Cleaning storm sewers: methods
Storm sewage system takes part in the improvement of the site. It is used to collect water after rain and melting snow and bring it beyond the boundaries of the site.
However, over time, all the garbage can collect in the pipes of this communication - leaves that have got there, which began to rot, small twigs, as well as sand or stones - due to them various blockages can form. As a result, the capacity of the sewer pipe falls, and water does not flow through it, but instead collects in the yard. As a result, there is an urgent need to clean the system.
One of the options for cleaning storm sewers - contact the company that deals with such services. However, this option may not be affordable for everyone, especially if the pipe is clogged with debris several times a year.
Signs of clogging

In addition to clogging with debris, clogging from petroleum products and any suspended matter may occur. Sometimes it can reach the point that the entire system is completely flooded with silt and dirt, then it will have to be dug out with a shovel. This is due to an oversight of the owners (or personnel who serve the surrounding area) or extremely heavy rains, which bring with them dirt from higher terrain.
Tip! To avoid landslides, it is necessary to build a strong threshold under the fence or in front of it, and think about another drainage communication near it, so that the yard and local stormwater do not clog with mud.
The difficulty of cleaning is directly dependent on the diameter of the laid pipes, of which the storm sewer consists. Depending on this, it is determined by what kind of equipment you can clean it. In the case when the diameter of the pipeline is 200 mm, a high-pressure mini sink is used. Its performance, which reaches 1250 liters. per hour at a pressure of 350 bar, makes it easy to eliminate blockages of moderate severity. The advantage of this car wash is that it is small and quite mobile, so it is successfully applied even in places where it is not so easy to get it.
A storm sewage system may deteriorate if it is connected to a common sewer that leaves the house. In the event that a blockage formed in that communication, then drainage on the street in the courtyard may also cease to function. In addition, the foundation of the house may deteriorate if it starts flooding as a result of the fact that melt water has ceased to leave the yard.
Tip! It is not so difficult to create a rainstorm, besides, if you do it in a timely manner, the maintenance will also not take much time and effort. Moreover, parts of the building and adjacent buildings that will not grow wet or rust from the multitude of water in the yard will last longer.
In fact, the creation of structures for the collection and disposal of melt water and rainfall can not be called a compulsory additional measure. This is a necessary project, without which it can not do during the construction and subsequent operation of the house, no matter if it is located in the city, on the outskirts or outside the city. In addition, if we talk about storm sewers located along the carriageway, this drainage system also very well preserves the integrity of the road and other objects. Savings on the storm drain when designing the surrounding area around a certain building can later play a fatal joke - repairing a house and objects near it will cost many times more.
Under the maintenance of storm sewer means the installation of a special cleaning system that requires that all the residue collected in the tank be removed from it. Therefore, a pump is required for this purpose. Oil products released during flushing that have accumulated in the unit flow into a special container and are sent for recycling.
Methods for cleaning

When the water drain system at the site of the house or the dacha is built and started to work, the foundation of the house will no longer be damp, the soil under it will not be washed out with water, and at the site of the owners it will not be necessary to bypass the puddles formed after the rain. However, such a system will require constant care. It is understood that the pipes will require cleaning and flushing.
Typically, inspection and maintenance of the sewage system for stormwater runoff from the site is carried out several times a year, sometimes once. Without fail, such a check is carried out immediately after the departure of winter and melting snow, as well as in the autumn, after the rainy season, which bring stones, sand and leaves into the pipes.
Tip! Of course, cleaning should be carried out in the event that not so long ago carried out a thorough repair of the roof. Such prevention is done in the event that the house is plastered or insulated. The fact is that after such works, parts of the mortar, bitumen, polystyrene foam, etc. could get into the storm sewer.
How do professionals do this? There are several types of cleaning. Here are some of them:
- mechanical;
- hydrodynamic;
- thermal;
- chemical.
Now briefly about all the methods of cleaning. The first method, mechanical, involves removing the plugs by removing them with a cable or other devices. When the pipes are cleaned with a hydrodynamic method, this means that water will be supplied to them under strong pressure, which should break all blockages. The thermal method is essentially similar to the hydrodynamic one. But the water that is supplied to the pipes is heated to the boiling point, as a result of which the cork softens and is easier to remove.
The last option, chemical, more volume. Can be used for cleaning soda, various compositions of the shops. However, it has a minus - an unpleasant smell and the likelihood of spoiling the skin of the hands or the body if it hits the chemistry. Therefore, if it is decided to punch pipes with chemistry, you need to protect yourself from it by wearing a respirator and gloves, as well as long-sleeved clothing and pants.
Causes of blockages and how to eliminate them

One of the problems may be gutters clogged with debris. The water that flows down from the roof over it brings it into the yard, and from there down the drain, blocking it. Therefore, the roof gutters and drains leading down from them should be well cleaned, and the garbage that has fallen into the courtyard should be collected and taken away.
Tip! When cleaning drains, it would be nice to check if they are attached normally. It is also better to check their slope, because if it is absent, the water will flow badly, and garbage will collect in the drains.
How to clean the gutters? As a rule, a mechanical method is used for this, that is, the use of a cable, and also branches, fallen leaves and everything else are manually removed.
In cases where the funnels for receiving water are protected by caps or lattices are attached to them, blockages occur less frequently, since large debris does not penetrate the pipes. However, if a blockage does appear, in order not to remove the grates, cleaning is carried out with the help of water supply through a hose under strong pressure.
Cleaning open tray systems

When the site has a rainwater with open drains, it will not take much effort to clean it out. To do this, you need to take a few steps;
- first of all, remove and put aside the grill that covered the hole;
- remove all garbage that has accumulated over time from the channel;
- After that, flush the canals with water pressure and you can put the grates in place.
Cleaning closed systems

Such systems, where only one conclusion is made under the drain, and the entire system is assembled from pipes hidden under the ground, is much more difficult to clean. Therefore, it is required to flush the pipes. As a result, a strong pressure of water can break the formed sand plugs, heaps of garbage and wash it all away.
Using special technique

This method is suitable for storm sewers that have low productivity. Usually in them the diameter of pipes laid underground is not more than 200 mm.
When it is necessary to carry out emergency or planned maintenance work on large-scale sewers, it may not be possible without the intervention of specialists along with the use of special equipment. This is due to the fact that a huge amount of sand and sludge deposits can accumulate in wells arranged in sewers and in pipe cavities during operation. They are slyozhivatsya, and removing them manually becomes almost impossible.
For this purpose in many large cities today there are enterprises whose purpose is the maintenance of underground communications.
What is required in order to clean the stormwater overgrown with mud in a qualitative manner? First you need:
- Channel washing machine.
- Vacuum unit capable of pulling out the sludge.
As a rule, all this technology is arranged on bodies of fairly powerful cars. Some of these installations even have several of these functions, that is, they can also break through the sewage system with the pressure of water from a hydrant, and deflate stagnant sludge.
It is necessary to take into account that this technique is designed for the fact that the entrances to the storm drainage will be made wide and strong enough, therefore, the road must either be designed in advance, or operated already during operation. It should also be noted that a short sleeve, which supplies water, is more effective for suction of clogged soil.
How to arrange a well

Such a well, also called collector well, is built on the same principle. It lies in the fact that all the water flowing into this well through the pipeline (that is, after the rain and drainage) then flows into the common sewage system created on the territory. So that the water from this well again does not fall back into the drainage system, a check valve is provided in the collection well.
What should be the cover of the collector well? First, the water must pass through it freely, and the garbage must not get inside. Secondly, the cover can not be located on the roadway. In the same places where the movement of cars occurs intensively, the well should have a telescopic neck, and its cover should be arranged so that it can redistribute the load on the soil located nearby.