Chapter 4 Storm Drain

STORM WATER SYSTEM The portion of the plumbing system which

conveys rain or storm water to a suitable terminal.
Rainwater collecting on roofs, if not This is usually discharged into a street gutter
diverted, will run down walls and can cause wall conveyed by a public drain system and carried to
and window leaks, spill on people who are some natural drainage terminal such as lakes or
approaching entry doors, cause settlement by rivers. There three location of storm drain:
washing the soil away from under the
foundations, subject basement walls to
unnecessary groundwater pressure and possible
leakage, and erode surrounding ground, often
disfiguring landscaped areas.

For buildings and houses with flat roofs,

leaders can be interior and concealed by the
structure or partitions.

Size of a Storm Drain

Following factors should be considered when
determining the size of a storm drain.
1. Gauging the rainfall, constant, short
duration or heavy shower.
2. The varying roof area and its slope
including the distance of water travel
before it reaches the downspouts of the
Areas to be drained including roofs, roof.
balconies, terraces, and pavements are usually 3. Water drain is faster on higher pitched roof
connected into a storm drainage system and the hence, requires a larger drainage pipe
water discharged to a stream, dry well, nearby than that of a flat roof.
gravel bed, recharge basin, or storm sewer. 4. The height of the building contributes to
the high velocity of water in the vertical
pipe and accelerate the flow of water
entering the storm drain.
5. Short offsets and indiscriminate use of
fittings affect the flow of water.

CE401 & CE401L

BUILDING DESIGN 2, LEC & LAB
 Example No.1 Table 3-8 SIZE OF GUTTER AND DOWNSPOUT
Determine the size of the leader, gutter,
and storm drain necessary to drain a roof with Downspout
Gutter Top
each side dimension of 10x20 meters and 8x20 Area of Roof or Roof
Dimension
meters. Leader
sq.m mm mm
1 to 10 75 38
11 to 5 100 50
26 to 75 100 50
76 to 165 125 75
166 to 335 150 100
336 to 520 200 125
Solution: 522 to 900 250 150
A. 10x20 = 200 sq.m, referring to Table 3-8,
under column 2, Gutter. 200 sq.m is in Perforated Pipe
between 166 to 335, therefore a 150 mm It is designed to allow water to enter or exit
dimension for the top of the gutter can through holes or slots along the pipe. This pipe can
served the 200 sq.m. make a great underground drainage system
B. Therefore, the size of the downspout is 100 particularly for outdoor uses since it absorbs the
mm diameter pipe. However, since the water and drains it out of the way.
water is to travel 20 meters, the gutter
Water underneath the House
might over load and there might be a
During rainy seasons, houses and
danger of clogging with dirt and leaves so
surrounding areas are usually exposed to large
divide the Area by two. Therefore, 100
amounts of rain water. However, even if the water
sq.m is between 76 to 165 sq.m, choose
dries out when the sunshine returns, the water that
2– 75 mm diameter pipe.
is left underneath the houses will remain there
C. 10x20 = 200 sq.m and 8x20 = 160 sq.m, a
since it cannot be reached by the heat of the sun.
total of 360 sq.m using Table 3-7, under 2%
Perforated pipe is usually located at the
slope, 600 is near 700 roof area which is
perimeter of the house, sometimes called,
served by a 125 mm or 5 inches pipe.
Perimeter Pipe. It is designed to prevent water
from seeping into your basement accumulated
from heavy rain.
Table 3-7 SIZE OF STORM DRAIN

Size of Pipe Maximum obtained Roof Area (sq.m)

mm inches 2% Slope 3% Slope 4% Slope

75 3 114 142 170
100 4 242 315 388
125 5 438 566 694
150 6 700 903 1105
200 8 1463 1888 2313
250 10 2563 3309 4055
300 12 4100 5290 6480
350 14 5576 7203 8830

CE401 & CE401L

BUILDING DESIGN 2, LEC & LAB