A trench drain (also channel drain, line drain, slot drain, linear drain or strip drain) is a specific type of floor drain containing a dominant through- or channel-shaped body. It is used for the rapid evacuation of surface water or for the containment of utility lines or chemical spills. Employing a solid cover or grating that is flush with the adjoining surface, this drain is commonly made of concrete in-situ and may utilize polymer- or metal-based liners or a channel former to aid in channel crafting and slope formation. Characterized by its long length and narrow width, the cross-section of the drain is a function of the maximum flow volume anticipated from the surrounding surface. Channels can range from 1 inch (25 mm) to 2 feet in width, with depths that can reach 4 feet (120 cm).
Trench drains are commonly confused with French drains, which consist of a perforated pipe that is buried in a gravel bed, and which are used to evacuate ground water. A slot drain, also wrongly associated with a trench drain, consists of a drainage pipe with a thin neck (or slot) that opens at the ground surface with sufficient opening to drain storm water.
Read more about Trench Drain: Types
Famous quotes containing the words trench and/or drain:
“Grammar is the logic of speech, even as logic is the grammar of reason.”
—Richard Chenevix Trench (1807–1886)
“When we can drain the Ocean into mill-ponds, and bottle up the Force of Gravity, to be sold by retail, in gas jars; then may we hope to comprehend the infinitudes of man’s soul under formulas of Profit and Loss; and rule over this too, as over a patent engine, by checks, and valves, and balances.”
—Thomas Carlyle (1795–1881)