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A compact dry well may not fit every roof-runoff site
A dry well puts storage in a compact pit, while a perforated infiltration trench spreads it along a longer area. I’m curious how you decide which layout fits a site when soil drainage and seasonal groundwater may rule out either one.
How much do you rely on site-specific soil infiltration testing and groundwater information before choosing? For roof runoff, does sediment pretreatment usually make a meaningful difference to maintenance, and what kind of access should the design leave for inspecting or cleaning it? I’d also like to know how you weigh required setbacks and a safe overflow route, since the available space may favor one layout but not make it suitable.
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2 replies
I’d want site-specific infiltration and seasonal groundwater information before choosing based on footprint. Poor infiltration and a shallow seasonal water table are different concerns: a feature might drain slowly, or there might be too little suitable soil depth for infiltration. Either could make a compact dry well or a longer trench unsuitable, so I wouldn’t assume the trench solves a poor-drainage problem just by spreading the runoff out.
For roof runoff, pretreatment can catch some leaves and sediment before they reach either a dry well or a trench, which may reduce what accumulates inside the infiltration feature. I’d treat that as a maintenance aid, not a substitute for inspection. The inlet or sediment-catching area needs to be reachable for checking and clearing; otherwise buildup can go unnoticed and the benefit is mostly theoretical.
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