Do you recognise the first steps in sewage set up
Do you recognise the first steps in sewage set up
Before starting any plumbing and sewage work yourself you should find out about any Local Authority regulations that relate to your area.
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 regulations. In most cases they do not need to be notified for a simple replacement of broken parts.
Surface water is basically rainwater. This can discharged into a soakaway, watercourse, surface water sewer or, particularly in older properties, into the foul water sewage system. In a combined system, the rainwater pipes are discharged into the foul water drains via gully traps which stop foul air escaping from the drains. However with the new sewage systems, the foul and the surface water can be kept apart. Rainwater and foul water drainage should not be interconnected, however convenient it may seem. If you are unsure about the drainage system around your house get advice from the Building Control Department before you start any work.
The first thing to do in a DIY drainage replacement job is to decide the position and level of the waste pipework. The main things to consider when planning the route of a waste or soil pipe are to keep the route as straight and short as you can. Also, make sure none of the pipes are laid at too steep an angle. You can calculate the fall of a drain over a distance using a surveyors site level. Or just fill a transparent hosepipe with water and use the water level at the two ends to mark the required fall from the starting point.
You will need to see to it that you do not impact on the stability of the building whilst installing your drain trench. Keep the drain pipe excavation at a uniformly safe distance from the home face to avoid damage to the foundation.
The pipes should be laid before too long a trench is dug as a new ditch can be unstable. You should attempt to get the pipes laid as soon as possible and, after inspection and checking, you should back fill the trench.
Because of different depth and soil conditions the ditch will probably need to be supported. It is advisable to take proper precautions. Be on the safe side and secure the sides of such risky trenches by propping with sheets or boards. The trench should be narrow, but spacious enough for people to work with any required tools. Protruding stones or bricks should not be left in the base and it should be cleaned to provide a smooth, regular surface. If the exiting material is not suitable then you may need to import a suitable material for the base of the trench.
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 properly compacted with hollows made to accommodate the joints in the pipes. A good guideline is that support should be provided for the entire length of the pipe.
It is very important that the design of the sewage system should be constructed in such a way that all parts of the pipework are accessible to a set of drain rods for future maintenance. Which means that a run of drains must be installed straight between two points. As a rule of thumb, a directional change in the pipework must have an inspection chamber for rodding access as drain rods do no go around corners.
If you follow this guidance, sewage and DIY plumbing can be within the range of the most DIY enthusiasts.