Soakaway using wrapped gravel. A simple way to stop the soil and other particles that are carried in the water clogging up the soak away, is to line the hole with the heavy duty fabric before shovelling in the gravel.
Is a French drain the same as a soakaway?
Soakaways and French drains are both efficient drainage systems, but they are distinct solutions that perform different jobs. Soakaways are primarily used as a solution to excess surface water. They are a means of returning standing water to the land, helping it to percolate into the soil.
Is a soakaway required?
You must use a soakaway if design criteria can be met. Discharging stormwater into a drain will only be allowed if soakaways or other infiltration methods are not suitable. Soakaways – how they work? surrounding soil’s infiltration characteristics.
How deep does a soakaway have to be?
How deep should a soakaway be? The Perforated pipe should be laid at a minimum depth of 200mm and a maximum depth of 700mm. This enables aerobic contact between the effluent and the drainage stone and soil particles. This leads to aerobic digestion and effectively treats the effluent.
What can I use for a soakaway? – Related Questions
How many years does a soakaway last?
Soakaways should last the life of the house, at least 100 years but only if installed and maintained correctly.
Can you have a soakaway without a septic tank?
A soakaway is not usually needed with a sewage treatment plant, but it is required with a septic tank.
How much soil do I need for a soakaway?
The soakaway should be encased by 100mm of free draining gravel on all sides. This includes the top and the bottom! If your soakaway is covered by soil or lawn you will need at least 200mm of topsoil on top.
How far should a soakaway be from a septic tank?
The trenches must be filled 50mm above perforated pipe and covered with a membrane and then filled in with soil. The trenches for the soakaway should be between 300mm and 900mm wide with a distance of 2m between trenches.
Can you put soakaway above ground?
Above-ground mound soakaway systems, or mound systems, were developed by WTE Ltd. and copyrighted in 1996, to compensate for clay and impervious soils and high water table ground that cannot utilise a standard underground soakaway drainfield.
Can you build a soakaway in clay soil?
It should be noted that soakaways rarely work on heavy clay soils. If you are hoping to create a soakaway to alleviate waterlogging in a garden, you may well be disappointed by what follows.
What is a natural soakaway?
A soakaway is a buried drainage feature which seeks to manage surface water on the site and infiltrate into the ground, rather than discharging to an offsite location such as a watercourse or sewer.
Can I use gravel for a soakaway?
Always cover the soakaway crates with a geotextile membrane to maintain the performance of the system. A layer of sharp sand or pea gravel should be put into place before the crates are lowered in, then the geotextile membrane should be fitted inside the hole, ready for the soakaway crates to sit on top of.
Do all properties have a soakaway?
Legally, sewage treatment plants do need soakaways. They are one of the few legal remaining methods for disposing of treated wastewater from a septic tank, as by the new official Binding Rules, water is not allowed to be released into a watercourse or ditch.
Do modern houses have Soakaways?
The modern option is to use dedicated plastic boxes, known as soakaway or attenuation crates. These leave virtually the whole space open to be filled with rainwater and are therefore much more effective.
Do new houses have Soakaways?
Over the last 20 years, since new Building Regulations were introduced in 2001, it has been MANDATORY for housing developments and new properties to be built with soakaways, or similar, systems so that the surface water created when it rains on these properties is “self-contained” and does not run off into the main
Does my rainwater go into a soakaway?
In most cases, the rain that falls on your roof, driveway and other parts of your property will drain away into one of our public sewers. But there are some properties where all the surface water flows away through a soakaway or into a stream.
When should a soakaway be installed?
Use soakaways for waste or foul water as this can only clog them up and damage your soil. Install a soakaway crate if the area that you live in is heavily polluted and prone to smog. Dig a trench for soakaways within 5 metres of your home or a road.
Where can rainwater be discharged to?
Rainwater is untreated. It’s also described as ‘storm water’. The surface water drain takes it directly to rivers and beaches.
Drain for rainwater
Can I discharge rainwater onto pavement?
Such run-off may cause flooding or icing so creating a source of danger to the public. You must not allow water from gutters or down pipes to discharge onto the surface of the highway, either directly or by leakage – closed grids can be used within footways in these circumstances.
Can I discharge rainwater into a ditch?
A common option is to have the water run off into a ditch or drywell which is essentially a hole in the ground which remains dry most of the time. When water is flowing it can run into the ditch which will hold the water and slowly release it back into the soil to avoid flooding.