Why do we need drainage systems?
We need to properly corral and disperse water runoff in order to water our vegetation without drowning it. The collected water is also used to replenish a town’s freshwater supply. Water becomes more contaminated the longer it sits on a surface.
Surface drainage systems use channels or ditches to remove surplus water from the land’s surface. The ground surface is sometimes sculpted or sloped to induce slanting toward the channels. Open drains, humps and hollows, levees, and grassed streams are examples of surface drainage systems.
Flooding of low-lying locations will occur if a sufficient drainage system is not in place, causing property damage and health dangers. A good drainage system is one that eliminates all excess water without producing design issues. For example, open drains that flow through an area with a lot of buildings, such as dwellings and shops, are not permitted.
Drainage is the process of removing water from a specified area’s surface or subsurface. A drainage system is any pipe on a private or public property that conveys sewage, rainwater, and other liquid waste to a point of disposal. The basic goal of a drainage system is to collect and eliminate waste matter in a systematic manner in order to keep a structure healthy. Drainage systems are designed to quickly dispose of wastewater and keep sewage and septic tank gases away from residential areas. The many types of drainage systems will help you understand their functions and how they interact.
1. Residential Drainage Systems
Water is removed from dwellings via residential drainage systems. This method prevents flooding by directing water away from pathways, roads, and rooftops. Residential drainage systems are critical because they protect buildings from rotting, mould, mildew, and structural damage caused by water accumulation.
The following are examples of home drainage systems:
- Surface
- Subsurface
- Slope
- Downspout/gutters
- Surface Drainage Systems
Shallow ditches excavated in a parallel pattern operate as canals for run-off water in surface drainage systems. To reduce water gathering and floods, these ditches direct water down the main drain.
- Subsurface Drainage Systems
Subsurface drainage methods are used beneath the soil’s top layer. They act at the root level to eliminate excess water and are sometimes referred to as a French drain. To install underground drain pipes, dig ditches.
A French drain is a type of subsurface drainage system. To eliminate surplus water at the root level, subsurface drains are installed beneath the top layer of soil. Deep ditches must be dug and underground pipes must be installed for subsurface drains. To collect water from the pipes, a big collector drain is erected.
4. Slope Drainage Systems
Slope drains use pipes that move down a slope to allow water to flow downward from a structure. Water flows through the pipe and away from the structure once it is constructed and anchored into a minor incline.
- Downspout and Gutter systems
Water is collected from gutters and sent to the ground by downspouts. A downspout is a pipe that connects to a building’s gutter system and transports water from the roof to the ground. Downspouts discharge water on a slope, preventing water from pooling at the downspout’s base.
Combined drainage systems employ a single drain to transport both sanitary and rainwater from roofs and other surfaces to a common sewer. Installing this technology is cost-effective. Distinct foul water drains lead to a sanitary sewer in separate drainage systems. Rainwater from rooftops and other surfaces is channelled into a surface water sewer via a separate surface water drain. The installation of this technology is relatively costly.
When you understand the many types of drainage systems, you’ll see that they frequently function together to remove water and direct it to the proper location. The quicker water is evacuated from a structure or place where it can pool, the better. People rarely consider drainage systems as an important aspect of water conservation and preservation.