Proper installation of the drainage system is one of the important building steps. Downspouts perform the function of protecting the house from rain water and melt water. A weak and inefficient water drainage system is a direct road to the destruction of a construction site. Melt water will look for its own way to move from the roof itself to the foundation. The load-bearing elements of the object and its roof will quickly become unusable and dangerous for people to be near them. Therefore, when choosing downpipes, give preference to practical, durable and high-quality designs and materials. But how to choose pipes based on these characteristics, if a large number of them are for sale. And sometimes it's hard to know which is better for a particular case.
Varieties of drainage systems
Let's get acquainted with the types of drains. If the gutter is installed in order to savestructure from getting wet and destroyed, respectively, it must collect all the water and direct it to the right place. For a more convenient slope of water in the downpipes for the roof, the structures consist of gutters, pipes and funnels, knees are additionally used to help build the necessary bends in the system. Any roof configuration must have a water runoff system. But depending on some of the nuances of the roof, the system may differ. Flat roof structures often have an internal drain; for pitched roof structures, external drains are used. Such pipes and gutters are placed under the overhang of the eaves or on the very facade of the object. Modern drainpipes do not spoil the appearance of the building itself. The fact is that such devices may have a color similar to the color of the walls or roof.
In addition to dividing the system by installation option, there are some more options:
- Section of the drain and its shape. Circle and rectangle are the most common.
- The dimensions and diameter of the drainpipes are selected taking into account the average annual amount of rain and wet snow. Large diameter trays and gutters will respectively collect more waste water and carry it to its destination.
- Materials used in the production of downpipes. It can be plastic or metal components, it is possible to use concrete or wood for these purposes. But it should be noted: wood and concrete in drainage systems are practically out of use.
What diameters do pipes have
Dimensions and diameters of downpipesmust be calculated by a specialist. According to the standards of GOST 1975, the diameter of the pipe ranged from 100 mm to 200 millimeters. Modern products have a diameter corridor from 50 millimeters to 216 millimeters. When choosing the diameter of the downpipe, it is necessary to take into account not only the amount of precipitation, but also the slope of the roof slope. Count the number of pipes leading to the funnel and look at the location of these pipes.
Approximate calculation
If you rely on the established standards, then one pipe is installed for every 50 squares of roof area. This pipe is capable of receiving drained water from a collecting structure, the length of which is not more than 10 meters. For every 1 meter of roof surface, there should be about 1.5 meters of pipe section.
Materials for making
What is a downpipe made of? For the most part, these are modern plastic materials and metal structures. First, consider the positive and negative sides that will open up to us when using the product.
Plastic elements
Water flowing in rapid streams into a plastic pipe does it delicately and almost silently, which a galvanized downpipe could not boast of. Plastic is not affected by corrosion, it looks quite modern and decent. Scratches and chips are not easy to get to the plastic pipe. Also, plastic drain pipes are very light, they are easy to mount and transport. The whole system is equipped with rubber sealing elements and connected with plasticfixing connections. Pipes have thick walls from 2 to 2.5 mm. For some models, it is possible to heat the pipes for better precipitation convergence. Rotting will not affect the plastic pipe, and such pipes are also considered fireproof. Due to the lightness of the entire system, such pipes do not harm the roof with their weight and do not deform it. The price of downpipes made of this material is from 400 rubles per 1 meter. A ready-made kit can be purchased by paying 5,000 rubles without the cost of export. This is several times lower than for metal counterparts, which will cost from 700 rubles per meter with a cross section of 100 mm.
The other side of the coin
The negative quality of drainage systems made of PVC materials is a short service life. Although this period goes up to twenty years, there is no guarantee that even earlier you will not want to change the drainage system. Under the influence of ultraviolet radiation and temperature fluctuations, downpipes can lose their original good appearance, smoothness and strength. In frosty areas of the country, such systems are often able to be damaged, freezing and bursting under the influence of ice.
Metal pipes - durable pipes
Metal is one of the classic options for making a system that collects water. Popular advantages of these designs:
- Very durable to any mechanical stress. In the case when frost accumulates on the roof, thawing in the sun, slides like an avalanche and hits the water gutter with its weight, such a structure will survive and not be very damaged. What notsay, for example, about plastic water pipes.
- A galvanized downpipe may well have a protective coating on the inside and outside. This layer of protection does not allow corrosion to get close to the metal itself in most cases.
- The pipes are able to withstand very large temperature changes, again thanks to the polymer coating. A metal pipe can withstand a temperature run from minus forty degrees to plus one hundred and twenty.
- With regular seasonal temperature changes in climate, drainpipes do not change size and do not require additional heating.
- If the roof of the building is made of metal tiles, then the same metal water drainage system is ideal for it. The color of the system can be matched to almost any color scheme of the object. Technology can make drainage pipes of any color.
- Gutters commonly use metals such as galvanized or coated steel and copper.
Copper gutters
Copper gutter products have a not very pleasant feature - interacting with atmospheric phenomena, such structures begin the oxidation process. In addition, when you start assembling the component parts, you will find that you need to solder all the connections. Red tape with soldering is not a very pleasant prospect. Installation in this case is expensive and takes a long time.
Negative aspects of using metal drainpipes
The positive qualities undoubtedly show us how beautiful such metal products are. But let's remember the cons to be warned of possible failures.
- The most powerful and terrible enemy of any metal surface is corrosion. Every single element of the system is exposed to a very strong action of water. Water is the main feeding part of any corrosion. And in this case, even if such pipes are reliably protected by a special coating, one should not exclude the possibility of damage to it. Water will enter the damaged point of the pipe and, according to the principle of caries, corrode it from the inside. And after a very short time, the site will become rusty dust.
- The product has a slight roughness on the inside. Due to the fact that the entire system is open to external debris, pipes, especially elbows and their joints, eventually fill up with dirt that has fallen on the roof in the form of leaves, needles, feathers, etc. Hence, there may be problems with the full discharge of water. Pipes and gutters will require periodic cleaning. Entrust the cleaning of the entire system to a specialist, only he will be able to separate the special fasteners that require some skill and effort.
