The first footsteps to drains pipes installation
The first footsteps to drains pipes installation
The first thing that you will need to think about when undertaking any DIY plumbing and drainage are the regulations issued by your Local Authority.
Detailed plans of any changing or installing of sewage in your home will have to be submitted, and expect ongoing inspections until its completion to ensure that the work abides by the rules. In many situations when you are simply replacing broken parts, there is no need for the local authority to be informed.
Surface water is basically rain. An earlier method was to directly discharge this surface water into the sewage drains, but modern homes use a surface water sewer or watercourse or soakaway to drain or absorb rainwater. To stop any nasty odours emanating from the drains a combined system will discharge the surface water into the foul water drains by way of the gully traps. But modern systems are especially created so that dirty water and surface water remain separate. It’s absolutely crucial that you keep the dirty water sewage system apart from the one for surface water. If you are unsure about the sewage system around your house get advice from the Building Control Department before you start any work.
Designing the path of the waste passages will be your first task. Keeping the path as straight and short as possible will be the main concept behind the design of the waste passageways or pipes. The pipes should run straight with a gentle incline. With the help of a surveyor’s site level, you will be able to determine the fall of a drain over a distance. A hosepipe filled with water from an established datum point can be used if you don’t have a surveyor’s site level.
Be very careful not to excavate too close to your house, as you may undermine the foundation and cause a structural collapse. Keep the drain pipe excavation at a uniformly safe distance from the home face to avoid damage to the substructure.
The pipes should be laid before too long a ditch is dug as a new trench can be unstable. Excavate a part of the sewage system, install and test the pipework, and then back fill and compact the earth before moving on to the next part.
Weak soil may require that you shore up the walls of the excavation, particularly for deeper trenches. It is advisable to take proper precautions. It is better to provide support to the trench walls than allowing the ditch to collapse. The trench should be narrow, but spacious enough for people to work with any required tools. The bottom of the trench must be smooth and clean, free of any objects that make it uneven such as stones or bricks. If the existing soil is too weak or clayey, you should place and compact a layer of firmer soil at the base of the trench to prevent later sinking.
The pipe present in the trench should not be supported using bricks or other such materials. Even if used for just a temporary support this can damage the pipe. The bedding should be made compact to fit around the pipe joints. A good guideline is that support should be provided for the entire length of the pipe.
The drainage system should be designed in a way that pipework remains accessible to drain rods should sewage maintenance work be required. So that is why a run of drains should be as straight as possible between two points or inspection chambers. In case of any change in the direction of the pipework it should be provided with an inspection chamber for allowing drains rod access.
Keeping these points in mind, you can carry out your own drainage and plumbing work smoothly and almost professionally.
