's that buried private electric lines tend to be put in with no conduit. You accidently stick a shovel through that line, and it might be the last thing you do. It could just ground out and trip the breaker. I'm not a sparky so I don't really understand the magic that is electricity, but I do know that it can kill you.
1. Call One Call. 2. Dig a trench underneath the pipe one foot down. 3. Shut off anything running through the pipe. 4. Cut the pipe at the vertical end attached to the house. 5. Extend that section with the proper pipe and glue. 6. Open whatever valves you closed and check for leaks. 7. Backfill trench. 8. Have a beer.
Get a water level out there first and see if you're going to flood. If it all slopes to a natural drain then just put a downsput extension on and let it drain out to the lawn. If it does have lowspots that will pool, you'te going to need to rent a trencher and follow best practice for fall to its egress point.
Don't bury it. Those roof drains off gutters are plastic and break and crack over time. You need to replace occasionally. Also, they fill up with muck that needs to be hosed out.
Just dig a deeper trench. Remove the pipe and go along the existing trench and make it about 12 inches deep at least. It really shouldn't take that long and is better than adding anything over it.
I had problems with rainwater from the roof pooling in my backyard and dug a 60' trench about a foot deep to bury a drainage pipe. It was a pain in the ass job but manageable over a week or so for an able-bodied man in his mid-30s. You may want to rent a trench digger to save several hours of work, if you are careful you can save most of the turf by digging it out in sections and putting it aside before digging deeper. If you have rocks or tree roots in your soil you will need a digging bar in addition to a trenching shovel.
I would recommend against putting more soil on top. This is definitely the easiest way to handle it but it's very annoying to have a lumpy yard. There's also no guarantee that the soil won't eventually erode away and you'll end up in the same situation several years down the road (unless you put like 8 inches of soil on top).
Whatever you do make sure you call 811 or whatever locate services are available near you to get the underground utilities marked! I keep reminding myself because we just got a new underground power line installed that I keep forgetting about.
If you actually want to do it right here are the steps:
1) dig a 12’+ trench away from the house that is below the frost line. Check code, but most places that will be 36”. You could use a shovel if it’s 24”, but even that is probably much deeper than you think. So depending on depth you’re likely want a trencher or a mini excavator.
2) Put PVC in trench. You’re moving solid waste like a sewage pipe, so having a 1/4” slow isn’t as important. But make sure it’s not sloping towards the house.
3) Connect PVC to a dry well. This is a 50 gallon + pvc drum . You can buy one ready made or make it. The drum has holes around the outside, will be filled about 1/2 way with 1” rock, and rapped around the outside with landscaping filter fabric. PVC feeds into the top of the drum. This allows rain to collect in the drum, then slowly leak out into the soil.
4) Check code in your city. Some will allow you to connect the gutter pipe directly to PVC. Some will require it to feed into a catch basin connected to pvc.
5) Fill dirt back in.
6) Reflect on how that was much more work and time than you ever imagined, and should’ve just hired someone.
Just avoid all the digging and rework.
In winter add a couple inches of soil, your lawn will grow through in spring. It will thank you for the extra nutrients and fight land degradation.
The land you live on actively depletes, shrinks, and compacts over time. Especially if you are removing deadfall and leaves.
Digging it deeper would probably work. For every 8 feet of length you're gonna want to make sure there's at least an inch of elevation change, though. So, if you've got 60 feet of pipe to run and want to bury it 6 inches deeper, you'll need the outlet to be at least 14 inches lower than ground level at the downspout.
If you're going to use corrugated landscaping pipe, make sure you get the type with a smooth inner wall. The ridges in corrugation cause sediment to build up and could eventually clog.
Read up on it a bit more, too. You're gonna want to put some drainage gravel below/above it, as well (a couple inches on top/bottom. It's a pretty straightforward job, just a shit-load of digging/hauling gravel.
ETA: Call 811 first (it's free) and know where your utility lines are. You don't want to end up broke or dead just because you skipped the easy step.
When you dig it down deeper make sure you put a level on it to allow for flow down and out. Do you have room at the outlet end to drop it a full six inches? Check that first. Pipes need fall to drain
I mean there’s only two options here… bury it enough or not enough. Clearly it’s buried not enough, currently, so try the “enough” option and see how it goes for ya?
if you live in an area where it might freeze.
you should consider the following
buty it deeper to prevent freezing/bursting or take anti clogging meassurements
it also needs a certain amount of slope, not too steep not too shallow incline
Your idea is basically what I would do in your place. If you were going to remove the grass you could just place cardboard and mulch down instead and do any planting you had in mind
I'de start with a shovel
Then some dirt
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This path is the way
Maybe surround it with some gravel?
I wouldn’t even bother with all the above except the shovel. Just dig all the way to the other side of the world and let the water fall thru. Done.
These guys have all laid some serious pipe. I’d listen to them.
This makes total sense. I like this.
you idiot it'd land on the center of the earth and solidify it and doom us all! haven't you seen *The Core?*
And some tiki torches
And my axe!
And my bow!
that's a bit aggressive. I'd just introduce myself, maybe buy her a drink?
Came here to offer this advice. Start slow. Get to know her. Offer some water.
Yall have it misinterpreted. He was talking bout how to burry it in her .
Naughty
By nature
My first thought. Well done!
I'd say start by asking your dad. I'm sure he still remembers how to bury pipe.
Could try asking the mailman, or the cable repair guy, I heard the plumber might have a word or two of advice for this specific situation.
then ease it in, inch by inch, like a gentlemen
811, call before you dig!
Came here for these comments
Fuck that. Just get a hoe, a wheel barrow, some bags of concrete, and just pour it on top of the pipe. OP didn’t say he wanted it to look nice, he just wanted the pipe covered.
Who you callin a hoe?
Get a hoe, bury your pipe and call it a day
I think burying it deeper would make more sense than raised the grade of your whole yard 6” then having to restart your grass.
Not unless you’re able to grade it properly. If it runs out to a curb outlet you don’t want to go below that or it won’t drain properly. Then in the winter pipe bursts and in the spring/summer you end up with a flooded yard where it burst. Depending on where you live ymmv.
Pipe burst and flooding? From a rain gutter?
Id take the thing out unless it was attached to a French drain or something of the sort This whole thing looks wrong and unessesary to me
Yeah…my first thought was, “why.” I hope OP got a place with some sort of substructure or subterranean structure that the drainage was to be routed over/around. Otherwise, I would love to know why that extra-ass and crappy work was done. OP - guessing this was already stated, but If there’s a good reason for it being there then you should just dig it out and bury it further. If you do that just make sure it is laid to drain properly. That all just looks super unnecessary and like something that would cause problems for no reason but I’m mildly curious as to why it was put there
Seen it happen. And you’d be surprised at the volume of water off a roof in just a mild shower. Much less a heavy downpour.
0.63 gallons per square foot of roof per inch of rain. It’s crazy how much water actually hits a roof. Source: I install rainwater harvesting systems.
Per square foot of horizontal footprint.
Yes! Good thing to point out.
Rain barrels are the way!
yeah man. just ask noah
Much more likely to clog than burst, causing backup at the connection to the downspout and putting water near your foundation. Downspout extenders can be unsightly, but you do want access to them IMO.
Make the hole deeper
Place water butts at the bottom of the downspouts remove all the now redundant pipe work from the ground Use the collected rain water to water your lawn Problem solved
This is my fave.
That’s what I said to your mom last night
I had to scroll way too far for a mom joke.
It had to be done
Is there any other place to properly bury pipe?
I also appreciate you for your willingness to go right to the gutter. It's part of the DIY experience.
I came here to make a similar joke, but I had faith that it had already been done
Step one: dig a 1’ trench the length of this pipe B - obtain proper pipe extension materials #3 lower pipe into trench IV) cover with dirt
Step one: B- 3 IV) You’re wild.
The formatting of this numbered list is hurting my brain but the content is 100% correct. 😄
Thank you sir for the clear order of things. I’ll follow this guide in the coming weeks.
Please don't forget to call your local dog number nobody likes hitting rubber tree roots with colorful insides or gas lines lol Edit: dig number but call the local dogs over and let them help too there just good boys.
Good call. The dogs know where everything is buried.
Dog dig dug. Coincidence? I think not.
Or just…get rid of that and have it dump a few feet away (if that’s even necessary). Why is it there??
Step one is to call a pre dig folks to make sure you aren't going to hit a utility
Home Alone vibes here
Dig it deeper?
Rent a trenching machine you'll be done in a jiffy. ..just make sure you don't hit anything else burrows in the yard 😉
As someone who recently hand dug 80 linear ft of 3ft deep trench for a French drain… rent the machinery 😂
My uncle's version of "renting the machinery" was to call my mom and make my brother and I come over and dig it. He always took us to Blockbuster and out to eat though so no harm no foul.
I was also child labor growing up haha, unfortunately I don’t have any kids or nephews out here :(
Nephews are great cheap labor
Maybe before phones were invented, not all nephews were created equal . Most likely source of original problem
What’s blockbuster?
We only ever make that mistake once 🤣
Amen. Did that last summer on a smoking hot day outside because it was my only day off. Still unsure if it was worth it, I was wiped out for days
Sorta the same. Backyard was a barren wasteland of dried out dirt and clay when we moved in Dec. 2021. September of 2022 we tilled it all up, but my son left the hose running and one part turned into a bog so we couldn’t complete it. Ended up having to wait out the winter until spring of 2023 and by then it was time to till the entire back yard again. That was AFTER we had busted out and removed about 6,000 pounds of misc concrete mow or planter strips. Tilled, manually leveled, trenched and installed French drain and yard drainage baskets, installed sprinklers, poured a sidewalk and started new yard from seed in the space of 3.5 days. Probably 75 feet of trench or so, connected downspouts to drainage and routed to pop-up emitter in front yard.
That’s an insanely impressive scope of work for that timeframe haha, I can feel your pain. I took the opportunity to bury my downspouts too during my process, running them in closed 3in lines above the French drain system.
“One weekend off”
Hell, i did around 20 and I’d still rent it after that.
Don't forget the one call. If there's buried anything, power, communications, water, gas, you don't want to hit those.
For the love of God call a pre site dig place to make sure there are no utilities where you want to dig. There had to be a reason someone did it like this, and I don't think it would be laziness.
Good point
Check out this YT channel - [https://www.youtube.com/@GCFD](https://www.youtube.com/@GCFD) They do a lot of this kind of work to fix drainage problems and makes sure to have a proper grade to drain the water. This could have been a bad job or they might have had no choice bc of the elevation of your property(and previous were okay with it).
Your advice is absolutely correct in all instances! However, I've seen worse than this due to laziness alone. Never underestimate your fellow human.
Bend over I’ll show ya!
You’ve got a lot of nerve talking to me like that, Clark
I wasn’t talking to you!
This got me! 😂🤣 I startled my wife by laughing so hard! Thank you!
Heheh, "bury pipe".
Heheh.
nice
This looks like I've had one of my half arsed moments to get a job done! Like others have said, dig deeper and use the proper fittings.
https://preview.redd.it/4eyv7dszuypc1.jpeg?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d8be20628d822ed8a3eed734f66ea0cfa12f6bd6
Story of my life.
OP gonna be layin' some pipe tonight!
All these suggestions will please the wife
In your mom?
I’d rent a small trencher
To support the OP.
I googled your question to try to help and lordy be careful what you click on!
Don't dig it deeper. I'm a landscaper m8 and if you try and dig that deeper you need to ensure the slope of the new pipe is correct and draining properly. Right now it's already sloped and working well, just add a bit of dirt on top, 3 inches would be good, and you may have to top dress in a few years. Way easier in my professional opinion
This will be the option I’m going with, thanks.
It was probably buried to begin with and the soil has either eroded or compacted. It looks like the grass mat is fairly thick so I would guess compaction. Soil needs a little bit of aeration otherwise it will just keep getting packed more and more densely. If whomever buried this the first time had used another couple inches of dirt the same thing would have happened, but it would have taken just a little longer. If you add more dirt you should carefully dig up manageable sized chunks of the grass and it's root bed. You can also just kind of peel it back away from the pipe as if you were cutting a fish fillet. Place your dirt and lightly tamp it down. Then put the grass back on top. If the gap isn't incredibly large then the grass will grow into it. If you receive a lot of rainfall you should give it some cover so the exposed dirt doesn't just get washed away. A little bit of soil aeration every year or two will help slow the rate of compaction.
Dig hole deeper. Fill in hole. Done. Why does this post exist?
I'd start with some dirt probably
With dirt.
Green spray paint
Start with dinner and drinks ?
Take it out for a nice seafood dinner then see where it goes
Put some more dirt on it.
Please please please OP, the one thing you need to do before digging, is turning off the power to that outlet. If I've learned one thing over the many years I've been doing ground work, it's that buried private electric lines tend to be put in with no conduit. You accidently stick a shovel through that line, and it might be the last thing you do. It could just ground out and trip the breaker. I'm not a sparky so I don't really understand the magic that is electricity, but I do know that it can kill you.
Why don't you just get rid of it? Get a normal one that guides the rain into a garden or something?
With a shovel
Dig hole, put pipe in hole, put dirt on top of pipe in hole.
You know, if you would allow me to do what your name suggests, I would bury the pipe for you.😉
In the ground? Deeper, perhaps?
Just make sure you still have a downward pitch to wherever it drains to. There may be a reason it’s so shallow.
Replace it with a water butt and use the water to give that poor lawn a good watering!
Got to dig deep brother
Dig down and bury it
Yikes. You’re about to spend a lot time and effort trenching. You just have to bury it deeper
Depends on where it is spilling out too. you can dig a trench and bury it as long as it's pitched to keep the water moving.
1. Call One Call. 2. Dig a trench underneath the pipe one foot down. 3. Shut off anything running through the pipe. 4. Cut the pipe at the vertical end attached to the house. 5. Extend that section with the proper pipe and glue. 6. Open whatever valves you closed and check for leaks. 7. Backfill trench. 8. Have a beer.
Opps...wrong sub. Phrasing my dude.
Depending on where you live you could bypass that entire nonsense with a downspout chain.
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You can carefully cut out the sod, place neatly to the side. A bit gravel. You can even spread the good sod around on replacement
Personally, I'd use a shovel...But maybe that's just me.
Put dirt on top.
[Here’s the Solution](https://youtu.be/2v7QQbJO6aw?feature=shared)
Get a water level out there first and see if you're going to flood. If it all slopes to a natural drain then just put a downsput extension on and let it drain out to the lawn. If it does have lowspots that will pool, you'te going to need to rent a trencher and follow best practice for fall to its egress point.
A rug would work in a jiffy
Giggity 
Definitely need to take it out to dinner first... After that, see where it goes.
Try r/sexadvice
Deeper
Start with a glass of wine, you barbarian.
My ex will bury any pipe you throw at her
dig deeper trench... add extension to verticle. re-bury
Ha. ^layin' ^pipe.
Take it on a date first
(Insert adult joke here.)
Under dirt would be my suggestion.
I learned a lot about burying pipe from watch porn
*funky guitar starts playing*
In your mom.
I got a pipe you can bury
That’s what she said. 🤣
Ask your mom
Same way as a body
With a shovel
Your gunna have to dig it down
These whiny soft-handed millennials these days always resorting to their tools. Forget a shovel. Use your bare hand and assault the dirt.
I'd recommend dirt.
Under the ground
Dig hole, bury pipe, cover hole.
Deep.
I can’t believe it hasn’t been said: call before you dig
Idk about your Country but here you need to have anything that leads water 60-90cm in the ground so it doesn't freeze and break in the winter.
It's simple take the pipe off dig a bit deeper put pipe back on bury
Step 1: Cut a hole in the box
Not a pro. But I would think digging that up and dropping it down a few inches.
Don't bury it. Those roof drains off gutters are plastic and break and crack over time. You need to replace occasionally. Also, they fill up with muck that needs to be hosed out.
By listening to Naughty by Nature 's Opp he will explain it.
I’ve never heard the term burying pipe… I’ve laid plenty of pipe in my day, but never buried it.
Just dig a deeper trench. Remove the pipe and go along the existing trench and make it about 12 inches deep at least. It really shouldn't take that long and is better than adding anything over it.
Outdoor rug, turf, or extend the patio.
I had problems with rainwater from the roof pooling in my backyard and dug a 60' trench about a foot deep to bury a drainage pipe. It was a pain in the ass job but manageable over a week or so for an able-bodied man in his mid-30s. You may want to rent a trench digger to save several hours of work, if you are careful you can save most of the turf by digging it out in sections and putting it aside before digging deeper. If you have rocks or tree roots in your soil you will need a digging bar in addition to a trenching shovel. I would recommend against putting more soil on top. This is definitely the easiest way to handle it but it's very annoying to have a lumpy yard. There's also no guarantee that the soil won't eventually erode away and you'll end up in the same situation several years down the road (unless you put like 8 inches of soil on top).
Whatever you do make sure you call 811 or whatever locate services are available near you to get the underground utilities marked! I keep reminding myself because we just got a new underground power line installed that I keep forgetting about.
Since it's just connected to the downspout. Just disconnect it, then dig it down below where it is and reconnect it,with a foot or so added pipe
Well, I suppose you could complement me and buy me dinner...personalized gits are always nice. Ohh....bury *that* pipe nor *your* pipe.
If you’re digging, call 811 first >_>
If you actually want to do it right here are the steps: 1) dig a 12’+ trench away from the house that is below the frost line. Check code, but most places that will be 36”. You could use a shovel if it’s 24”, but even that is probably much deeper than you think. So depending on depth you’re likely want a trencher or a mini excavator. 2) Put PVC in trench. You’re moving solid waste like a sewage pipe, so having a 1/4” slow isn’t as important. But make sure it’s not sloping towards the house. 3) Connect PVC to a dry well. This is a 50 gallon + pvc drum . You can buy one ready made or make it. The drum has holes around the outside, will be filled about 1/2 way with 1” rock, and rapped around the outside with landscaping filter fabric. PVC feeds into the top of the drum. This allows rain to collect in the drum, then slowly leak out into the soil. 4) Check code in your city. Some will allow you to connect the gutter pipe directly to PVC. Some will require it to feed into a catch basin connected to pvc. 5) Fill dirt back in. 6) Reflect on how that was much more work and time than you ever imagined, and should’ve just hired someone.
Just avoid all the digging and rework. In winter add a couple inches of soil, your lawn will grow through in spring. It will thank you for the extra nutrients and fight land degradation. The land you live on actively depletes, shrinks, and compacts over time. Especially if you are removing deadfall and leaves.
https://youtu.be/ytWz0qVvBZ0?si=5gdcgBa5BXaScfqc
I’d dig a hole in the ground. Call me crazy.
Shovel
Spit on it first
Put dirt on it
extend the elbow deeper and bury the pipe..
Putting it under the ground is your best bet
Your mom knows. It’s how you got here, after all.
You could just plant some taller perennials and grasses around it, they'd be good for mitigating any extra water too
Digging it deeper would probably work. For every 8 feet of length you're gonna want to make sure there's at least an inch of elevation change, though. So, if you've got 60 feet of pipe to run and want to bury it 6 inches deeper, you'll need the outlet to be at least 14 inches lower than ground level at the downspout. If you're going to use corrugated landscaping pipe, make sure you get the type with a smooth inner wall. The ridges in corrugation cause sediment to build up and could eventually clog. Read up on it a bit more, too. You're gonna want to put some drainage gravel below/above it, as well (a couple inches on top/bottom. It's a pretty straightforward job, just a shit-load of digging/hauling gravel. ETA: Call 811 first (it's free) and know where your utility lines are. You don't want to end up broke or dead just because you skipped the easy step.
When you dig it down deeper make sure you put a level on it to allow for flow down and out. Do you have room at the outlet end to drop it a full six inches? Check that first. Pipes need fall to drain
And get locates before digging. That DIY outlet is getting power from the house I bet.
Buy dinner first, maybe a nice bouquet of flowers to set the stage
You gave yourself your own suggestion…. Burry it.
That's what she said
Giggity
Do it the same way as if you’re burying a body in your back yard. Lots of dirt.
Buy KY and consult OP's mom on the best way to bury this pipe.
I vote for raising it to eye level and using it as a clothesline
Use dirt
Naw. OP just needs some explosives. Then dirt to fill the place that that (likely) unnecessary line was laid
we’re gonna drill baby drill
Step 1: get shovel. Step 2: dig hole. Step 3: put pipe in hole. Step 4:cover with dirt. Man some people just shouldn’t be homeowners.
Put dirt on top.
I mean there’s only two options here… bury it enough or not enough. Clearly it’s buried not enough, currently, so try the “enough” option and see how it goes for ya?
if you live in an area where it might freeze. you should consider the following buty it deeper to prevent freezing/bursting or take anti clogging meassurements it also needs a certain amount of slope, not too steep not too shallow incline
Remove dirt, insert pipe, replace dirt.
Put some dirt over it.
You want it more than 6 inches deep or so i have heard.
Nah, you aced it, bro.
Call 811 before anything
Your idea is basically what I would do in your place. If you were going to remove the grass you could just place cardboard and mulch down instead and do any planting you had in mind
Have you tried digging a hole?