Stormwater pumps deal with the runoff from rainfall after it comes into contact with roads, pavement, roofs, concrete, and the ground. But is it just general litter and solid that contaminates the stormwater, or is there more to it than meets the eye?
Once the rainwater makes contact with the surface of the earth, it is able to interact with many kinds of pollutants and debris which can be carried into the stormwater drains and make its way into the stormwater pump. The additional material that can be carried can range widely from soil, organic matter, litter, grease, metals and oils from roads to fertilisers from people’s gardens and properties, and much more.
Ideally, any stormwater collected would flow into a stormwater system and discharge into a municipal system. However, despite the best planning and efforts given, the ideal is sometimes out of our reach. This could be due to a number of factors that are out of our control like; not having enough of a gradient in the land to be able to create the gravity flow necessary to have the stormwater delivered to the municipal system, or the ground in an area could be water charged causing groundwater ingress into the drainage system.
This is where stormwater pumps are used as a key solution to be able to fix the problem of moving the stormwater efficiently and effectively to the municipal system. You will find a stormwater pump in a stormwater pump station, which is used as an intermediate collection tank of stormwater. Unlike using gravity to move the stormwater to the discharge point, the water is collected in the tank and when it reaches a certain level, the stormwater pump is activated and is able to provide the pressure needed to be able to overcome the difference in head pressure, and get the stormwater flowing to the desired location.
The stormwater pump station will be able to gather all the water from collection points such as carpark, residential, industrial or commercial areas, as they can be piped to the station. Utilising pump stations like this we are able to prevent water ponding in car parks, which would begin to start to cause hazards for drivers and also damage the surface. This is why it is crucial that the drainage infrastructure be engineered correctly, or the stormwater will have nowhere to do deposited to.
One of the largest problems you will need to overcome is what size pump station will you need. While there are many factors which can influence the size of a pump station, the factor that should demand the most attention is the water holding capacity, and pump flow rate to be able to evacuate the water levels. To put it simply, the larger the area and the greater or heavier the expected rainfall in a particular area, then the larger the collection tank that you use will be.
If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to reach out to our professional and friendly team at Pumps2You and we’ll be happy to assist you in any way we can.