Installing the best sidewalk drains for your needs can make all the difference in the performance of your overall drainage solutions. You can have the best drainage in place under your sidewalks, but if your drains at street level are not correctly placed, or are not the right kind, you will have trouble keeping your sidewalks free of standing water.
Sidewalk drains are a key part of any drainage system on your home or business property. You should not compromise on this part of your drainage planning if you want to be sure that you are not going to have to deal with standing water and clogged drains all year long. You will want to use this guide to help you to make the right choices for your sidewalk drain system.
What Makes a Sidewalk Drain Work Properly?
What you need to know first is that there are some key factors that make a sidewalk drain work correctly. These considerations need to be met no matter what kind of drainage you are using for your sidewalk spaces.
1. Proper Slot Style Impact on the Performance of Your Sidewalk Drains
The biggest factor that has an impact on the performance of your sidewalk drains is the slot arrangement. You will want the right kind of slot placement and style to deal with the volume of water that needs to pass through your drainage system. Without the right kind of drain covers on your sidewalk drains, you might also open yourself up to slip-and-fall accidents and other issues to do with safety.
The slot style and design are key to your sidewalk drain solution choices. There are so many kinds of drain covers out there that you might not be sure how to select the right grate for your needs. You might need to work with a skilled installer or supplier to find out which slot style is right for your location and the water volume that you need to be able to remove from sidewalk surfaces.
2. The Placement of Sidewalk Drains is Essential to Their Performance
The placement of your drainage outlets is key to their performance. You are probably already aware that you cannot place drains on a surface that does not have a slope to it, but it can be hard to identify collection points in some areas that seem like they would not suffer from drainage issues. This is another area where having a skilled installer work with you as you choose grate styles can be a big help.
You might be best served by following the natural low spots in the sidewalk to insert drains that are going to be effective, but there also might need to be adjustments to the sidewalk and the area around the drain to ensure that water will correctly run off the sidewalk surface and be collected by the drainage solution that you have in place. Placement can make all the difference in the performance of your drains, and you need to keep this at the top of your planning list.
3. Safety of Sidewalk Drain
The placement of your drains can also impact safety in a big way. You do not want to impact the safety of your sidewalk areas by placing your drains in areas that will not be ideal for the safety of passing feet, bikes, and other kinds of traffic. The safety of your drains can be impacted by more than the shape and size of the slots that are in the cover itself.
Safety is a big consideration when it comes to selecting the kinds of drains that you want to use for your sidewalk spaces. You will need to consider where you can use a slot drain, a trench drain, or another drainage solution. All of these different drain kinds can require different installation processes that might impact the smooth surface of the sidewalk if not completed properly. You will also want to be sure that you are thinking about the future and ensuring that the sidewalk will not sink or become lumpy and bumpy. These kinds of changes can lead to accidents and injuries and you do not want to cause this kind of issue by placing a drain in the wrong place.
Best Options for Optimal Sidewalk Drainage
Slot drains are often the best solution for sidewalk and courtyard spaces because they are very low-profile and can still handle a lot of runoff with ease. These kinds of drains are almost not visible when placed correctly, and they can be trusted to be stable and easy to care for. This can resolve a lot of your concerns about your sidewalk spaces being unsafe for foot traffic or ADA-compliant, and this is also a really easy drain type to install.
You can also use trench drains in many of these kinds of applications which is really ideal if you are looking at handling a very large volume of water at peak flow times. You will want to be certain that you are using the right kind of trench drain covers to prevent issues with slips and falls and to remain ADA-compliant. When placed in roadways, trench drains will often need covers that can be secured with bolts or screws so that they are not pulled out by the tires of vehicles.
There are also many different kinds of materials that trench drains can be made from so that you can protect your sidewalk spaces from different kinds of erosion or drainage breakdown over time. Reinforced trench drains are up for the task of holding up to wheeled traffic as well as foot traffic. In business locations that deal with acidic or chemical runoff, trench drains can be the best solution as well because they can be made of metal and other kinds of tough materials that can handle this kind of exposure.
No matter whether the sidewalk space that you are creating a drainage plan for has lots of foot traffic, wheeled traffic, or business operations that are passing over it all day long, a slot or a trench drain will almost always be the perfect choice for this need. These are some of the most versatile and practical drainage types on the market, and you will not regret making this choice for your sidewalk spaces that need to be kept free of standing water.
Working With a Skilled Drainage Installation Expert Matters
Once you have selected the right kind of drainage solution for your needs in areas with sidewalks and walkways, be sure that you know how to go about installing your drainage solutions properly. Incorrect installation can have a big impact on the longevity of your drains and their effectiveness as well. You can avoid a lot of heartache by making sure that you are installing your drains correctly and maintaining them on a regular basis.
Trench and slot drains are the ideal drainage solution in a wide array of applications, and you will find that these are also cost-saving drain styles for most installation processes as well. The more customized you need your drainage solution to be, the steeper the cost, but trench and slot drains can often be purchased prefabricated and installed with ease. Creating safe sidewalk drainage solutions is easy when you are educated about what this kind of drainage entails.
