Whenever you use water at your home or business, you produce wastewater, which flows through your drains and away from your property. These underground pipes work extremely hard, but because they’re hidden away and don’t have an exciting job, their vital importance is all too easily overlooked.
Many people dismiss their wastewater drainage systems as ‘just pipework’ and assume they don’t require much attention. By contrast, as a leading Bristol and Bath drainage company, we know domestic and commercial drains make a significant contribution to everyone’s lives. You can keep yours working properly with the aid of drain cleaning and other drain maintenance services.
Effective wastewater drainage matters a great deal – read on to find out why.
Do you know roughly how much wastewater is produced at your home or business each day? The answer could be a lot more than you expect.
For example, people in and around Bath who are served by Wessex Water use 139 litres of water per person per day on average, according to statistics from industry body Discover Water. That means you’re likely to send tens of thousands of litres of wastewater down your drains annually.
There are two main types of wastewater that drainage systems have to cope with:
Drains play a crucial role in effective wastewater management. They transport the vast quantities of water people get through – and the nasties dissolved and suspended in it – to the sewer network (which leads to water treatment plants) or septic systems (basic, on-site treatment facilities commonly found in rural areas).
In a nutshell, when wastewater travels through your drainage system, it’s completing the first stage of an important journey that culminates in it being cleansed. Only then can it be safely returned to the environment and used again.
The last thing anyone wants is to find their drains have stopped working (due to a blockage or collapsed section of pipework, say) and their building and/or land is overwhelmed with wastewater.
Let’s consider the three main reasons why effective wastewater drainage is essential.
‘The main objective of a drainage system is […] to maintain healthy conditions in and around a building,’ as the environmental consultants at Healthy Building Science emphasise.
Because wastewater contains bacteria and viruses, it poses health risks. That’s especially true if it’s allowed to stagnate and become a breeding ground for microorganisms. Wastewater exposure is linked to illnesses including gastroenteritis and skin infections.
Thankfully, your wastewater drainage system protects your health by shielding you from wastewater and rapidly carrying it away from your home/business.
If wastewater is allowed to overwhelm a particular area, it can be incredibly destructive.
Waterlogged soil is boggy and unstable. It can shift and sink – and drag a building’s foundations downwards, resulting in subsidence. This is characterised by dramatic cracks in walls and can ultimately make a building unsafe to use.
Well-maintained drains are watertight, so they protect your property and land by preventing wastewater from flooding them.
Unless wastewater is managed properly, it can have a devastating impact on the natural world.
It can pollute soil, groundwater and waterways. Plus, nutrients found in contaminants such as food debris can disrupt ecosystems by encouraging aquatic plants to grow rapidly. This reduces oxygen and light levels in bodies of water and therefore threatens the lives of water-loving creatures. Wastewater can also kill wildlife by exposing it to harmful microplastics (from synthetic clothing that’s been washed, for example) and household chemicals.
Your drains protect wildlife and the environment by ensuring wastewater is sent directly to the sewers instead of playing havoc with nature.
Your drains do so much for you and your surroundings – it’s incredibly important to look after them with our drain experts’ help.
We provide comprehensive drain maintenance services. For example, you can book CCTV drain surveys to check for problems, as well as drain cleaning appointments to eliminate contaminant build-up and keep wastewater flowing properly. And if you’re experiencing poor drainage, you can rely on our rapid drain unblocking service.
For expert drain cleaning and related services in Bath, Bristol and beyond, call Mega-Rod today on 01225 422980.
