Was your condo or apartment building built before 1985? Have you been experiencing regular bathroom stoppages and backups, tree main intrusion, or sewer smells? If so, the long-term solution isn't your sewer lines snaked every couple of months.
Property Professionals, HOA/Condominium Board Associates, and property owners face a genuine obstacle today, especially in areas where a sizable majority of real estate are designed prior to 1985 such as South Florida. The aged the building, the greater property professionals and board users have to be alert to the system systems within the building. As we realize, EVERYTHING must be taken care of. This article will focus on the basics that you'll require to learn about your building's drainage system - how it operates, common types of pipes, and what your alternatives are for repair.
Understanding Your Building’s Sanitary Drainage System
In a multi-story building such as a condominium complex, the sanitary
drainage system consists of three main components – vertical stacks,
branch lines and horizontal underground lines.
Types of Vertical Stacks
Stacks are vertical lines of pipe that extend from the horizontal building drain under the slab or in the basement up to and through the roof of the building. Although the general direction which these pipes run is vertical, they may be offset or run in a horizontal position on upper floors and still be identified as a vertical stack. In the industry these pipes are either known as soil stacks, waste stacks, or vent stacks depending on the purposes which they serve.
Soil Stacks
The distinguishing factor that gives soil stacks their name is that they receive discharge from water closets and urinals. Clean water fixtures such as sinks and showers may also tie into soil stacks.
Waste Stacks
Waste stacks are tied into clean-water fixtures only – such as sinks, showers, bathtubs, lavatories, and the like. Waste stacks never receive waste from fixtures such as water closets or urinals. If a fixture such as a water closet or urinal was ever tied into a waste stack, it would thereupon become a soil stack.
Vent Stacks
Vent stacks carry no liquids. Their role is to provide airflow through the drainage system so that when water flows through branches and stacks the traps will not be forced by back pressure. The portion of a vertical stack that is above the highest fixture tie in becomes a vent stack.
Leaders
Rain leaders are vertical stacks in that they extend from the horizontal storm drain or combined sewer drain to the roof. They are called rain leaders because they transport rain water only.
Branch Lines
Branch Lines are offshoots of vertical stacks, like branches of a tree. These branch lines connect toilets, showers, sinks, washing machines, dish washers, etc. to the corresponding vertical stack, which carries waste to the building’s drain underground or in the basement.
Horizontal Underground Lines
Horizontal Lines run underneath the building’s slab, often under common areas such as the lobby and individual ground floor units. These lines are typically 6-8″ in diameter depending on the size of the building. Since sanitary drainage is gravity powered, underground main lines are slightly pitched to carry waste away from the building into the city sewer. The horizontal pipe that receives discharge from waste and soil stacks and is located within the buildings footprint is called the “building drain” and thereafter is known as the “building sewer”
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