Every underground pipework system be it commercial or residential needs some access points for cleaning and maintenance purposes. The purpose of these access points is to remove any blockage from these drains to keep them running smoothly.
These access points are referred to as manhole chambers or inspection chambers. These play a crucial role in ensuring public safety and in this article, we are going to look at how so stay with us till the end.
Here is all you need to know about manhole chambers
- What are Manhole Chambers?
- Different Parts of a Manhole Chamber
- Manhole Chambers and Public Safety
- Allow You to Prevent Drain Blockage
- They Make Cleaning and Inspection Easier
- Work as Temporary Water Storage Point
- Only People with the Right Skills Know how to Enter These Chambers
- No Injury Risks While Doing Maintenance
What are Manhole Chambers?
A manhole chamber is an integral part of underground drainage which provides an access point for cleaning, clearing, and inspecting drains when needed. This chamber allows drainage professionals to identify and resolve issues with the underground pipework which reduces the risks of blockage and flooding.
Inspection chambers are different from manholes in the way that these do not allow physical access which makes them a safer drainage inspection and maintenance solution.
Following are the key intersections of your drainage system where manhole chambers are typically installed
- Where your system’s main run connects with a branch pipe.
- A point from where a straight run of wire is more than 22 meters long.
- Places where an underground pipe changes horizontal directions by more than 30o.
- Points where the size of the pipe changes drastically.
Different Parts of a Manhole Chamber
Manhole chambers come in three parts either supplied as a whole or separately. Following is a brief overview of the main parts of a manhole chamber:
Base
This is the bottom section of the chamber that is closest to the drains. These bases come with a number of inlets to meet your pipework needs. You also get blanking plugs to seal off unnecessary inlets.
Riser
The middle section of the manhole chambers is known as the riser which sits on the base. This section is joined together by rubber seals. The main job of the riser is to connect the base of the manhole chamber with its cover. You can cut these with a saw to adjust their height to your requirements.
Cover
The cover prevents unauthorized access to the manhole chambers which leads to fewer accidents, injuries, or malfunctions. These covers are usually available in square or round shapes. You can also find these in a wide range of weight-load classes to meet your specific needs.
Manhole Chambers and Public Safety
Following are a few points that show how manhole chambers ensure public safety and comfort:
1. Allow You to Prevent Drain Blockage:
A manhole chamber gives you direct access to your drain system. It allows you to examine your pipes and drains to see what is causing water blockage. After identifying the issue, you can either take the necessary measures yourself or contact a drainage specialist.
This way manhole chambers ensure a continuous fluid flow in your property by taking care of blockage in its early stages. This saves your property from harmful odors, water damage, and flooding.
2. They Make Cleaning and Inspection Easier:
Manhole chambers are specifically designed for cameras and drain inspection/cleaning equipment only. You can use drain rods for removing blockages and water jetting for clearing your pipework from elements that can build up over time and cause the pipework to malfunction.
With regular manholes, you have to physically enter the drains to find faults. This can be really be a really difficult and time-consuming job to do since manholes have toxic gases build up and low-oxygen levels at times that can reduce your ability to examine properly.
3. Works as Temporary Water Storage Point:
Manhole chambers not only act as a pathway to the drainage system, but they also act as a temporary water storage point. This means if a large amount of water suddenly enters the drains, these chambers can store some of it to reduce pressure on the pipework.
After that, these chambers slowly empty themselves through the drains thus ensuring a smooth and risk-free water flow.
4. Only People with the Right Skills Know how to Enter These Chambers:
Unlike regular manholes that can be accessed by anyone, these chambers can only be inspected and cleaned by trained professionals. In most cases, the cleaning and maintenance can be done using remote access equipment.
However, an approach called confined spaced entry is also used in cases when remote access doesn’t work. This approach involves a team of special confined space entry operatives with special tools and safety gear entering the manholes, finding faults, and resolving them manually.
5. No Injury Risks While Doing Maintenance:
Climbing into a manhole for cleaning maintenance purposes poses slip, trip, and fall risks. Moreover, deeper manholes can also have a lower oxygen level and high concentration of toxic gases. This can make you unconscious if you are exposed for too long.
With manhole chambers, all these risks are eliminated. You can use remote access equipment to both inspect and clean these which eliminates serious injury threats altogether.
Conclusion
Manhole chambers provide you with an access point to your underground pipe network which you can use to conduct surveys and do regular maintenance. Unlike manholes, these chambers do not allow physical entrance which minimizes the risks of accidents and injuries.
These chambers give you a very simple way to access your drains and resolve any issues that might slow down or block the wastewater flow.
So, if you are looking for a hassle-free drainage solution that allows you to access your drains, clean and clear them, and fix potential problems before they get worse, we advise you to consider installing manhole chambers.
Contact us at Naran Precast Concrete Co. to get top-quality customized precast concrete manholes for any type of project in the UAE.