[Prancing Pony Pottery]

Greetings!

I hope this is the proper place to post this question. I did a search before posting but did not come up with any hits.

My studio in our home's basement currently does not have running water (I'm using the barrel method for clean up for now). We're getting quotes from contractors for putting in a utility sink with hot and cold running water and it has been suggested to create a French drain rather then run the sink into our septic system. I've been worried about the effects of the studio sink on the septic but know to be very careful about clay and glaze waste and had planned to install a Gleco (or similar) trap.

Would a French drain be sufficient for a small studio? Are there any special concerns? If you've used one, what are your experiences?

Thanks in advance for your feedback!

[Bobg]

another thing you can do is add a standpipe in the sink itself. It would only need to probably be 4 inches tall. That way all the heavy particles settle to the bottom of the sink and the water goes down the drain.

Bob

[Prancing Pony Pottery]

Bobg, on 17 August 2012 - 01:26 PM, said:

another thing you can do is add a standpipe in the sink itself. It would only need to probably be 4 inches tall. That way all the heavy particles settle to the bottom of the sink and the water goes down the drain.

Bob

Thanks, Bob - I'd never even heard of that before (but it makes great sense)!

[neilestrick]

The bad thing about standpipes is that you essentially have an open trap that gets nasty. I love my Gleco traps.

[Denice]

I had a studio in a basement, it wasn't a nice basement so I wasn't worried about appearances. I had two bucket settling system beneath my sink, the sink had to be mounted bar height so the 5 gal bucket would fit under it, than the clear water off the top would drain into a 2 gal bucket and the clear water off the top would drain into a floor drain. I just used PVC pipe and plumbing fitting to plumb everything together, I checked the water going into the drain every couple of weeks to see if it was clear or did I need to clean out a bucket. Never had any problem with a drain getting clogged or even draining slow but you have to be careful with the amount of water you use. My new studio I still have the bucket settling system but I have a double sink, one side is plumbed in to the regular drain so I can have more excess to running water the other sink goes directly into the settling bucket and the clear water drains into our sump pump. I still check the water going into the sump pump, I don't want it full of clay. I hope this helps. Denice

[bciskepottery]

This might be of interest . . . http://ceramicartsda...pottery-studio/

I'd probably go for overkill . . . a standpipe in the sink and a Gleco or other trap underneath.

[atanzey]

So, to the question of the french drain. One of our houses had a french drain for the washer. It was something like a 55 gallon drum with holes, set in gravel. We never knew it was there (so it worked great) until we drove the truck around the side of the house, and 'fell in'.

So, here's my recommendation on that. Let me first state that I am a civil engineer, for whatever that's worth, offering mostly uninformed advice! If your soil drains well, a french drain will be really good for this purpose. So if water stands in your yard for a day after a rain, I wouldn't go with a french drain. But if the rain always drains quickly, and you use some sort of decent clay trap (did you see the home-made one featured on the Ceramics Arts page?), a french drain would probably give you years of service. If you didn't filter the water, it would probably still last for a while, but you could figure you're going to be re-doing it.

I've been considering this option for my studio (as yet, no running water). When I do it, it will be about a 3'x3'x3' stone chamber, very coarse grade stones. The drain pipe will come in near the top, and the stones will be covered with a filter fabric, then topsoil, and under grass. If you use fine (small) gravel, it will pack too tightly and not provide storage. But I wouldn't recommend a steel drum!

Alice

[Marcia Selsor]

I think a good trap is more appropriate because a french trap could eventually clog up with clay and then what do you do?
At least you can clean a trap. I have a Gleco trap and it needs to be cleaned . I think they are made by Brackers Ceramics SUpply in Kansas. At least, Brackers was one of the first distributors.
They are very easy to clean. Just unscrew the plastic container and clean it out.

Marcia

[Prancing Pony Pottery]

Marcia Selsor, on 18 August 2012 - 12:47 PM, said:

I think a good trap is more appropriate because a french trap could eventually clog up with clay and then what do you do?
At least you can clean a trap. I have a Gleco trap and it needs to be cleaned . I think they are made by Brackers Ceramics SUpply in Kansas. At least, Brackers was one of the first distributors.
They are very easy to clean. Just unscrew the plastic container and clean it out.

Marcia

A French drain is not a system for the sink - it what the waste water would flow into (much like a septic system or sewer). The sink will have a trap regardless of where it is draining. I am trying to find some information from someone who has actually used a French drain - hopefully in a studio setting.

[Marcia Selsor]

I think French Traps are better for parking lots rather than a studio. I was thinking a French trap for a studio would be on a very small scale and not efficient for the gunk going down the drain.
There are some good sink j online. Jonathan Kaplan gave a good design many years ago. it may be in the Clayart archives. it was bigger than a five gallon bucket but could be cleaned out easily.
Marcia

[Marcia Selsor]

I think French drains are better for parking lots rather than a studio. I was thinking a French drain for a studio would be on a very small scale and not efficient for the gunk going down the drain.
There are some good sink trap designs online. Jonathan Kaplan gave a good design many years ago. it may be in the Clayart archives. it was bigger than a five gallon bucket but could be cleaned out easily.
Marcia

[Prancing Pony Pottery]

Marcia Selsor, on 18 August 2012 - 10:22 PM, said:

I think French Traps are better for parking lots rather than a studio. I was thinking a French trap for a studio would be on a very small scale and not efficient for the gunk going down the drain.
There are some good sink j online. Jonathan Kaplan gave a good design many years ago. it may be in the Clayart archives. it was bigger than a five gallon bucket but could be cleaned out easily.
Marcia

My question is not in reference to a sink drain/filter system!

[Mark C.]

I have used a french drain for my septic system and outdoor laundry sink that does not use soap as well as a washing machine that washes clay cloths without soap'
This has worked out well but the soil need to drain well. and you need to not have much clay go down it as this will clog it sooner over time,
I like the larger animal (heavy plastic) feed container for sink to drain into outside with over flow to catch solids which can be cleaned out.
This will not work below grade in basement.
Mark