"Drainage is key to safer build environments" says ACO Building Drainage

Oct 31, 2012

While a drainage system is essential for the safe removal of water and waste products, their very nature can create certain safety issues that have to be addressed. Namely, flood prevention and hygiene. For example, drains can act as a breeding ground for potentially harmful micro-organisms and flooding can occur when drainage is poorly specified.

Whatever the application, it is likely your drainage system will have to answer one or both of these safety issues. ACO Building Drainage takes a look at how you can overcome these issues to create safer built environments.

Flood prevention

The summer saw record levels or rainfall and floods have become increasingly common. News coverage tends to focus on what happens when a river bursts its banks, but this is only half the story. Heavy rainfall can block the sewage system and cause the flow of greywater and blackwater sewage back into a property.

Automated anti-flooding devices, such as the ACO QUATRIX® series from ACO Building Drainage have been designed to prevent sewer backflow flooding.

ACO QUATRIX® units incorporate a pressure sensor located in the valve body. Working in conjunction with a high torque DC motor, this is used to control a motorised flap, which automatically closes against a watertight seal whenever a backflow from the sewer exists. These high performance devices ensure reliable operation in even the most polluted black water conditions and also feature a secondary flap with manual override that can be closed during construction or refurbishment programmes to prevent odours entering the building.

Hygiene

While drains can be an ideal breeding ground for micro-organisms, an effective, well specified drainage system can reduce the risk of contamination

From the outset, cleaning and maintenance should be considered. Therefore, it is advisable to choose drainage products designed to be easily cleanable. The ACO Building Drainage gully range, for example, is constructed from highly corrosion-resistant austenitic stainless steel, ideal for hygiene-critical applications such as food manufacture as its non-porous state enables easy cleaning and disinfecting.

However, improving the specification of drainage systems for hygiene-critical environments is not simply a matter of adding some stainless steel components to your system and giving the matter no further thought. Mixing materials can pose significant problems and could result in galvanic corrosion. Similarly, if you are designing a system in which acids are present, you need the help and advice of an experienced manufacturer that understands the corrosive effect of those acids on metals; there are over 150 grades of stainless steel and an expert supplier can tailor the materials used to best resist the corrosive effect of chemicals.

Many manufacturers offer extra guidance to anyone involved in the specification and building process that feels they would benefit from a deeper understanding of these and other issues. For example ACO Building Drainage offer accredited CPD, available on a one-to-one basis or to large groups, giving advice on how to 'Specify It Right'. This kind of expert advice can help all parties to make the right decisions when specifying drainage systems.

Contact

ACO Building Drainage

Caxton Road

MK41 0LF Bedfordshire

United Kingdom

Phone:

+44 (0) 1462 816666

Fax:

+44 (0) 1462 851490

E-Mail:

abdinfo@aco.co.uk

Internet:

To website

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