Your yard grade determines how well your yard can drain water that lands on your Mansfield property. A positive yard grade means that the terrain is sloped so that water naturally flows away from your home. A negative grade is the opposite, meaning that whenever it rains, water will form around your house. Not every part of your home will have an even grade, so sometimes, water will drain properly in some sections while it might pool up in others. Figuring out the grade of your home is important because it can help you improve your foundation’s drainage. If you have a negative yard grade, your foundation is surrounded by more groundwater than it should be. Every rainfall and all the melting snow accumulated around your home and seeped down around your foundation. Not only does this cause hydrostatic pressure, it also causes more frost heave damage to the foundation when the groundwater freezes. The best thing to do would be to improve the drainage system around your foundation so that all the groundwater gets drained out. This can be done with sump pumps and a perimeter drain. You might also want to speak with a landscaping expert to see what kind of yard grade you have. If it’s negative, the yard can always be re-graded so that it’s positive. Even if you moved into the house when it had a positive grade, as rain, snow, hail, and wind erode the soil, a yard’s grade changes over the years. This is why you should focus on the drainage and waterproofing aspects of foundation care first. If the yard’s grade is going to change anyway, it’s better to implement permanent drainage solutions instead of paying for re-grading more than once.