floor drains

[Fullback66]

Are there any good forums on having a floor drain in there garage?

Does anyone have a floor drain in there garage? Does it tie into the main sewer system?

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[tubeman]

This has been discussed, but I am always in favor of putting them in. They come in very handy for a variety of reasons as you can imagine.

 

[JohnZ]

Strictly prohibited here by code; inspectors know how sneaky we can be, so they won't allow a garage slab pour to start unless they're on-site to make sure there aren't any "hidden" drains that can be chipped open later.

 

[Stuart in MN]

Most places don't allow floor drains in residential garages. For commercial garages, generally a grease trap is required to prevent gas or oil from going down the drain. They also require a permit, I believe.

 

[Jimmy Pet]

Strictly prohibited here by code; inspectors know how sneaky we can be, so they won't allow a garage slab pour to start unless they're on-site to make sure there aren't any "hidden" drains that can be chipped open later.

Just out of curiosity, why would a drain be illegal in a residential garage?

I am in the process of building a new garage,,, and never for a minute thought it might be illegal to have a drain in my garage.

I'm in Northeast PA,,, I'll have to ask my builder tomorrow what the code is here...
Thanks for the heads up.
Cheers
jimmy p

 

[Tim G]

At my work{bodyshop}town came around and made us fill the floor drains in 10 years ago.
Still perfectly legal to stick a sump pump in the low spot,where the grate used to be,and pump the water outside!
Makes no sense to me....

 

[Willy Victor]

I have a floor drain in my pole building in Mi. Drain runs to the back of the building out on the ground, although I have never used it. Someday it will come in handy.

Willy

 

[Fullback66]

A friend in Lincoln Nebraska had a floor drain in his garage. He could was his car in the garage in the winter. I never got the chance to ask him where the drain goes.

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[will02]

Put a floor drain in my new shop. It is out in the sticks and I have a septic system of my own. Was inspected by the county sanitation dept and pefectly legal. Fun to wash my truck when it is 10 below outside!

 

[DaveL.]

I've got floor drains in my garage. 3 of them piped (4") together and drain out the back of my foundation. I couldn't imagine not having them. I had no problems with the building inspection in my area. I made sure it wouldn't be an issue when we were in the planning stages of the house/garage.

 

[04 Navi]

I've got two of them and love them. Turn up the heat, wash the truck with warm water and watch tv. BTW they are connected to our septic system, and are perfectly legal.

 

[beetroot72]

No go here in Illinois either.
But get this. My parents built on a lake in Wisconsin, No drains to the septic but they allowed them to hook into the gutter system which drains into the lake. Go figure.

 

[ron in sc]

When you have a drain in a garage here. You need to have the fluid drained go to a holding tank. The drained fluid is treated as a hazardous material and must be disposed of accordingly.

 

[tsbrewers]

legal here too, all depends on where you are at. Most of the ones we put in had to be daylighted. This just means it dumps in a ditch or ravine. When I did mine I was told I HAD to tie in to the city sewer, which was fine with me. I think they are handier in cold climates, wash vehicles inside, snow melts off and doesn't freeze the door down, etc. I wouldn't be without one.

Brew

 

[JohnZ]

Just out of curiosity, why would a drain be illegal in a residential garage?

I am in the process of building a new garage,,, and never for a minute thought it might be illegal to have a drain in my garage.

They're paranoid here that you'll use the floor drain to dump motor oil, anti-freeze, etc. that will pollute the water table; no way to get one (legally) here in a residential garage.

 

[Jimmy Pet]

They're paranoid here that you'll use the floor drain to dump motor oil, anti-freeze, etc. that will pollute the water table; no way to get one (legally) here in a residential garage.

I kinda figured that,,, but I just refused to believe it I guess.
If someone's going to do stuff like that,,, they are going to do it regardless of how easy it is iin their own garage.

I checked with my builder garage drain is OK here in Northeast Pennsyltucky. I would hate to not have one.

Cheers
jimmy

 

[mike944]

I'd love to have one, but around here they're illegal. They're concerned with people draining oil, and coolant into them, as well as vehicles leaking all sorts of stuff into the groundwater.

and.....the inspectors insist on being at your jobsite during the floor pour, to make sure you haven't added drain plumbing after the pre-pour inspection.

 

[Slatewear]

I've got a floor drain in my garage. Just like Willy, it drains out the back. But I live in out in farm country. It's allowed. The reason they don't want them in residential areas is because it would drain into the sewer. The thought is people would dump all their fluids down there, such as oil and antifreeze.

I also have a floor drain in my garage at the lake house. This one, however, is just a big hole with a container with holes and then backfilled with gravel for drainage.

 

[TonyMazz]

The answer is....have a floor drain all you want and have it drain to daylight.

Why ? Think about it...you fill your mower with gas and some spill on your garage floor...are you going to call the EPA ? No you will hose it down and squeegy out side.....what happens ? It evaporates in the air....

So you have floor drain....are you going to drain it to your septic...no you are going to drain to day light...what happens ? it evaporates in the air...

Are you going to dump gallons of oil down the drain...??? No...a drip here and drip there big deal...

My plumber says...drain to day light as it's the same as if you were squeeging out your garage....most will disappear before it ever penetrates the ground.

so that's what I have....2" drain to day light...next year I am digging it back up and putting in a 4" drain to daylight as it froze up in -25 F...It was a pisser....had to use rocksalt to thaw it out....

Don't drain it into your septic, don't drain into a holding tank that collects fumes....all you have is a bomb...where should the drain go...? Daylight....

code schmode....what's the difference except you are collecting and channelling it to a designated area ....covered with gravel...

 

[mritech1]

Anyone here have pictures of how they set up the drain? Along strip accross the garage or round man hole looking drains? I am in the process of design and would like to do this. Any idea if it is legal in Washington state? Thanks for any info!

 

[04 Navi]

Anyone here have pictures of how they set up the drain? Along strip accross the garage or round man hole looking drains? I am in the process of design and would like to do this. Any idea if it is legal in Washington state? Thanks for any info!

I am in Eastern Washington state and I have them. The plumber just used round shower drains. Simple enough. I had wanted a trough, but he said it was too expensive, and then I saw some small troughs at Home Depot. Those might have worked, but the shower drains work good too. Best of luck.

 

[Lu47Dan]

You can build your own trench drains , use 2 X 6 's for the bottom of the trench and nail 2 X 6 's to it's face for the sides cut KEYS to match your grating and nail them to the sides even with the top this will allow the top of the grating to be even with the concrete . You can embed angle iron into the concrete by nailing it to the key , but I have not had any problems with the grates just sitting on the concrete ledge . But these are not being driven over by heavy vehicles . When you cut your drain pipe in raise it about a 1/2" above the bottom of the floor of the finished trench . Pitch your form about an 1/8 to a 1/4" per foot to your drain pipe . You need 3" to 4" of concrete under the form for the floor of the finished trench drain . Spray your forms with a release agent before you set them , brace them well and check for straightness before pouring floor . Dan

 

[67fairlaner]

Strictly prohibited here by code; inspectors know how sneaky we can be, so they won't allow a garage slab pour to start unless they're on-site to make sure there aren't any "hidden" drains that can be chipped open later.

Must be by locality. I'm in Carleton Mi. & no problem with garage drains. I have 4, one in each stall. I had my house built in 2005. Sure is nice when all the salt & ice disappears off the floor. they are connected to a dry well.

 

[Fullback66]

67fairlaner,
What is a dry well? I know I have heard of it before. I just can't think of what it is right now.
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[Willy Victor]

Must be by locality. I'm in Carleton Mi. & no problem with garage drains. I have 4, one in each stall. I had my house built in 2005. Sure is nice when all the salt & ice disappears off the floor. they are connected to a dry well.

Fairlaner

I am in Cass Co. and no problem with a floor drain.

Willy

 

[JohnZ]

Must be by locality. I'm in Carleton Mi. & no problem with garage drains.

Yup - no go in Macomb County.

 

[67fairlaner]

67fairlaner,
What is a dry well? I know I have heard of it before. I just can't think of what it is right now.
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A dry well is simply a hole in which you dump gravel & cover it with some landscaping mesh material. Cover that over with dirt to grade. It gives a void for water to settle through the gravel before it seeps off into the earth. Kind of a temporary holding area for the drain runoff underground.

 

[Willy Victor]

If you're going with a dry well, use a 55gal plastic drum. Drill 1/2in holes in the bottom third, cover it with stone, fill the rest with rock and run PVC from the drain to the drum. End of story.

Willy

 

[tsbrewers]

The answer is....have a floor drain all you want and have it drain to daylight.

Why ? Think about it...you fill your mower with gas and some spill on your garage floor...are you going to call the EPA ? No you will hose it down and squeegy out side.....what happens ? It evaporates in the air....

So you have floor drain....are you going to drain it to your septic...no you are going to drain to day light...what happens ? it evaporates in the air...

Are you going to dump gallons of oil down the drain...??? No...a drip here and drip there big deal...

My plumber says...drain to day light as it's the same as if you were squeeging out your garage....most will disappear before it ever penetrates the ground.

so that's what I have....2" drain to day light...next year I am digging it back up and putting in a 4" drain to daylight as it froze up in -25 F...It was a pisser....had to use rocksalt to thaw it out....

Don't drain it into your septic, don't drain into a holding tank that collects fumes....all you have is a bomb...where should the drain go...? Daylight....

code schmode....what's the difference except you are collecting and channelling it to a designated area ....covered with gravel...

In my town it was against code to daylight it, it had to be run to the sewer.


I asked my neighbor who is a plumber why this is so, he said now days it is very easy for them to trace chemicals back to the person who dumped them. So if you dump a gallon of gas down the drain, they supposedly can figure out it was you pretty quickly. I was surprised, but glad I could just tie in to my sewer.

Brew

 

[IDASHO]

Yeah, for something like this you REALLY have to get a-hold of local regulations.

I can easily see how some places would be strict enough to outlaw them.

Im in the process of designing my garage/shop, and am considering a drain that takes everything out of the building, down the hill, and into a daylight trench/sump.

And I figure I might at well, as I will already have a trench for the silly footing and gutter drain-tile. Whats one more pipe in the hole!

 

[boiler7904]

After talking to a drainage equipment sales rep last week, it's only a matter of time until floor drains in garages / shops are outlawed. According to him, all floor drains (new and existing) in commercial garages in Illinois will have to have hydrocarbon filters installed to be in compliance by Jan 1, 2008 (besides being tied into a triple basin seperator). Regs get tougher in either 2010 or 2012. Local AHJ are already making it tough (or impossible in some places) to put drains in residential garages by requiring triple basin seperators, etc.