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Lyle Schuette likes to play in the dirt. He and his wife, Debbie, have been at it for 12 years and their company, Schuette's Dirt Works, has grown.
In fact, the drainage contracting company they run from their home in Derby sometimes has a waiting list of clients, usually referred to him by structural engineers, home inspectors, Realtors and other business contacts.
Working in both the residential and commercial markets, Schuette's Dirt Works makes sure that water drains away from a home or business' foundation. Faulty drainage is a problem that often is not discovered by the owner of a building until the structure settles typically three to five years after being built.
"There are usually two things that result in drainage problems," says Schuette. "One is the settling of the earth (around a structure), or when trees mature and their surface roots get bigger, resulting in (damage to) the drainage easement. But the other big culprit is landscaping."
Schuette says that many times it is the landscaping around a home or business, whether on the ground or with the addition of structures such as sheds or fencing, that interfere with the property's master drainage plan.
"A lot of the problems are man-made," says Debbie Schuette, who handles...