RAINWATER STORAGE

Abstract: A rainwater storage including a storage volume (2) located under ground level (4) and being defined by side (6), top and bottom walls, and containing load taking support elements (12) between top and bottom panels. The support elements (12) comprise outwardly essentially open profiles.

Description: Rainwater storage. The present invention relates to a rainwater storage including a storage volume located under ground level and being defined by side, top and bottom walls, and containing load taking support elements between top and bottom panels. A storage of this kind can be used as either a compensation basin for large surface water volumes, which cannot momentarily be taken up by a discharge system, or as a means for infiltration into the soil of rain water, collected on e.g. paved impermeable surfaces such as roads, parking lots, roofs or other built-up areas, as a way to prevent or at least decrease unwanted lowering of ground water level. A rainwater storage of the kind defined above has the great advantage in comparison with a conventional rockfilled percolation storage, having a pore volume of approximately 40 %, that it needs 2.5 times less volume in the ground for storing the same volume of water. A general object of the present invention is to improve a rainwater storage of the kind defined by way of introduction. A first specific object of the invention is to make possible efficient rinsing of the storage by simple means. A further object of the invention is to provide means simplifying the construction and setting-up of the storage. Still a further object of the invention is to provide means allowing location of the storage on a relatively high level with respect to ground level so as to eliminate the work and costs needed for locating the storage on a low level just out of surface load considerations. According to a main aspect of the invention a rainwater storage of the kind defined above by way of introduction is characterized in that said supports are outwardly essentially open prof les. Embodiments of the invention are defined in " the subclaims, which more in detail prescribe measures and means for attaining one or more of the above-mentioned objects. The invention and its various aspects will now be described more closely below with reference to embodiments shown on the drawings. Figures 1 and 2 very schematically illustrate a rainwater storage according to the invention in sideview and planview, respectively, Figure 3 is a longitudinal section of the storage according to Figures 1 and 2 illustrating more in detail some different components thereof, but leaving out some of the components shown in Figures 1 and 2 for the sake of clarity. Figures 4 and 5 in transverse section illustrate two different embodiments of support profile elements to be used in the storage according to the invention, Figure 6 in section illustrates part of a top or bottom panel for the storage according to the invention, Figure 7 in section illustrates the attachment of the end of a profile element according to Figure 5 to a panel according to Figure 6, Figure 8 in side view illustrates an attaching member to be used for obtaining the attachment according to Figure 6, Figures 9 and 10 in plan view and side view, respectively, illustrate a quick coupling connecting element for connecting together four of the panels according to Figure 6 in a corner to corner relationship, Figure 11 illustrates the use of the quick coupling connecting element according to Figures 9 and 10 for obtaining said connecting together of four panels in a corner to corner relationship. The rainwater storage illustrated in Figures 1 - 3 includes a storage volume 2 located under ground level 4. The storage volume 2 as shown is defined by four sidewalls 6, a top wall 8 and a bottom wall 10. Between the top and bottom walls 8 and 10, respectively, support elements 12 in the form of outwardly essentially open profile pillars are located. The profile elements 12 are preferably made of plastics and I- or X-shaped in section, as shown in Figures 4 and 5, respectively, and are therefore easily anufacturable, e.g. by extrusion, or pultrusion. Other shapes of the prfile elements are also possible. The top and bottom walls 8 and 10, respectively, are double walled panel-elements. These panels can e.g. be made in the form of By means of load distributing elements 18 of a quick coupling type, as shown in Figure 8, the ends of the support profiles 12 are attached to the top and bottom panels. Each attachment element 18 includes a support plate 20 intended for abutment against the surface of the top or bottom panel designated 22. The support plate on the face thereof to be located remote from the panel 22 carries a protrusion 23 defining two mutually perpendicularly crossing slit shaped recesses 24, of which only one is visible in Figure 8. These recesses areadapted to receive, in this embodiment, the profile of the support element according to Figure 5, as indicated in Figure 7. It should, however, be noted that the attachment element could as well, in a similar way, be adapted to receive the profile of Figure 4 or any other profile. The side of the support plate 20 facing the panel 22 carries integrally therewith a pin 25. The pin 25 is intended to be received in corresponding holes in the walls 14 of the panel 22 so as to protrude slightly on the other side of the panel, as indicated in Figure 7. As further indicated in Figures 7 and 8 the pin 25 and the corresponding holes in the panel 22 may have engaging thread means or other friction increasing means. The attachment element 18 due to its shape advantageously distributes the forces acting between the end of the support element 12 and the panel 22 so that no deforming action is exerted on the thin walls 14 of the light weight panel 22 by the ends of the support elements 12. The attachment element 18 also functions to take up vibrations and other dynamic loads. The top and bottom walls 8 and 10, respectively, each comprise a number of top and bottom panels 22 of modular shape such as described above. Between each set of top and bottom panels 22 several support profiles 12 extend. The panels 22 of each of the top and bottom walls are mutually interconnectable from the outside of the storage, preferably by means of connecting elements 26 of a quick coupling type as disclosed in Figures 9 - 11. More particularly, these elements may be cross-shaped as shown in Figures 9 and 11 and have a transversely extending pin 27 at each of the ends of the crossing arms. The pins 27 are each intended to be received in a corresponding hole at the corner of each a panel 22 as indicated in Figure 11, so as to connect together four panels 22 in a corner to corner relationship. As indicated in Figure 10 the pin 27 may have friction increasing thread means. Returning to Figures 1 - 3, the storage according to the invention may include breathing pipes 28 and manholes 30, According to advantageous aspect of the invention a number of breathing pipes 28, one at each corner of the storage in the embodiment shown, are interconnectable to a common water supply as schematically indicated at 32 in Figure 2 for introduction of rinsing water into the storage, and the manholes 30 are then used for extracting the rinsing water by a suitable pump means, not shown, introduced therein. This arrangement makes possible a very efficient rinsing of the storage volume provided the breathing pipes and manholes take advantageous mutual positions. Preferably, as shown, the breathing holes can be located at the corners of the storage and one or more manholes more centrally thereof. It is also possible to attach other means for introducing the rinsing water into the storage, such as by pressurised water supply separate from the breathing pipes. The outwardly open profile of the support elements 12 forms a very essential part of the whole rinsing concept since dirt can easily be removed therefrom during a rinsing operation. The si ewalls 6 of the storage are formed by an inner load taking net 38 and an outer layer 40. Depending upon the requirements this outer layer may be an permeable soil textile or an impermeable plastic membrane. Advantageously a load taking net 42 is essentially horizontally arranged in the ground layer immediately above the storage and extends at all sides a considerable distance beyond the circumference of the storage for proper distribution of loads applied to the ground surface above the storage. By this measure it is possible to locate the whole storage on a high level with respect to the ground surface also at sites where the latter may receive heavy loads, without risking break down of the storage.

Claims: Cl aims. 1. Rainwater storage including a storage volume (2) located under ground level (4) and being defined by side (6), top (8) and bottom (10) walls, and containing load taking support elements (12) between top and bottom panels, characterized in that the support elements (12) comprise outwardly essentially open profiles. 2. Rainwater storage according to claim 1, characterized in that the profiles are I- or X-shaped. 3. Rainwater storage according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the profiles are made of plastics. 4. Rainwater storage according to any of claims 1 - 3, characterized in that the ends of the support profiles (12) are attached to the top and bottom panels, respectively, by means of load distributing attachment elements (18) of a quick coupling type. 5. Rainwater storage according to claim 4, characterized in that the attachment element (18) includes a support plate (20) intended for abutment against the surface of the top and/or bottom panel (22), said support plate on the face thereof remote from the panel having recesses (24) adapted to the profile of the support element (12) for receiving the corresponding end portion of the support element. 6. Rainwater storage according to any of claims 1-3, characterized in that a plurality of top and/or bottom panels (22) each receive a group of several support profiles attached thereto, and are mutually interconnectable from the outside by means of connecting elements (26) of a quick coupling type. 7. Rainwater storage according to any of the preceding claims, characterized by the presence of breathing pipes (28) and/or manholes (30). 8. Rainwater storage according to claim 7, characterized by means (28) for rinsing the storage by way of introducing rinsing water into the storage at one or several points and by extracting this water including loosened deposits at one or more points (30) spaced away from the points of introduction. 9. Rainwater storage according to claim 8, characterized by the use of the breathing pipes (28) for introduction of the rinsing water and the use of the manhole(s) (30) for extracting the rinsing water. 10. Rainwater storage according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that the side walls (6) thereof are formed by a load taking net (38) and a further layer (40). 11. Rainwater storage according to claim 10, characterized in that the further layer (40) is a permeable soil textile or an impermeable plastic membrane. 12. Rainwater storage according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that a load taking net (42) is essentially horizontally arranged in the ground layer immediately above the storage and extends at all sides a considerable distance beyond the circumference of the storage for proper distribution of loads applied to the ground surface above the storage.

Inventors: SKOTTE KLAUS, SKOTTE, KLAUS
Applicants: WAVIN BV, WAVIN B.V.
Application year: 1989
Main classification: E03F5
IPC codes: E03F5