Source
r/HomeImprovement•
veryseldon

What is this hole and how can I make it safe?

There's a relatively small hole in the grass next to my sidewalk, at the bottom of a slope that goes up to my front yard. The hole has gotten bigger over the past year since I bought the house, and I'm wondering if it is meant for drainage from the front yard under the sidewalk and somehow connects up with the storm drains or if it is some sort of sinkhole. Just looking at it, it's not terribly deep, but it does extend under the sidewalk, but I can't tell how far it goes. Any advice about how to determine what the hole is, and then how to address the possibility of people falling into it (filling it up if it's a sinkhole or putting some protective cover over it if it's for drainage?) would be very much appreciated.

Here's a picture of the hole; since the picture was taken it has grown by about 20% http://imgur.com/a/Nvbw5

Posted Jun 7, 2017, 1:05 PM UTC

1214
ceresia•

Dig and see what you find, likely a runoff from your guttering.

9
[deleted]•

[deleted]

13
veryseldonOP•

Fair enough! I know no gutters run underground but there were window well drains that have since been plugged. Perhaps this is where those came out!

2
MrM0stly•

It might be interesting to stick a hose in your gutter and run the water (on a dry day, preferably after a few dry days), and then see if you notice water accumulating in or around that hole!

2
veryseldonOP•

Great idea, thanks!

3
DlSCOSTU•

The section of sidewalk above has been replaced (doesn't match the sections to either side). I would guess that something had been repaired under there before. Start with check the gutters as suggested but it could also be that the bed layer for that piece was not created properly and could be eroding and under cutting. You have a pretty steep slope leading to the sidewalk.

2
veryseldonOP•

Good eye! I imagine that digging carefully around the hole should reveal something like this. If not, I'll ask the neighbors if they remember why that piece of sidewalk was replaced. Thanks for the tip!

2
DlSCOSTU•

Just be very careful if you start digging. It's best to find you or local "Call before you dig" number so everyone can come out and mark and underground lines. Even if you think you know where your lines are, there may be others.

Good luck!

2
Mortimer452•

I'm gonna guess this is probably a spot where water likes to run down that hill and it's worn itself a hole. Once it gets started, it will continue to get bigger and bigger the more water runs over/through it.

I would simply fill it in with dirt, use the handle of your shovel to pack it in the hole and compact it as much as you can. You can try and seed over it but might be hard to get it to take if you're getting a lot of rainfall. Try seeding it, then throw a few handfuls of mulch or compost over the top of the seed to help keep it from running off.

2
SafetyMan35•

It could be a critter hole...groundhog?

1
veryseldonOP•

Could be; I'll have to try and get a flashlight in there so I can see a little better.

1
mrcleanup•

If your sewer line runs underneath that spot, be sure it isn't broken and eating dirt.

Regardless, the question is, if water is running into that hole and taking dirt with it (thus making the hole larger), where do the dirt and water come out?

1
graggy•

You could always call the city, if it has anything to do with drainage or sewage they should be in charge of fixing that

-1
richardmartin•

To be honest, the city wouldn't care less about the drainage on their property unless it was causing an issue for them, and I sincerely hope that's not a sewer line.

3
floydtank•

Use a condom

-1