Good evening,
My neighbor recently renovated an older house with a plot size of about 1000 square meters (about 10,764 square feet) and paved his driveway and parts of his property. It is a large paved area of more than 100 square meters (about 1,076 square feet).
From what I can see, the freshly laid paving is sloped towards my property (away from his house but also away from the garden behind it).
There is no drainage channel on any side of the paved area, which surprised me a lot.
The distance between the paved area and my property boundary is about 30–50 cm (12–20 inches). It also seems that this is not permeable paving (this is initially only an assumption on my part that would need to be confirmed).
Questions:
As someone who has unfortunately experienced heavy rainfall events (my property also slopes down toward a basement entrance that has flooded multiple times), I am concerned that during heavy rain, due to the large impermeable surface on my neighbor’s property, despite the 30–40 cm (12–16 inches) distance, the runoff water may not remain on his property but instead flow onto mine.
My neighbor recently renovated an older house with a plot size of about 1000 square meters (about 10,764 square feet) and paved his driveway and parts of his property. It is a large paved area of more than 100 square meters (about 1,076 square feet).
From what I can see, the freshly laid paving is sloped towards my property (away from his house but also away from the garden behind it).
There is no drainage channel on any side of the paved area, which surprised me a lot.
The distance between the paved area and my property boundary is about 30–50 cm (12–20 inches). It also seems that this is not permeable paving (this is initially only an assumption on my part that would need to be confirmed).
Questions:
- Is it allowed to pave such a large area without a drainage channel to the sewer?
- Is the neighbor allowed to lay the paving with a slope towards my property?
- Are there setback distances that need to be observed?
As someone who has unfortunately experienced heavy rainfall events (my property also slopes down toward a basement entrance that has flooded multiple times), I am concerned that during heavy rain, due to the large impermeable surface on my neighbor’s property, despite the 30–40 cm (12–16 inches) distance, the runoff water may not remain on his property but instead flow onto mine.
N
nordanney16 Apr 2026 22:28Biker99 schrieb:
The joints between the paving stones are at most 3-4 mm (0.1-0.16 inches) wide. Then it is 99.9% certain that it is not an eco-friendly paving system.
Try talking to your neighbor about what they did. Act a bit clueless and ask if there isn’t supposed to be a channel there; that surely they didn’t plan for all the water to run directly onto your property.
Biker99 schrieb:
At least there is a manhole cover on his property at the outer sloping end of the paving (close to the property boundary with mine) The question was how rainwater is drained in your case. Is there a sewer for it? Or is it a combined sewer system? Or does the water have to infiltrate on the property? You should know that if you live there.
M
MachsSelbst16 Apr 2026 23:16You can forget about that anyway. A heavy rain event means anywhere from 50, 100, or 150 liters per square meter in just a few hours, depending on the region.
For a 100m² (1,076 sq ft) paved area, that’s an additional 5 to 15m³ (177 to 530 cubic feet) on top of the roof surface. No stormwater drain, cistern, or soakaway system can handle that volume; none are designed for such extremes.
A joint width of 3 to 4mm (0.1 to 0.15 inches) is not negligible either. Is it filled with sand? What is the substrate like? Does water infiltrate well on your site? How steep is the slope?
Yes, action is needed, but it’s not realistic to expect that 20m³ (706 cubic feet) of water, falling in 20 hours, will stay on his property. That simply can’t work.
For a 100m² (1,076 sq ft) paved area, that’s an additional 5 to 15m³ (177 to 530 cubic feet) on top of the roof surface. No stormwater drain, cistern, or soakaway system can handle that volume; none are designed for such extremes.
A joint width of 3 to 4mm (0.1 to 0.15 inches) is not negligible either. Is it filled with sand? What is the substrate like? Does water infiltrate well on your site? How steep is the slope?
Yes, action is needed, but it’s not realistic to expect that 20m³ (706 cubic feet) of water, falling in 20 hours, will stay on his property. That simply can’t work.
N
nordanney16 Apr 2026 23:24MachsSelbst schrieb:
Yes, he has to do something, but he does not have to make sure that 20m³ (706 cubic feet) of water falling in 20 hours stays on his property. That simply isn’t possible. Well, if he directs the water from his driveway straight to the street (including a gutter and connection to the sewer system if available) instead of to the side, almost no water will end up on the neighbor’s property.
@TE, what about the situation at your property - is there a proper street with a sewer system? A gravel road? Are the houses located slightly higher than the street?
M
MachsSelbst16 Apr 2026 23:57Possible. But maybe it will then flow into other neighbors' properties if 20m³ (26 cubic yards) overload the stormwater drain and flood the street. The curbs and catch basins on public roads are not designed to handle heavy rain and only account for the precipitation falling on public areas...
Therefore, it remains as is. Yes, measures must be taken, but it is not possible to fully protect against a once-in-a-century event.
Therefore, it remains as is. Yes, measures must be taken, but it is not possible to fully protect against a once-in-a-century event.
Biker99 schrieb:
The distance between the paved area and my property boundary is about 30-50cm (12-20 inches). So, the drainage does not run towards your property but onto their land.
nordanney schrieb:
Then it is 99.9% not eco-friendly paving. I disagree with that.
For example, we have Kronimus eco-paving Barretto, which is installed with joint gaps of 3-5mm (0.1-0.2 inches). So, you cannot determine the type of paving just based on the width of the joints.
Also (regarding the questions asked):
A stormwater drain or combined sewer is located at the street.
This is a long-developed inner-city area without a currently valid zoning plan, meaning Section 34 applies.
The adjacent properties are slightly elevated compared to street level, allowing water to flow into the street and then into the drain.
However, the neighbor has a rear property in the second row, which is accessible via a dead-end street or a private lane.
Until recently—before their renovation—the rainwater from their roof was discharged into the drain.
The rainwater from the existing buildings also flows into this drain.
The infiltration capacity on my property is poor, based on an older infiltration test.
A stormwater drain or combined sewer is located at the street.
This is a long-developed inner-city area without a currently valid zoning plan, meaning Section 34 applies.
The adjacent properties are slightly elevated compared to street level, allowing water to flow into the street and then into the drain.
However, the neighbor has a rear property in the second row, which is accessible via a dead-end street or a private lane.
Until recently—before their renovation—the rainwater from their roof was discharged into the drain.
The rainwater from the existing buildings also flows into this drain.
The infiltration capacity on my property is poor, based on an older infiltration test.
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