JohnnyDrain

07/20/2025

July has been another productive month. We were able to install 2 more JohnnyTrenches, totalling 225 feet in length, in a 1.34-acre depression area. The landowner wants to be able to farm this area so we buried the trenches under 18 inches of top soil. Start to finish, we had this one dug and filled in 12 days. Thank you to Elton Florian for the excavation, and Braden and Noah Brent for filling the trenches. A special thank you to Dracon Farms for allowing the installation of these trenches on their land and playing a significant role in capturing more rainwater for future generations. The trenches represent the equivalent of 450 individual JohnnyDrains in terms of percolation surface area.

06/01/2025

Napa Auto Parts, in Akron Colorado approved the installation of JohnnyDrains in the puddle areas that form on the property. The first puddle area received 10 drains. By day 4, the puddle was completely dry. The other puddles on the property that haven't received any drains yet still have standing water 6 days after the rain stopped.

UPDATE 6/4/25: We received another large rainstorm over the weekend of the 2nd. Now that all 10 drains are installed, the puddle drains completely in less than 48 hours!

05/30/2025

This video demonstrates the process of installing a JohnnyDrain. A vertical groundwater recharge well system. This site is farmland, so I will bury the drain under 12 inches of topsoil, allowing the farmer to grow corn right over the top. The material cost of a single JohnnDrain is just $5 in rock and w**d barrier. Using a gas auger, they can be installed in 15-20 minutes. When digging by hand, it takes 45 minutes - 1.5 hours per drain.

05/29/2025

Here is a super cut showing the process of digging a farmland buried JohnnDrain that can be farmed right over the top.

JohnnyDrain is an open-source, groundwater recharge well design dedicated to the public domain.https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100093042762951

05/28/2025

In April 2025 we had the opportunity to install the very first JohnnyTrench design in a large depression area near Baseline and county road X in Washington County, Colorado. The trench design is ideal for large areas, as we can quickly install the equivalent of hundreds of individual JohnnyDrains. Thank you to Elton Florian for the excavation! He dug 4 trenches for us, each one 50 feet long, 5 feet deep, with an 18-inch wide sump pit. At 200 total linear feet, these trenches are the equivalent of roughly 400 individual drains. Thank you to Braden Brent for providing the skid steer and labor to fill the trenches with rock! Once the trenches were prepped with w**d barrier, filling them with the 30 tons of rock we had delivered took just 6 hours. This being the first trench install, 30 tons of rock was not enough to fill all of the sump pits. 40 tons would have been about right. The owner of the land told us that in years past, given a large enough rain, the whole depression area fills with millions of gallons of water and sits there for months. Once we have such a rain again, we will monitor how quickly the water drains down to determine what kind of difference the trenches have made.

05/22/2025

Looking back at 2024:

We were able to install a total of 200 JohnnDrains in various areas near Baseline Road in Washington County, Colorado.

We tested a buried style of drain for farm land with great success. We buried the drains under 12 inches of topsoil. Corn was drilled in over the top of the drains and grew to harvest without decreasing drainage. The buried drains were installed in a section of depressed land that hadn't been farmed in many years due to standing water issues after a 3 inch rain. With 34 JohnnyDrains installed in the lowest section of the land, the water would drain within 24-72 hours after accumulation. The ground here was ideal with about 18 inches of clay on top, and about 3 feet down, turning to a sandy soil ready to percolate the water away.

10/12/2023

3 more JohnnyDrains were installed today in Washington Country! It was our first install with the new auger extension bit that allowed us to dig the full 5 ft depth. Before, we could only get 4 ft down then had to use a manual post hole digger to claim the remaining foot. Now that we are fully equipped we are able to install a drain in just 15 minutes! Thank you Kara M. for funding these 3 drains. They will bring rapid percolation for years to come!

06/08/2023

06/08/2023

We have received 8 community sponsorships for Washington County, CO! Thank you to:
Sean Kennedy
Carlos Gomez
Denese Gomez
Scott Chapin