Removal of groundwater and stormwater from the basement will significantly increase the service life of the capital building and country-house construction. The drainage system, simple in the device, will save underground concrete structures from gradual erosion, and the basements from flooding. But it is extremely important to prevent the destruction of the very foundation of the structure, right?
A well-designed drainage scheme around the house will help build an effective system for collecting and draining natural water. We invite you to familiarize yourself with carefully selected and verified information, based on regulatory documents and real experience of low-rise builders.
We will describe in detail the types of drainage systems, the features of their device, the specifics of operation. We will argue in favor of choosing a specific type of drainage. The useful information offered to your attention is supplemented with photos, diagrams and video instructions.
The content of the article:
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Types of drainage facilities for draining sites
- # 1: Open drainage device
- # 2: Building Efficient Stormwater
- # 3: Building closed drainage options
- # 4: Building wall drainage in steps
- # 5: Combined Systems Organization
- Conclusions and useful video on the topic
Types of drainage facilities for draining sites
When designing a drainage system, first of all they determine the goals that are planned to be achieved. They can consist in draining the entire plot, in protecting the foundation and basement of the house from excess moisture.
From the existing drainage systems, two main types can be distinguished - open and deep (closed). The first can be used for the needs of agriculture, for drainage from cultivated areas. Closed drainage is used to drain water at the dacha and cottage plots, to protect buildings from the negative impact of high GWL.
The organization of the drainage system is necessary with a high groundwater mirror, which is especially evident in the flood period. Drainage protect concrete foundation from aggression of groundwater and reduce hydraulic load
Combined drainage systems are also used. They are often supplemented with storm sewer branches, intended for utilization of atmospheric water. Provided that they are competently designed, they can significantly save on the construction of each system separately.
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The first and main sign, according to which the site owners need to arrange drainage, is the stagnation of water during the period of snowmelt. This means that the underlying soils have a low filtration capacity, i.e. badly pass water or do not pass it at all
Drainage is necessary in areas with pronounced signs of soil erosion: cracks that appear in the dry season. This is a manifestation of underground washing away of groundwater, resulting in the destruction of
Water collection and drainage is required if during the period of snowmelt and heavy rainfall the groundwater rises to the level of laying of communications
Drainage systems are constructed in areas with a characteristic bias. But in this case they are needed for a balanced distribution of water and retain it on elevated sites.
Flooding of the site during the period of snowmelt
Erosion and undermining of the soil under the foundation
Water at the level of laying communications
Country plot with a slope
# 1: Open drainage device
Open drainage is the simplest and most economical method of diverting water that can be used under the following conditions:
- the underlying soil is clayey, poorly permeable to water, due to which the fertile layer 20–30 cm from the ground surface is over-humidified;
- the site is located in a valley in which rainwater flows naturally in a period of abundant precipitation;
- There is no natural slope in the relief of the site, which provides movement of excess water towards the street.
Open drainage is arranged in areas with high GWL, the mark of which is most often due to the location of land put in a lowland or clay composition of soils that do not let in or very little pass water into the underlying layers.
The drainage system, designed to drain excess groundwater, works well together with storm water, the job of which is to collect and discharge precipitation (+)
Planning the sewage system is best done at the design stage of the house. This will link the work drainage system and place the gully under the drains to the blind area.
Open drainage is considered to be the simplest and does not require mapping. It is a trench 0.5 m wide and 0.6-0.7 m deep. The sides of the trench are located at an angle of 30 °. They encircle the area around the perimeter and direct the sewage into a ditch or pit, into storm sewer.
Territories with a bias towards the street are easier to drain. To do this, in front of the house, across the slope of the pull out the drainage ditch, which will hold water from the garden. Then dig a ditch, it will direct drains towards the street, in a ditch.
If the site has a slope in the direction opposite to the road, then a transverse drainage ditch is dug in front of the facade of the fence and another longitudinal one is made to the end of the site.
The disadvantage of this drainage is its low aesthetics and the need for regular cleaning of gutters from sludge and dirt, which periodically accumulates in them. It is not recommended to arrange this type of drainage under the road surface, as it leads to soil subsidence and web deformation.
The length of lines for water flow, the number of wells and sand collectors depends on the area of the site, its topography, the intensity of precipitation in a particular area.
Drainage ditches can be strengthened from erosion with the help of reinforced concrete slabs, stone paving, ground floor churning
If the area is considered more or less even, and the level of its swampiness is not too high, then you can get by with the simplest drainage system.
Along the foundation of the fence, in the lowest place of the site, they dig a ditch 0.5 m wide, 2-3 m long and depth from 1 m. Such a drainage system, although it protects from high GWL, and perfectly cope with atmospheric precipitation.
So that the edges of the ditch do not collapse, it is filled with rubble, broken glass and bricks. Having filled it, they dig the next one, it is also filled and tamped tightly. The excavated soil is used for bedding low places in the territory
Over time, this simple drainage system may lose its functionality due to gradual siltation. To prevent this from happening, it can be protected by geopolitical. It is laid on the ground, after backfilling of the ditch with an overlap close the drainage layer. From above, to hide the ditch, it is sprinkled with a layer of fertile soil.
# 2: Building Efficient Stormwater
Storm sewage is necessary for the accumulation and removal of water falling in the form of precipitation. It is equipped with point and linear drainage devices.
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Storm sewer systems are suitable for collecting atmospheric water and preventing its penetration into the soil, and then into the underlying soils.
According to the type of water intake, storm sewer systems are divided into point and linear. The first ones are constructed on plots with organized drain, the second - with unorganized
Linear water intakes have a much larger collection area than point ones. They are installed next to houses with an unorganized drain and on platforms paved with a waterproof coating.
In linear showers, water is both collected and transported through a network of canals covered with a metal or plastic grid. In point systems, water is discharged through a system of pipes laid in the ground.
Storm sewage with point water intake
Drainage Channels
Linear water intakes
The structure of the trays with grids
The first type of water collector is installed under the risers organized drainage system. The second type of water collector is located under the slopes of roofs with an unorganized drain.
Water that enters the water tank moves through an open or closed pipeline. It is diverted either to a common well-collector, or to a collector well, from which it moves to a centralized sewer network or gutter.
The storm water intake is a tank for collecting water, equipped with outlets for connecting pipes of a linear drainage system. The devices are made of durable plastic or cast iron (+)
The elements of the storm-water system with point collectors are also drainage outlets, ladders, and dampers. Some manufacturers provide for the possibility of connecting the inlets with roofing gutters, as well as with underground drainage systems.
In addition, ready-made production models provide sand traps and waste bins to simplify system maintenance.
A device with a decorative grille installed should be located 3-5 mm lower than the ground level of the walkway.
This is a system of drainage chutes made of plastic or concrete, which are installed on the site in those places where water accumulation is most likely, but highly undesirable.
For the catchment well choose the most distant place from the house, well, cellar. If there is a natural or artificial reservoir nearby, water can be diverted into it.
Designing stormwater pattern with linear water intakes, first of all plan the placement of a catchment or collector well. Next, determine the location of the device rotary and revision wells. Their placement will depend on the placement of gutters and closed sewer lines.
To prevent water from the street from entering the courtyard, gutters are installed along the gate line leading to the courtyard, garage doors, as well as in the area of the gate. When choosing elements of the system, which will be installed on the roadway, take into account the future load on them.
So that the moisture does not get inside the building, the slope of the coating in the garage is made in the direction of the water intake grid. So water, when washing a car or thawing snow on a vehicle, will flow into the chute.
Drainage trays must be installed on the porch, around the pool. They are also installed along the blind area, garden paths, lined with veneer material sites
To make the drainage tidy look, use special trays of polymer concrete, plastic, which are closed with metal or plastic grids. At the entrance to the house using a special tray for cleaning shoes.
The grate for the gutter, installed near the pool, is made of plastic, white in order to avoid burns on a hot summer day.
With intensive use, drainage trays are mounted on a concrete base. The higher the class of load on the carriageway, the greater the thickness of the concrete base must be (+)
Gutters and water inlet points are connected to a drainage tank. sewer pipes. At the junction of the gutters and pipes provide audit wells. They are designed to facilitate access to the system and cleaning it from possible clogging.
Revision wells are made mostly of plastic. In order to obtain the required depth, their design provides for the possibility of extension with the help of special extension elements.
Location, slope and length of storm sewer pipes - all these characteristics are very individual and depend on many conditions on the site
A wide range of system elements allows for the most efficient design drainage pattern around the housewhich will be optimal from a technical and financial point of view.
The main elements of linear drainage are gutters made of concrete, polymer concrete, plastic, point receivers, sand traps, gratings (+)
# 3: Building closed drainage options
Underground, closed drainage is used if the device of an open system takes up too much space on the land plot or it absolutely does not fit into the landscape picture of the territory. The conditions for its construction of a closed drainage system are similar to the prerequisites for organizing a network of open drainage ditches and ditches.
Closed drainage schemes are used to protect the foundation, basements from the effects of groundwater and increase their service life. They, by analogy with the open, are used to drain a suburban area from excess groundwater.
It is imperative to organize underground drainage at the site if:
- it is located in a lowland, in a marshy area;
- near the buildings there is a natural reservoir;
His device is recommended if the house has a basement operated (garage, ground floor, cellar).
Underground drainage can be divided into two types:
- wall drainage;
- trench (reservoir) drainage.
Both types of underground wastewater are performed at the stage of the building construction. If it was decided to start the problem of water disposal after the house was built, then the trench ring system is used. There are restrictions for the use of trench drainage. It can be used if there is no basement in the house.
The fact is that, after bookmarks drains, backfilling with sand or soil creates a looser environment between the bedrock and the foundation. As a result, the upper layer penetrates into this medium, and then even the presence of a clay castle does not protect the building from moisture.
Therefore, if the house has a basement floor, for efficient drainage it is best to do wall drainage. It is used for drainage of groundwater directly from the foundation of the building, to protect basements, cellars, basements from flooding.
Do not plant trees or shrubs near drains. The distance to the planted tree can be at least two meters and to the bush at least one meter.
Wall drainage system limits the increase in the water level, preventing it from rising above the drain pipe line - drains. It is believed that a drainage pipe with a length of 1 m is capable of drying an area of about 10–20 m.2.
The pipe during the arrangement of the wall drainage stack on the perimeter of the building. The depth of laying of drains cannot be lower than the base of the base plate or the bottom of the foundation. If the foundation is heavily buried, it is allowed to lay the pipe slightly above its base (+)
The distance from the drainage pipe to the foundation depends on the characteristics of placement revision wells. They are laid in each corner (or through one corner) of the building, as well as in places of turns and connections of pipes.
Auditing wells are also located in areas of a large difference in the level of the site and with a large pipe length - the distance between the wells should be no more than 40 meters.
The pipe in the inspection well cannot be integral, it is broken. This is done so that if the pipeline is clogged, it is possible to flush it using a high-pressure hose.
The whole system closes on the last well. It should be located in the lowest place. Then the water flows into the ordinary sewer or open water. If there is no possibility to divert water from the house by gravity, then install the pumping equipment and pump it out forcibly.
To ensure gravity drainage, pipes are laid. with a slight bias towards the collector. The slope should be two centimeters per meter of drainage pipe. The depth of the pipe should be greater than the depth of soil freezing.
The pipe is filled with drainage material - gravel, fine gravel or sand. The minimum layer that will ensure the flow of water into the drain - 0.2 m
To save on geocomposite materials and prevent their mixing with the soil, use geotextiles. It freely passes water to drains and at the same time detains particles that lead to siltation. The pipe itself before backfilling also needs to be wrapped in protective material. Some drains are produced with ready-made geotextile filters.
To increase the efficiency of wall drainage, you can use a profiled polymer membrane, which can be two- or three-layered. One of its layers is a film of polyethylene, with protrusions formed, the second layer of the membrane is geotextile fabric.
The three-layer membrane is equipped with an additional layer of smooth polyethylene film. The membrane helps to filter water from the soil and at the same time serves as a waterproofing layer for the foundation of the building.
Closed trench-type drainage protects the structure against flooding and moisture. It is a filtering layer that falls asleep in a trench at a distance of 1.5—3 m from the wall of the house.
It is better that the depth of the drain is 0.5 m deeper from the base of the foundation - so the water will not exert pressure on it from below. Between the trench with drainage and the foundation of the house remains a layer of clay soil, which serves as a so-called clay castle.
For laying the drainage pipe, a trench is dug no deeper than 1 m with a slope towards the sump. The bottom of the ditch is desirable to lay out a layer of clay (+)
As with the installation of the wall drainage system, the drains are stacked on a layer of gravel or small rubble. Both pipes and gravel are protected from clogging by geotextiles.
# 4: Building wall drainage in steps
In order to get a visual idea of the process of draining around a country house, consider an example. The plot presented in it required the installation of a groundwater abstraction system, since under The soil and vegetation layer contains loam and sandy loam, which is extremely poor in water due to the low filtration capacity.
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For the device of a drainage we develop a trench around the house. Since the work was carried out by a mini-excavator, 1.2 m retreated from the walls in order not to damage the building. If you save by hand, you can make a closer look. Bottom of production 20-30 cm below the foundation
The branches formed around the trench house should have a bias towards the common trench intended for the pipe to drain the collected water to the collector well
Sand the bottom of the trench. Let's ram it and form a slope of 2-3 cm per linear meter. We direct the bias towards a common trench, the bottom of which is also poured and rammed. In the case of a trench crossing by communications, we consider that drainage pipes must pass below them
Preparing drains, perforated polymer pipes, for laying in a trench. We wrap them with geotextiles, which will prevent clogging of the system and filter the groundwater.
The tamped bottom of the trench is covered with a second layer of geotextile, we pour gravel on it and put drains
The channels of water drainage from the storm sewer and the drainage system are laid in one trench. It is permissible to drain the water collected from them into one collector and use common inspection wells.
Wrapping the gravel bed with the drainage pipe with the second geotectil layer, we fill the trench with quarry sand. Do not use the soil, rolled away when developing the trench, the sand will be better to pass water to collect drains
We bring the common trench to which the circular drainage is brought to the place of installation of the collector well
Step 1: Trench Development for Drainage Device
Step 2: Putting the circular trench to the common trench
Step 3: Sanding the bottom of the trench and ramming
Step 4: Preparing the drain pipe for installation
Step 5: Laying geotextiles and drains on the bottom of the trench
Step 6: Parallel Gutter and Drainage Laying
Step 7: Filling the trench with sand without inclusions
Step 8: Trenching to the site of the collector well
The collector well in the example is intended for the partial discharge of collected water into the underlying groundwater layers and for the partial removal of excess water from the site into a public sewer. Connected to it will be drains from the septic tank, stormwater drains and drainage. To drain the excess water, a sewage pipe located below all will be installed.
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Before buying the reinforced concrete rings for the device of the collector well, we calculate the required volume. The well should not be filled more than 2/3 during salvo discharge
The bottom of the pit is poured with sand and leveled. If there was water in it, pump it out before work. Rings set alternately
We clean the bottom of the well from the soil that has crumbled during the construction of the collector well. At the required depth, we punch holes in the punch with a perforator
Before filling the soil filter, through which water will be partially discharged into the underlying soil, we fill it with geotextile
We pour the bottom of the well over geotextile with quarry or river sand. Thickness of a layer is 30 - 35 cm. Then pour small crushed stone with a layer of 35-40 cm and large crushed stone 35-40 cm
We insert waste pipes from a septic tank, stormwater drains and drainage into the holes punched earlier by the perforator. From the well we remove the sewer
The pit with the connected pipes is filled with soil, rolled away during the development process. It is not necessary to use pure sand here.
From the collector to the drainage ditch or reservoir located outside the site we lay a trench for laying the drainpipe
Step 9: Delivery of concrete rings to the site
Step 10: Installing the rings in the designed pit
Step 11: Preparing the bottom of the well for filling the filter
Step 12: Laying the geotextile before backfilling
Step 13: Filling the bottom layer of the filter - sand
Step 14: Putting the sewer pipe into the sewer
Step 15: Filling the sand pit with a well
Step 16: Develop a trench for draining outside
Having successfully dealt with the main scope of work, proceed to the final improvement:
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From the collector well to the sewage ditch or reservoir located outside we lay a sewage pipe with a slope in the direction of discharge
Fill in layers with a trench either with quarry sand or with rolled-off primer. It is not supposed to collect water during transportation, besides a sealed pipeline is being laid. But if there is a desire to quickly get rid of the flood water, better sand
If the upper edge of the well is located below the general ground level, then we build it up with bricks to the required height with bricks. Install the hatch with a lid. The outside of the masonry is treated with cement mortar
We completely fill all elements of the drainage system and sewage system with sand, level the site. the soil, not used for dumping, extracted to the surface is collected by an excavator and exported
Step 17: Laying the Sewer From the Collector
Step 18: Filling the trench with the drain pipe
Step 19: Managing the Manifold Well
Step 20: Leveling the site around the house
# 5: Combined Systems Organization
On the plot near the house you can also organize a combined drainage system. For example, drainage and stormwater runoff can accumulate in the same collector well. In this case, a collector for collecting wastewater should be constructed taking into account the load from both systems. In addition, storm sewers can include point and linear water collectors.
In this scheme, drainage and drainage are laid independently of each other (in parallel). Only a collector that collects drains from both systems can be common
It must be remembered that the mistakes made in the mixed type of drainage can even lead to the rise of groundwater level, flooding of basements, cellars. The main drawback is the discharge of water from the drainage system into the underground drainage system.
When these two systems are combined, water from the roof enters the drains and seeps into the ground. This is especially active during heavy and prolonged precipitation. As a result, water, instead of leaving the system, seeps into the ground and saturates it with moisture.
Conclusions and useful video on the topic
Video # 1. Surface drainage scheme and its installation:
Video # 2. Trench drainage system around the house do it yourself:
Video # 3. The nuances of the design and construction of drainage systems:
When designing a drainage system around a private building, it is highly advisable to first get a consultation from a specialist-hydraulic engineer. Failure to comply with the rules and conditions of water decrease can lead to subsidence of soil, houses, roads.
This is especially important to consider when installing a deep drainage. Therefore, it is better to draw up a scheme of drainage around the house even at the stage of drawing up a plan, then all the nuances of construction and drainage will be taken into account in one project.
Those who wish to tell about their own experience in the drainage device are invited to post comments. You can write them in the box below. Here you can ask questions and publish photos on the subject of the article.
