A sewerage fan or ventilation pipe is a necessary attribute of any wastewater disposal system in a multi-storey building and in a private cottage. What is a fan pipe for? Installing such a pipe simultaneously solves two problems. Firstly, through ventilation, gases are removed from the pipeline network. Secondly, ventilation is needed to maintain a constant pressure in the pipe system, since at the time of the descent of a large volume of water in the sewer, air is released.
What is a fan pipe? It is customary to call a fan pipe a pipe that connects the sewer riser to the atmosphere. The presence of such a pipe prevents the occurrence of vacuum in the system, which, in turn, does not allow disrupting the operation of water locks.
In the absence of a fan pipe, at the time of the descent of a large amount of water, in all devices located above, it can disrupt the water seals. And through empty siphons, an unpleasant smell of sewerage will begin to flow into the premises.
According to building codes, a sewerage system without a fan pipe can be built in a one-story house. This tolerance is based on the fact that in small houses a large amount of wastewater cannot be generated at the same time.
However, a sewer pipe for sewerage in a private house will not be superfluous in a low-rise building. Installing a pipe is a necessity if, while draining a large volume of water, the section of the riser pipe is completely blocked.
In most cases, the dimensions of the hole in the cistern are 70 mm, and the outlet from the toilet is carried out using a pipe having a diameter of 110 mm. The outlet from the bath is assembled from pipes with a cross section of up to 50 mm. Thus, when using only one piece of plumbing, a complete filling of the riser cannot occur.
Small-diameter sewer pipes are connected to the rest of the plumbing fixtures. Therefore, their use does not have a significant impact on the total amount of simultaneous discharge. Therefore, in one-story houses, the installation of a fan pipe is optional.
Advice! As a rule, the largest amount of waste is formed when water is drained from the toilet and bathtub at the same time.
Another thing is a house of two floors and above. Of course, we are talking about cases where bathrooms are located on each of the floors. In this case, several people can use the water supply at the same time.
And with the simultaneous discharge of water from two toilet bowls, the section of the riser will be completely blocked, therefore, in such houses, the installation of fan pipes is mandatory. In high-rise buildings, the normal functioning of the sewerage system without a vent pipe is impossible, since in such a house a large number of people can use the sewerage system at the same time.
Consequently, the probability that the entire section of the riser will be occupied by drains increases many times over. Thus, it is mandatory to include fan pipes in the system if:
The sewer pipe for sewerage can be made of both plastic and cast iron:
Advice! When installing or replacing a fan pipe, if necessary, parts made of cast iron and plastic can be joined. The main thing is that the diameters of these elements match. Narrowing of the diameter in the fan pipe must not be allowed, otherwise it will not fully function.
In addition, there are conditions that must be observed regardless of what material the pipes are made of:
When installing a fan pipe, you must strictly adhere to the recommendations enshrined in SNiP.
Advice! In private construction, most often, for the construction of risers and, accordingly, fan pipes, a plastic pipe with a cross section of 110 mm is used.
Advice! Sometimes the constant presence of an unpleasant sewer smell in the premises is due to the fact that siphons of insufficient volume are installed under the plumbing fixtures. If you do not use the appliances for several days, then the water plug will simply dry out and unpleasantly smelling gases will penetrate into the rooms. Installing a vent pipe will help solve this problem. The air in the house will remain fresh, even if the plumbing is idle without use.
Fan pipe installation rules:
When constructing sewer ventilation, it is strictly prohibited:
Some homeowners, in an effort to improve sewer ventilation, are trying to install additional exhaust devices on the pipe. Such as deflectors, wind vanes, etc.
In fact, such devices not only do not give the desired effect, but can also contribute to the fact that condensate will accumulate in the system. And in the cold season, moisture can freeze and block the movement of air and gases.
A non-return valve must be installed on the exhaust pipe. They put the valve on the sewer pipe immediately after installing the toilet. Valve working principle:
That is, installing a valve helps to avoid such an unpleasant situation when drains from an external pipeline (for example, as a result of a blockage) enter the house, flooding the premises with dirty water.
So, a fan pipe is an element of the sewer system, which is used to ventilate the pipeline and maintain normal pressure in the system. The installation of the exhaust pipe must be carried out in accordance with the requirements of building codes.
Many of the residents of the upper floors of skyscrapers wondered why a sewer riser is needed where no one, in theory, lives? All of them are visited by thoughts of removing it and arranging, for example, shelves in the vacated niche or mounting an installation in it. And really, why is the usable area that can be used for your needs wasted? We will deal with this question in this article, in which, together with the website, we will find out why a fan riser is needed, what threatens its dismantling, and is there an alternative that is able to replace it?
Removal of the fan pipe to the street photo
In short, the fan is nothing more than ventilation. Its main task is to ensure the flow of air into the sewer system, which ensures its ability to quickly cope with the transport of large volumes of water and remove unpleasant odors. Let's face it - the relevant services of the housing office have a negative attitude towards the issue of removing this part of the riser, even if it is being replaced with an air valve. Why? Everything is simple here - its absence entails a lot of problems that begin to pour one after another on their heads. And although these troubles can be counted on the fingers, they can make life unbearable for the residents of a high-rise building. Such problems include the following.
Now decide for yourself whether you need a fan riser in your apartment, or is it better to put up with its presence? By the way, if you are a resident of a private house, then you should not think that you will not have such problems. It should be understood that no matter how large the sewerage system is and no matter how correctly it is assembled, the fan riser is its integral part, and its full replacement simply does not exist. Think about it at your leisure, but for now I will tell you about one alternative that supposedly allows you to remove the sewer system.
See the video for the features of the fan riser device and the nuances of its installation.
What is a sewer air valve? This is a small device made on the basis of an end cap. Two valves are embedded in it, which, with a certain effort, let air into the sewerage system, but do not release it back. In principle, this is what is needed to get rid of the consequences of the absence of a fan pipe, if not for a few “buts”.
Fan riser replacement: air valve
In truth, replacing a fan riser with an air valve can only be done in private houses equipped with one bathroom. If we talk about more impressive buildings, then here you can’t do without a fan pipe.
Since we are talking about the private sector, in which the waste water is drained into a septic tank or a drain pit, we should also mention the effect of fan riser ventilation on the operation of these devices. No, globally, of course, it will not affect the operation of the same septic tank, but the lack of sewer ventilation can bring some troubles, for example, an unpleasant smell that spreads throughout the adjacent area and beyond. Do you want to get rid of it? Then make a fan pipe in the house and release it over the roof of the house - in this case, all the stench will evaporate into the atmosphere and disperse in the wind.
Sewerage in a house with a fan pipe
In principle, the installation of fan ventilation does not present any difficulties, unless, of course, the system is installed from scratch. If we are talking about finishing the sewer, then you will have to work a little here - in particular, cut the thickest sewer lounger, insert an oblique tee into it and from it bring a pipe of the same diameter as the lounger, first to the attic, and from there to the roof. Don't forget to put an umbrella on it to block the way of rain water.
That, in principle, is everything you need to know about sewer ventilation. Whatever one may say, but a fan riser is needed, and you should not get rid of it. Apart from trouble, this step will lead to nothing else.
With an independent installation of a sewer system in an individual house, not all owners are well aware of how to properly mount it. The sewer system is an integral part of modern homes. One of the essential elements of such a system for its proper functioning is a sewer pipe. Many owners of private households do not fully understand its purpose and proper application when constructing a sewer system.
The fan pipe is a part of the pipeline of the sewer system, connecting it directly to the atmosphere and excluding the emptying of the water seals of plumbing fixtures from possible vacuum when draining the waste water.
In turn, a specially curved sewer pipe at the outlet of a plumbing fixture is called a water seal. It is, naturally, partially filled with water, which acts as a water plug to prevent unpleasant air from entering the sewer pipes directly into the room. For example: the water seal at the toilet is made in the body, and a special product is screwed to the sink - a siphon.
Important! If there is no fan pipeline in the sewerage system, then at the moment a certain amount of water is drained, water plugs may disappear at nearby hydraulic seals and then not very pleasant sewer odors will freely seep into the living quarters through empty pipes.
The fan pipe is also called the ventilation of the sewer system. Its presence in the sewer allows you to solve two important problems at the same time:
Hence the conclusion: a fan pipe is an important attribute in the construction of a sewerage system in residential buildings.
The presence of fan risers in the sewer system of multi-apartment residential buildings is mandatory and is regulated by current state documents and building codes. As a rule, sewer ventilation risers are made straight, due to the fact that the processes occurring there are gravity-flowing, and not forced, and it is necessary to minimize the number of outlets and various constrictions for the most free passage of air flows.
Sewer systems in individual houses do not have such volumes of wastewater as in multi-apartment residential buildings, therefore, the requirements for the installation of fan risers are less complex and allow significant deviations for the sake of practicality and minimization of construction costs.
The fan pipe is basically the upper continuation of the sewer riser, so it must end with an outlet to the roof of the building. A standard deflector must be mounted at the end of the pipe, so that the distance from the surface of the roof ridge is 30 centimeters higher. It is not recommended to draw sewer ventilation to the facade of the building.
Important! Do not install the outlet of the sewer riser in the attic of the building or near windows and near balconies.
For the installation of a fan riser, pipelines made of any materials can be used. So, plastic, cast-iron or steel pipes must meet only one condition - be corrosion-resistant, since many aggressive substances will be present in the sewer gases.
There are no special requirements for calculating the diameter of the fan pipes, so for multi-apartment residential buildings it should be equal to the diameter of the sewer riser itself. But for individual construction, it is allowed to use pipes with half the diameter compared to the main riser, so only air will pass through the fan part of the pipeline, and it has several times lower density than the drained water in the lower part of the sewer network.
Basically, during the construction of an individual residential building to calculate a separate sewer branch, which includes a sink with a pipe with a diameter of 50 mm, a drain tank with a hole of 70 mm, a main pipe from the toilet bowl of 100 mm and a common riser, also 100 mm, use a fan pipe with a diameter of only 50 mm. Practice shows that this diameter is quite enough to maintain constant pressure and ensure constant ventilation of the sewer system.
Guided by building codes, it is allowed to exclude from the execution scheme during the construction of the sewerage system of the fan pipeline in individual houses. This conclusion is based on the fact that in small households large volumes of drained water cannot be formed at the same time.
The installation of a sewer pipe for a sewer network in low-rise construction will not always be superfluous, therefore it is recommended that at the stage of construction of a new building, sewerage be performed according to the traditional scheme with all functional elements. Although there are a number of clear criteria under which the installation of a fan pipeline is a prerequisite for the proper functioning of the sewerage system, namely:
In any case, when a situation may arise during a one-time discharge of water in which the cross section of the sewer pipe will be completely filled and it will be possible to create a vacuum in the above water seals, then the installation of a vent pipe becomes a prerequisite for the proper functioning of the sewer system at home.
If a residential building is equipped with a small number of plumbing fixtures and mainly with a small diameter of sewer pipes, then the use of a fan pipe is not necessary, since it will not have a significant impact on the operation of the entire sewage system, but will only require extra funds.
Tip: In case of one-story construction, the installation of fan pipes is not advisable.
When buying an existing country house or cottage, you can easily check and make sure that there is a fan pipe in the sewer system. So, if you abruptly flush the water from the toilet, then as a result of this, it should not disappear from the above-located hydraulic locks of plumbing fixtures. But the characteristic appearance of squelching sounds in the siphons of sinks and the bathroom leads to the conclusion that not everything is in order with the sewage system in the house and this can lead to the appearance of unpleasant odors in the rooms in the future.
The requirements for the installation technology of fan pipelines are the same as for other sewer pipes. So you can list the basic conditions for installation:
Important! Any combination of pipelines of fan pipes, ventilation systems and chimneys is strictly prohibited.
Insulation of fan pipelines passing through residential premises, as well as sewer pipes, is not required at all. But in an unheated attic, it is worth at least minimal thermal insulation of pipes so that ice does not freeze inside during severe frosts, since water vapor is much lighter than air, and they will tend to climb the pipe, where they will freeze on cold walls.
Noise insulation of the fan pipe must be carried out only in the case of its open passage through the living quarters. If this cannot be avoided, then the insulation work is quite simple and is carried out in the same way as for all sewer pipelines equally easily. The only thing that complicates the process is the variety of acoustic processes in pipes directly dependent on the materials from which the pipelines are made.
So, the soundproofing properties of cast iron pipes are much better than those of their plastic counterparts. This is due primarily to the properties of the granular structure of cast iron and the greater wall thickness, therefore, such pipes, as a rule, do not require additional noise insulation.
Sound processes occurring in plastic pipes can be divided into four main components:
The main part of the work on soundproofing should be carried out at the design stage of a residential building, so that all sewer risers do not pass through residential premises and are installed exclusively in special boxes or sewer shafts, which themselves are shielding devices and prevent the spread of noise.
If, nevertheless, the fan pipeline is open in the living room, then its sound insulation can be easily done by wrapping the pipe with strips of inexpensively foamed polyethylene in two or three layers.
A vacuum valve is a special device that performs the same main function as a fan pipe, namely, it prevents the occurrence of vacuum in the sewer system, thereby eliminating the emptying of water seals in plumbing fixtures and makes it impossible for unpleasant odors to enter from the sewer.
For individual houses, a vacuum valve is an alternative and a complete replacement for a fan pipe. It is much simpler to install and easily cuts into any existing sewer pipeline, while it does not require a complex outlet to the outside and is much cheaper in terms of capital costs when buying and installing.
Important! Do not confuse two different types of sewer valves - a vacuum valve and a check valve. They differ both in execution and in the functional purpose that they perform in the sewerage system.
The vacuum valve is designed as a fully automatic device that starts to work at the slightest occurrence of vacuum in the sewer pipe when the water is drained. The sensitive element of the valve is made in the form of a special membrane made of rubber or silicone.
It works due to the difference in pressure inside and outside the pipe, opening when a vacuum occurs when water is drained, thereby ensuring the flow of missing air into the sewer network. Under the action of internal forces, the membrane immediately returns to its place with full pressure equalization, preventing the penetration of air from the sewer pipe.
The only disadvantages of a vacuum valve are:
Both of these shortcomings of the vacuum valve are not so critical and can easily compensate for the inexpensive cost of buying a new device and the ease of reinstalling it.
How to arrange a sewer network in your home, everyone decides for himself. After all, there is no unequivocal answer to the question: a vacuum valve or a fan pipe, or simply you should not complicate the sewerage scheme with unnecessary elements. Here you are advised by this article, common sense, technical calculation and your life experience.
For owners of country houses who do a lot to improve their home with their own hands, it is useful to know some of the features of arranging water supply and sewer systems. These are the most basic engineering communications, without which the construction of any house is not complete.
When installing a sewer, it is important to remember about such a device as a fan riser. What is this device and what are the nuances of its installation? These and a number of other questions can be answered in our article.
The fan riser in a private house is a part of the pipeline connecting the sewer riser to the open air.
Fan pipe on the roof of a private house
In the absence of this element, during the development of wastewater, a rarefaction occurs in the system, the water seal is broken, and an unpleasant odor is felt in the room. For each plumbing device, a discharge pipe with a knee is required. In this bend, water is normally found. It also performs the function of a water seal, preventing the penetration of unpleasant fumes into the house. With a sharp discharge of wastewater in the sewer pipes, a vacuum occurs. Air from the street passes through the fan device into the system, and the pressure returns to normal. This ensures that there are no odors.
Sometimes you can do without a fan riser. For example, in a small building consisting of one or two floors. However, a mandatory requirement in this case is the equipment of only one bathroom.
If the house has two or more bathrooms or several toilets, then the installation of a fan riser is mandatory. Its presence is determined by the following factors:
Even at the design stage, in order to install the sewer riser correctly, two basic requirements must be taken into account:
The ventilation structure for eliminating unpleasant odors consists of different parts:
Having dealt with what a fan riser is, you need to carefully study the principles of its installation. It is advisable to plan the installation of this device as soon as the development of the project of the internal sewer system begins. In order for ventilation to work better, you should try to avoid bends and corners in the structure.
Fan riser output diagram
The ideal position of the air riser is exclusively vertical. This pipe is led through the floors between floors to the roof. However, this is not always possible in practice. Often in country houses you have to use additional elements for connection.
Sometimes they use the method of connecting several risers into one duct. This can be connecting an auxiliary riser to the main one or removing a vent pipe with its connection at the same distance from two risers.
This installation method is better because it allows you to evenly distribute air pressure throughout the system.
Fan pipes on the roof of the building
One of the main rules of installation is the correct diameter of the air pipe. It should not be larger than the diameter of the sewer. At the same time, the indicator of this element ideally corresponds to the size of not only the central riser, but also the branch pipe, which serves to connect the external and internal sewers.
It is also worth remembering that it is unacceptable to combine sewer ventilation with any climatic design or carbon monoxide removal during operation of the heating boiler.
If the air riser breaks down, it is often necessary to replace it. The replacement of the structure is carried out according to the same principle as the repair of individual sections of the sewerage system. This process differs mainly in the material from which the pipes are made, and in the method of their connection.
Fan pipe repair
To replace the fan riser, a number of conditions must be met:
By itself, the installation of a fan riser is not particularly difficult. Nevertheless, the masters recommend following some important requirements.
It is better that the diameters of the fan pipe and the riser match.
Fan cast iron pipe
If a combination of several materials is used in the work, for example, a plastic fan pipe and a cast-iron riser, it is recommended to use a rubber adapter.
For articulation of several fans, angles of 45 or 135 degrees are used. Sections of the fan system, located horizontally, must be laid with a slope of 0.02% in the direction of the gas outlet.
If it is required to change the angle of the direction of the pipe, a special bend with a degree of rotation of 135 is used.
Certain criteria have been developed for air risers. During the installation of the system, it is advisable to check with them:
Despite the fact that the installation of the fan system can be done independently, there are a number of nuances, the knowledge of which will help to avoid serious shortcomings in the installation of the riser.
Installation of a fan pipe
Sometimes incorrectly carried out work on the equipment of a funnel design has rather unpleasant consequences.
For example, the owners of country houses do not always correctly install the fan pipe, trimming the system immediately in the attic. This leads to the fact that unpleasant odors seep into the attic, which can also penetrate into the housing.
Another serious drawback is the installation of a fan on the outer wall. In this case, there is a risk of condensation.
Some owners prefer to mount an additional device - a roof aerator.
Pitched roof aerators
Its function is to improve traction. However, this is not always advisable. In most cases, the following happens: the outflow of sewer gases is weaker and an unpleasant smell from the bathroom can be felt in the house.
Installation of an air riser becomes a prerequisite for the correct equipment of the waste system. The absence of this device leads to rather negative consequences.
Sometimes it is better to entrust the installation of the pipe to qualified specialists. If you do not have the required number of tools or materials, you should not do the installation yourself. Buying the right equipment, which is unlikely to be useful to you in the future, does not make sense. In addition, the arrangement of sewer systems has its own specifics. An experienced master plumber will do the job efficiently, taking into account all requirements.
In order to correctly perform the installation, it is necessary to strictly observe a pre-prepared project and perform all the necessary calculations.
An alternative option for ventilation sewer systems is considered to be vacuum valves. They are installed at the end of the sewer riser in the house itself.
Installation of a vacuum valve on a sewer riser
Inside the vacuum type valve is a special spring with low resistance and a rubber sealing element for tightness. The principle of operation of such a device is as follows:
In situations where it is not possible to install a sewer check valve on the riser, this device can be mounted on any other segment of the horizontal pipe leading to the riser.
Attention should also be paid to such an important point as the presence of a hydraulic lock at each plumbing point.
Using a hydraulic seal
Otherwise, an unpleasant smell in the house cannot be avoided, despite the properly installed sewer system and ventilation equipment. Most modern sewer devices have built-in hydraulic seals.
There is a special document - a set of Building Norms and Rules (SNiP). These requirements must be taken into account. The documentation contains the conditions for the mandatory equipment of fan risers:
In any case, it is necessary to equip an air riser in a country house. Only in this way can the work on laying the sewer pipe system be considered correctly performed. No one wants to put up with the presence of sewer odors in living quarters. You can invite professionals to install the fan pipes, or you can try to cope with this task yourself.
Creating a high-quality sewerage system in a private house eliminates problems with unpleasant odors that accompany the operation of sanitary equipment. Therefore, the installed sewer fan riser in a private house will be an integral element of the household network.
With a sharp discharge of a large volume of water into a pipeline of small cross section, pipes often break, water hammer. Therefore, a sewer pipe in a private house is an integral element of internal engineering networks. Due to its use, the sewerage system in a private house has an additional air flow, and additionally the design eliminates pressure drops.
An apartment building without a vent pipe can only function with the installation of a shower cabin, where the water flow is small. A standard bathroom refers to peak costs, during the discharge of effluents from a sanitary appliance, the pipe section is filled to the maximum, the flow of fresh air becomes minimal.
A similar situation in houses without a vent pipe provokes flooding of the first floors of the building at the time of the mass draining of water. Installing an additional structure will extend the life cycle of the sewer riser, especially plastic, and will also even out the work of home ventilation in the sewer pipes.
Many craftsmen advise narrowing the diameter of the pipeline, citing the lack of costs in the attic of the house. Regulatory documents, as well as experience in the operation of engineering networks in the private sector and apartment buildings, forces us to abandon such manipulations.
Sewer pipelines from the sanitary unit, where the toilet is installed, are dictating. The toilet drain pipe has a cross section of 110 mm, the household sewer riser must repeat its size or be larger. If two toilets and two bathtubs are installed on the riser, it is necessary to carry out a hydraulic calculation of the throughput of the riser.
Modern sewer network solutions based on polymer pipes can significantly extend the life of the system and simplify installation work. Sewerage in a private house without a fan pipe remains quite working, especially in houses with a small number of appliances and people, the standard system copes with the flow of effluents.
An unpleasant odor appears at times of high load, when most of the devices work at one moment. In such situations, many owners install additional aerators - ventilation valves, they compensate for the lack of air in the system. Installation of such equipment occurs at a level of 1–2.5 meters from the level of the finished floor.
The installed fan complex will provide a number of advantages:
Such items will allow you to build the required riser, taking into account high-quality ventilation and ensuring durability of functionality. The resulting sewerage will ensure the use of several full-fledged bathrooms.
This is true when a private house has independent and multi-level wastewater disposal options. There is only one way out in this situation - the masters can mount the system with one fan riser, the exhaust part of which will be combined. But the diameter of such a pipeline must correspond to the cross section of the working riser or be 50 mm larger.
A sewer pipe for sewerage in a private house with a height of two, three or four floors is a decisive factor; in its absence, hydraulic valves of the upper sanitary appliances must be calculated for an additional load. In this calculation, it is necessary to take into account the second flow rate from the devices, the pipeline cross-section, local resistance and pipe material.
Depending on the temperature of the discharged water, as well as the requirements for the working strength of pipelines, specialists select and install the following pipes:
When designing a house or carrying out reconstruction, it is important to choose the right location for the system and individual sewer units. Only in this case, the sewer outlet in a private house will function, regardless of the weather outside the window.
If we are talking about a large temperature difference inside and outside the building, especially when the house is used all year round, and the climate has a long period of negative temperature, then the craftsmen install a node inside the building or connect electric heating.
Installation should be carried out inside the building, leading the riser above the level of the roofing. This will eliminate problems with freezing and give a reason to ensure the necessary functionality, regardless of weather conditions. In this case, the sewerage system will provide a number of regulatory requirements:
In a situation where the owners of the house do not have the necessary free space for installing a fan unit indoors, experts advise installing the unit to the outer wall, sewing up the structure, and insulating it with mineral wool. An additional source of heat in this design is a heat cable.
Sewerage in a private house without a fan pipe is carried out in one-story buildings with an exploitable basement, but the installation of a toilet bowl and a bathroom takes place only on the ground floor near the riser and outlet to the external sewer network.
The consumption of the washbasin or washing of the house system in this case is not dictating, such an amount of wastewater from sanitary appliances occurs irregularly and is not capable of affecting the operation of the system.
A private house is often equipped with grease traps, the equipment reduces the concentration of fats and organics in wastewater. Installation of such equipment involves regular flushing of pipes with hot water. Air valves will help compensate for the lack of oxygen.
The outlet of the valve is connected to the main pipeline from washing with fittings, the difference in elevations protects the equipment from flooding during pipeline flushing.