Old Basement Floor Drain Diagram

Floor drains are most often installed during original construction often in the utility area to drain away excess water in the basement.

Old basement floor drain diagram.

Many new homes also utilize these types of drainage systems. This diagram of a typical dwv system is called a plumbing tree. This water gets refreshed whenever more water runs through it. In many older homes floor drains are part of the basement design built in to prevent water damage to the house and its contents.

Many basement floor drains tie directly to the home s sewer system but in some communities local building codes require floor drains to run to a sump pit where a pump lifts the water to the exterior surface of the house. Old floor drains work passively their design based on principles of physics. Immediately beneath a sink bathtub or other plumbing fixture the fixture drain opening leads to a curved segment of pipe known as the p trap which is normally a 1 1 4 to 2 inch diameter segment of pipe with a sharp curved bend in it shaped like the letter p. Basement floor drains don t get a lot of attention until the sewer backs up or the basement smells like an outhouse.

This is an expensive repair as it involves breaking up the concrete in the basement floor replacing the drain then pouring new concrete. Water runs down the sink drain into a p trap so called because it s shaped like the letter which fills up with water to prevent sewer gases and odors from getting into the house through the pipe. The purpose of this drain trap is to hold standing water which seals the drain system and prevents sewer gases from. Reuben saltzman structure tech home inspections email.