The owners of country houses and country houses know firsthand how important it is to equip storm sewers so that thawed and rainwater do not spoil the finish and flood the foundation. But it’s not enough to organize a proper waste disposal system - without regular care, it will quickly come out of building and “inform” about this by drips on the walls and puddles around the house during heavy rain or spring drops.
To avoid this, it is necessary to carry out preventive measures in a timely manner and to be able to quickly remove blockages. Therefore, we consider in detail how the technology of cleaning storm sewage has, depending on the type of its construction. Also in this article we focus on the causes of clogged drainage systems and preventive measures.
The content of the article:
- Varieties of storm sewer
- Causes clogged drainage systems
-
Methods for cleaning systems
- Method # 1 - mechanical using available tools
- Method # 2 - Washing under the pressure of water
- Method # 3 - thermal or steam cleaning
- Method # 4 - Use Chemicals
- Strainers cleaning methods directly
- What is dangerous about clogging up the system?
- Prevention of blockages
- Conclusions and useful video on the topic
Varieties of storm sewer
The purpose of stormwater drains is to collect water from the precipitations and take it to a special tank or just outside the territory of the site via the pipeline network or by-pass channels. To cope with this task can any design drainage.
But in order to choose the most effective way to clean and prevent sewage blockages, first you need to find out which system protects your house from rain and melting snow.
Open (surface) - the most budget and simple design, which equip country houses. It is a complex of trays, pipes, gutters, which are held on the roof and walls of the building, - spillway system. On them, the water enters the points of water intake - drainage surface ditches, equipped around the perimeter of the entire site or just near the territory, and is discharged into the ground.
Unconditional advantages of an open system: reasonable price of components, simple installation and easy cleaning. But with significant rainfall it can not cope with the flow of water
Closed - the upper part of the storm water represents the same system of pipes and gutters, only the collected water is collected in underground sewer pipes, where other sewage flows from the house, then into the sewer and only after that - into the drainage the system. In some cases, an additional pump is installed that regulates the speed of movement of the effluent.
Such a system copes with the removal of excess moisture from the site without flooding the ground, the formation of puddles and other flaws in the work of open storm drains. Of the minuses can be noted expensive installation.
In addition, for a layperson it may be an impossible task to make the correct calculation of the necessary the number of components, the length and diameter of pipes, determine the depth of their installation, the desired slope and other nuances. A detailed analysis of the features of the design and calculation of storm sewage we led in this article.
Closed and mixed systems provide for the separation of the stormwater structure into two parts: ground and underground. And the more often the upper elements are cleaned, the less likely clogged pipes will be.
Therefore, for country cottages and country houses, designed for a longer period of stay than a couple of weekends per year, most often set up a mixed sewage system. In essence, this is a simplified version of a closed system.
In this case, instead of a complicated maze of sewage, water is drained into a storage tank or septic tanklocated on the territory, asserted, cleaned and later can be used for watering or other technical purposes.
Another option for waste disposal is taking it to nearby lakes and rivers, but for this to happen, the water must be filtered in order not to clog the reservoir (which is fraught with an impressive fine).
Image Gallery
A photo of
Methods of cleaning storm sewer systems determines the specifics of the device complex of water intake and drainage devices
Stormwater drainage systems are divided by point and linear water intake. The water intakes of both varieties are covered with gratings that are not able to withstand the gradual contamination of the system with sand and organic matter.
Flood racks with linear-type water intakes are a system of canals overlaid with a grid. Sand and organic debris in them is held in sand traps requiring periodic cleaning.
The most difficult option for cleaning is a deaf connection of point water intakes with a drainpipe. The trap must then be audited to inspect and remove debris from the system.
The storm sewage system with point water intakes collects water from drain pipes located directly above them, transports it by sealed pipes laid in the ground. To clean this system, turning and viewing wells are needed.
Point-type water intakes are initially equipped with baskets for trash and sand. Recycle bins require periodic emptying.
Clearing the storm sewer is carried out using methods that are standard for all concealed ones. pipelines: using plumbing cables with various nozzles, pressure jet of water supplied under air pressure
Mechanized methods are used to clean storm drains within the city. The machines designed for this purpose are equipped with two types of pumps: one of them supplies water under pressure, the second sucks dirt.
Clearing of a point intake of stormwater
Causes of Stormwater Clogging
Linear type trap trap
Deaf drain connection with stormwater
Drip wells
Point receiving water with sand catchers
Clearing of a collector of storm sewage
Cleaning technology for municipal storm sewers
Causes clogged drainage systems
In any system, regardless of the type of its design, various small debris regularly penetrates the bones of fruit trees, insects, fallen twigs and leaves, bird feathers and nesting material.
All these "gifts of nature" are collected in the upper part of the drain and are gradually washed in a dense cork. Moving into the storm sewer, it disables the performance of the entire drainage system
But there are other causes of blockages:
- Incorrect installation. If the pipeline does not maintain the required angle of inclination towards the catchment basin (or is completely absent), the water will stagnate and the garbage will accumulate faster. It is possible to verify compliance with the norms with the help of a construction level (the optimal indicator is 2-5 mm / linear meter).
- Curved pipe laying. If the system has a lot of sharp turns, blockages are inevitable. Therefore, when planning the pipeline, try to minimize bends. And it is useful at self-design or accepting work from builders will be pre-familiarized with SNiP 2.04.01-85.
- Heavy rainfall. After a heavy shower, the system may be flooded with fine sand, silt or mud. It is difficult to prevent natural disasters, but it is recommended to check the work of the system after them and arrange an unscheduled cleaning.
- General obstruction. For closed systems, in which the storm sewage system is connected by a pipeline that discharges household sewage, the problem can most often be solved by cleaning the house pipe.
- Construction works. If the roof was blocked or the facade finish was updated, after the repair is completed, it is necessary to check whether the wind has entered the gutters. and foam pipes, fragments of plaster and other materials that will become impassable for water when rain is near cork.
In some cases, the cause of blockage may be the penetration into the system of petroleum products. True, this phenomenon can be attributed to force majeure, which incapacitate rainfall trap less often than the banal accumulation of leaves.
But if this happened, you should immediately call the specialists who will adjust the work of the system and prevent the contamination of the soil and groundwater.
Image Gallery
A photo of
Regular maintenance of organized drainage will prevent litter from entering the associated point drainage system and the subsequent clogging of the sewer system.
The easiest and most affordable way to clean gutters is to remove dirt with a brush with functional nozzles.
Brushes manufactured for cleaning drainage systems are equipped with polymer bristles on one side and a plastic scraper on the other. The stiffness of the bristles and the scraper are designed for the free removal of contaminants without damaging the protective and decorative coating of the drain elements
The brush and the mechanical cleaner are suitable for cleaning gutters installed on one- and two-story houses. It should be applied at least twice a year: in early spring and late autumn, after which it should be thoroughly washed with water supplied under pressure with a hose
To clean the drainage system of dirt can be using a normal garden hose. The truth is to use it better after cleaning the gutters with a brush. It is needed to wash away small particles of dirt.
Cleaning is much faster and more efficient with the use of technical means. For example, by blowing channels and cleaning with a mechanically rotating brush
It is convenient and absolutely safe for the contractor to clean the gutters with a robotic cleaner. It can operate on battery or mains.
Paying attention to gutters, do not forget about the drainage funnels and risers of the system for collecting and draining rainwater. It is in them that dense jams are most often formed.
Manual gutter cleaning
Cleaning the drainage system with a brush
Device brushes for cleaning the drainage system
Flushing gutter cleaner
Using a garden hose in flushing
Device for purging and cleaning the system
Robot vacuum cleaner for drainage systems
Punching and cleaning the drainpipe
Methods for cleaning systems
Depending on the drainage devices and the type of its elements (the same gutters can be completely open or closed, but with nets or perforations), you can choose the most convenient way for you to care for the system.
Clean gutters - a pledge of rapid water drainage and a guarantee of uninterrupted operation of the entire system, so be sure to check whether the leaves have accumulated in them and whether the dirt has collected after the rain
Consider all sorts of ways in more detail.
Method # 1 - mechanical using available tools
The most affordable and popular cleaning method that is great for all open drains is mechanical. It does not require any special equipment or special skills, except that caution when working at height. The essence of the work - the mechanical removal of accumulated debris.
Before cleaning do not forget to protect your hands with thick gloves to protect yourself from sharp fragments and encounters with insects.
To complete this task, you will need some simple equipment: a ladder, a brush with a bristle made of plastic or synthetic fibers, a spatula or shovel, a garden hose with a water connection.
A great tool can also be made by hand from an ordinary plastic bottle, cutting a semicircular hole in it along the diameter of the gutter. Just before the start of cleaning, do not forget to protect your hands with thick gloves to protect yourself from sharp fragments and insects.
Perform cleaning should be from the highest point, covering all elements of the system:
- From the gutters laid on the roof, the accumulated debris must be scooped onto a scoop and sent to a bag for recycling. Just do not push the leaves and other debris in the drainpipes, it is better to sweep all the broom or brush out, and then clean the house territory.
- Funnels - connecting elements that combine gutters and rain pipes - are most often equipped with gratings that need to be removed and rinsed. If there is no such protection, you can simply clean the elements under the pressure of water, removing traces of dirt and small litter, and large - to pre-assemble hands.
- The drain pipes through which the drains are directed downward are also the easiest to rinse under good pressure, helping yourself with a brush. If the blockage with the hands and the brush is not reached, and it cannot be exposed to water, a sanitary drill or cleaning tapes can be used. Only such equipment should be used with caution so as not to scratch the protective coating of pipes, which leads to metal corrosion.
- Drainage channels must first be removed from the protective gratings (if installed), cleaned of debris and rinsed with water.
- Now examine the sewage collector (ditch, drainage field), if necessary, remove the sludge and update the filter layer.
- It remains to replace all the grids and other elements of the system and check its operation with the help of the same hose with water pressure.
To facilitate manual labor can specialized cleaning machines sectional, rod or drum type, however, they are more designed to remove blockages in the pipes, rather than cleaning open gutters.
But there is also an option for those who do not want to independently collect the leaves - a robot vacuum cleaner.
Such devices can even cope with wet foliage, work in water and are equipped with a recognition system that helps determine how many aisles will be required to completely clean the drain.
It is necessary to install this miracle of technology on the roof, as it begins to move around the perimeter of the gutter system, removing dirt and accumulations of debris with brushes. Can work from the mains or on batteries.
Method # 2 - Washing under the pressure of water
A closed or mixed system can also be mechanically cleaned at the top (ground) part. However, it is necessary to carry out preliminary training - to remove the grid or grille from the gutters, to arm itself with a brush on a long stick or blower.
But to clean the underground drain, you may need hydraulic equipment. A simple garden hose is not enough here, as its head is not enough to break the cork of sand, mud and wet leaves. Hydraulics, on the other hand, provides a powerful water jet, which perfectly washes away uncomplicated debris from the pipeline.
The choice of technology depends largely on the design of the pipeline (straight, tortuous) and the diameter of the pipes, but in any case it is worth it first perform mechanical cleaning of ground drainage elements, so that the trash washed away under the pressure of water does not crumple somewhere on the way to exit
And you can detect the blockage through inspection wells or using video diagnostics - modern devices are equipped with a sensor and cable, which, passing through the pipes, records or immediately sends to the display an image clearly demonstrating the state of sewage from the inside.
Usually, systems for summer houses and small houses are completed with elements with a diameter of 20-22 cm. To flush such sewage there is enough a household car wash with a capacity of 120-150 bar.
But to clean the wide pipes that are equipped with large cottages, you will have to call specialists with professional hydraulic equipment, which is equipped with a long bushing and powerful hose pump.
Hydrodynamic machines for cleaning storm drains and sewage systems are equipped with pumps of high pressure with a capacity of about 200 MPa, and special nozzles additionally increase the pressure and easily erode deposits garbage
Also professional hydraulic machines supply nozzles that can cope with both simple and complex types of blockages:
- Universal - used for normal flushing and removal of soft debris.
- Bottom - leaves, pieces of polyethylene, soil, silt and other accumulations are effectively removed from the stormwater plant.
- Punching - designed for crushing debris, clusters of leaves and branches, sand, paper.
- Carousel chain - cope with old sediments and clogged debris that can not be even strong water pressure.
To use the hydrodynamic method of cleaning pipes, the area must be uninterrupted supply of water and electricity. Otherwise, you will have to look for equipment running on gasoline, or call a car with a tank.
But this technology, unlike other methods of cleaning the sewage system, absolutely guarantees the integrity of all elements of the drainage system.
Method # 3 - thermal or steam cleaning
For systems of mixed and closed type, combined with public sewage, you can use steam cleaning technology. Here often there are blockages due to fatty growths on the walls of the pipeline, which are not amenable to cold water, but they literally disappear before the eyes under the influence of hot steam. To do this, the water is heated to a temperature of 140 degrees and washes the pipes.
But note, the thermal method is recommended as a final step after mechanical and hydrodynamic cleaning. And as an independent method you should not use it - the risk of injury is high, and the result is unpredictable.
Method # 4 - Use Chemicals
In cases where other cleaning technologies have proven powerless against complex clogging, they resort to chemical reagents.
Such a need may arise if a large amount of oily waste has entered the system, which has stuck together in lumps of trash, or the design is so complex and tortuous that cork is not technically available for cable with punching nozzles, and water does not cope with the task.
The essence of chemical technology - soluble reagents that break up accumulations run into the sewage system debris and fatty deposits into small particles, and then the pipes are washed under the pressure of water by hydraulic method.
Self-use of such chemicals should be done with caution - most of them are toxic and can penetrate into groundwater and cause severe poisoning. Therefore, it is possible to clean the sewage system with this method only with biochemical preparations, provided that the polluted water is pre-filtered and does not get into drinking water sources.
Strainers cleaning methods directly
Cleaning the storm sewers directly consists in the periodic emptying of sand traps and the removal of traffic jams from silt and sand from the canals of the underground system:
Image Gallery
A photo of
Sand traps designed for the arrangement of storm sewers are a sealed container with a basket inside. From above, both the device itself and the basket are covered with filtering nets.
Sand traps are equipped with nozzles to which a pipeline is being transported, which transports rainwater to the place of unloading or to the collector, which redirects it outside the site.
Sand traps for storm sewers with linear intakes differ from point ones in configuration. Install them on the branches of the system and at the points of consolidation of several branches before discharge of water into the collector
The area of water collection in storm sewer systems with point drain inlets is significantly less, because they receive only water collected from the roof. They get dirty less often than linear variants.
Storm systems with linear water collectors take water not only from the roof, but also from the paved area adjacent to the house. They get clogged more often and often require cleaning.
In addition to sand traps in linear and combined storm drains, it is necessary to clean the canals themselves, which receive and transport water. To do this, simply remove the grille and clean the drain.
The sand-catcher of the linear system installed in front of the collector pipe needs regular inspection and frequent cleaning.
Sand traps for systems with point, linear and combined water inlets are selected in accordance with the amount of precipitation they take. The total volume of point species should be 1/3 more than the volume of water flowing from the roof, linear - 1/3 more than the average precipitation per day in a particular region
Sand trap for storm sewer
Branch pipes for connection of underground communications
Strainer for linear rainfall
The principle of operation of stormwater with point inlets
Blockage of the cast-iron grate above the catchment channel
Linear stormwater channel device
Connecting the collector pipe to the sand trap
Combined storm sewer system
What is dangerous about clogging up the system?
If, having studied all the technologies for cleaning storm sewers, you seriously thought in the direction of Do it to me? ”, take note and list the problems that lack of care for the system may cause.
- The stagnation of water masses in pipes and gutters creates an additional load on fasteners. They may simply not sustain and bring down the system.
- The accumulated debris clogs up the drains, and the water not only flushes the base of the house, but also penetrates through ceilings and walls - yes, damp spots and moldy finish can be a clear indication of problems with the roof.
- Fallen fruits and berries create favorable conditions for the settlement of whole colonies of wasps, hornets, ants, and under wet leaves moss, mold and even mushrooms can grow.
- In a dry summer, trash on the roof may well cause a fire.
As you can see, regular cleaning of storm drains is a matter of not only comfortable living in the house, but also your safety.
Prevention of blockages
Experts recommend to check the operation of open stormwater and remove accumulated litter at least 2 times a year. After the autumn leaf fall, you need to remove all the garbage in order to prepare the drainage system for the winter, and in early spring to ascertain the integrity of the anchorages after frost and thaw.
But when the building grows tall trees, you will have to drop in on the roof much more often if you don’t want learn about the need for cleaning works from the water flowing down the walls and from the roof of the house, bypassing the rain pipes. But if all the gutters in the construction of a closed type - one inspection per year is enough.
Rain drives, sand traps, protective grills for open gutters will help reduce the frequency and duration of care for storm sewer
The following preventive measures will help to prevent the formation of blockages:
- To reduce the amount of debris that penetrates into the drainage system, special visors for funnels and fine meshes / grids covering the gutters will help. If the system is already installed and there is no desire to upgrade a part of its elements, you can fill the gutters with porous foam. It is applied by spraying, takes the form of a drain and does not allow large debris into the pipes (although such protection needs updating every 3-5 years).
- Since the external stormwater system is much easier to clean than the underground one, it is possible to equip the drains with several catcher grids that will stop soil particles, sand and leaves. To prevent clogging, it will be enough to regularly check the “check points” and remove garbage from them.
- If a closed or mixed type system is installed on your site, it is worthwhile to install household sewage pipes in the pipes grease traps. This will help to avoid stubborn formations on the walls of the sewer.
- If the underground part of the system has complex turns, it is worthwhile to install inspection wells in potential places of blockages so that in case of problems there is no need to dig out the pipes.
In addition to additional protection of the system, it is worth taking care of wastewater treatment. To do this, equip the septic tanks with drainage fields or separators, mechanically separating water from sediment and other inclusions, or install an autonomous sewage system.
Conclusions and useful video on the topic
Details about the organization of the drainage system at the site:
And this video details how to install a grid to protect the drain from the leaves with your own hands:
Professional cleaning by hydrodynamic technology - how complex blockages are washed:
Compliance with construction standards for installation, regular removal of debris and prevention - three elephants for the smooth operation of the entire sewer system.
But if none of the popular technology of cleaning does not inspire you to labor exploits, it is worth agreeing with a cleaning company about the periodic cleaning of stormwater. Believe me, this service will cost much cheaper than eliminating cracked blockages and repairing a flooded house.
And what method of cleaning stormwater do you use? Do you take preventive measures to prevent blockages? Share with other users your secrets of caring for the whole house sewage system - leave your comments and useful tips in the comments block.
