[TowerTalk] base below ground level/drainage

[Arthur Trampler]

Hi All,

I was trying to sell my father's 50' Glen Martin (18" side) tower and Hazer when my wife (to my pleasure and surprise) decided she would be OK if there were guy wires in our backyard if that got me on the air (gotta love her).  My father, N0JT, has sadly reached the point at nearly 84 where declining health makes getting on the air a taxing event that yields less enjoyment than effort.  I don't have a tower and he is giving this to me.

However...her one request is that the top of the concrete be at least a few inches below ground so if/when we move, we can cover the spot and seed it...no harm, no foul.

I am concerned about water accumulation/corrosion/structural weakness to the concrete, and wonder if that is as much an issue as I think it is.  If so, my thought is to have the back how dig a trench away from the tower which I would partially fill with large gravel, like a lateral for a septic system.  I would then place a PVC pipe at the side of the concrete pour with a drain opening on it, and slightly contour the top of the concrete toward that drain opening. 

Hopefully water would flow toward the drain, down the pipe/through its L and drain out along the gravel.

Is this reasonable? Necessary? Not enough?  Or am I missing something?

Thanks for the input
Art, KC2G

P.S. Most tower mfrs. spec-out with 3000 PSI concrete; is it generally worth paying the extra for 5000 PSI?