Chapter 5 Sewer Reticulation 8 Aug 2016 PDF

Crispen Mutsvangwa Reticulation Design & Management
Chapter 5
Sewer Reticulation
Contents
5.0 Introduction.............................................................................................2
5.0.1 Vacuum Sewerage System ....................................................................2
5.0.2 Small Bore Sewers .................................................................................3
5.0.3 Conventional Sewerage System ............................................................4
5.1 Quantity Of Wastewater And Flows ........................................................5
5.2 Domestic Wastewater.............................................................................6
5.3 Industrial Wastewater .............................................................................6
5.4 Infiltration Into The Sewers And Exfiltration ............................................7
5.5 Mean Daily Flow .....................................................................................7
5.6 Average Dry Weather Flow (Adwf) .........................................................7
5.7 Future Growth ......................................................................................12
5.8 Peak Dry Weather Flow (Pdwf) ............................................................13
5.9 Peak Wet Weather Flow (Pwwf) ...........................................................14
5.10 Sewer Reticulation Design ...................................................................14
5.11 Preliminary Horizontal Layout ...............................................................17
5.12 Guidelines Of A Good Layout ...............................................................18
5.13 Manholes ..............................................................................................18
5.14 Hydraulic Analysis And Guidelines .......................................................23
5.15 Hydraulic Calculations ..........................................................................25
5.16 Design Limitations ................................................................................27
5.17 Derivation Of Formulae For Hydraulic Analysis In Excel Calculation Sheet.
ERROR! BOOKMARK NOT DEFINED.
5.18 Longitudinal Profiles .............................................................................30
5.19 Drawing Of Sewer Longitudinal Profiles ...............................................30
Example 1 ......................................................................................................32
Example 2 ......................................................................................................33
References .......................................... ERROR! BOOKMARK NOT DEFINED.
Appendix 1: Design Monograms ... ERROR! BOOKMARK NOT DEFINED.
Chapter 5: Sewer Reticulation Page 1 of 36

Chapter 5
Sewer Reticulation
5.0 Introduction
A water borne conveyance system (sewerage) requires a reliable water supply
connection which is used to flush the wastes into the sewer reticulation lines. It
is the most expensive system but most convenient. The approximate water
required for flushing range between 10 to 15 litres per flush. Some countries
have managed to reduce it to 6 litres per flush (Vuuren et al., 2011). A water
seal is created in the toilet pan to prevent odours from entering the house. The
systems are designed in accordance with relevant standards, local
municipal/local authority requirements and by-laws. Specific standards include,
Guidelines for Human Settlement Planning and Design (CSIR, 2003)], Standard
Specification for Civil Engineering Construction [SANS 1200 LD: SABS 1982,
Code of Practice for use with standardized contract documentation: SANS
10120-2; SANS 10252-2, Department of Water Affairs (DWA):- Technical
Guidelines for the Development of Water & Sanitation Infrastructure (2004) and
other relevant codes of practice.
Water borne sewerage can be divided into two categories:

 Vacuum sewerage system
 Small-bore sewerage
 Conventional system (Full-bore sewerage)
5.0.1 Vacuum sewerage system

Vacuum sewerage system uses differential air pressure to move wastewater. A
central vacuum pump station is required to maintain a negative pressure
resulting in wastewater being sucked from the source (at atmospheric pressure)
towards the vacuum pump (Vuuren, 2011). The system is suitable in
 Rocky areas
 Flat terrain
 Undulating land with small changes in elevation
 Areas with restrictions in terms of construction
 Shallow groundwater conditions
The vacuum station can lift wastewater to about 4 to 6m. This head may be
enough to avoid pump stations in a conventional system. Hence, vacuum
systems can be installed together with conventional systems. Major advantages
include:
 Small pipe sizes
 No manholes
 High scour velocities
 Minimum operation and maintenance costs
 Low energy costs

 Less risk from gases like hydrogen sulphide which corrodes the sewer
pipes
Fig.5.1: Typical Vacuum Systems

Source: Little (Ninham Shand)
5.0.2 Small bore sewers

Small bore sewers comprise of small diameter pipes and are solids-free. They
convey partially treated wastewater from septic tanks, interceptors and aqua-
privies to a nearby trunk sewer or directly to the water treatment plant. The small
diameter pipes are laid in shallow excavations following the natural ground slope
thereby reducing construction and pipe material costs. Solids in the wastewater
are reduced due to settlement in the interceptors. Unlike conventional gravity
sewer, small bore sewers can be designed for both open channel flow and full
bore flow (pressure flow), or a combination of the two. Because of fewer solids,
they can be laid in flat gradients without the need for scour velocities. The pipes
are also small hence an economic system.
Advantages
 Low flush (less water required)
 Retain solids in the interceptors which may block the sewers
 Existing septic tank can be upgraded to a small bore and later to a
conventional system
 Small pipes
 Less excavations
 Flat slops can be applied
 No manholes
 Low O & M

Source: www.mit.edu Source: Little (Ninham Shand)
Fig.5.2: Typical small bore systems
5.0.3 Conventional sewerage system

The conventional sewerage system is the oldest and backdating as far as 1840,
when the first modern sewerage system was connected to households in
Hamburg, Germany and in South Africa it was first commissioned in 1894
(Vuuren et all., 2011). Typical house connection to a sewer reticulation system is
illustrated in Fig. 1.
The conventional sewerage system involves a huge capital investment and is

associated with high operation and maintenance costs. Although the flow is
gravitational, pumping maybe required. However, it is recommended to avoid
pumping of wastewater because of:-
 Not reliability
 High operation and maintenance costs. 2.
Conventional sewerage system Sewerage should only be considered when the

following conditions are met:
 Average per capita potable water demand is more than 60l/ca.day

 The housing density is high than 30 houses per hectare for high income
communities and greater for lower income groups.
 Affordability and sustainability
 Institutional structures to operate and maintain the system
 When on-site facilities cannot be implemented due to site conditions

Fig. 5.3: Typical house connection to a sewer reticulation system

Source: WRC (2011), Water Borne Sanitation and Design, Report TT 481/11
Fig.5.4: Typical house connection to the main sewer line

5.1 Quantity of wastewater and flows

The amount of wastewater, which reaches any treatment works, depends on the
proportion of domestic water consumption which returns to the sewers. The rate
of flow reaching the treatment works will depend on the distance from
communities served, the degree of attenuation and water usage patterns of the
population. The sources of wastewater are:

 industries
 domestic:- residences, commercial and institutional
 infiltration into the sewers
 Surface run-off
Definitions
Sewage/wastewater: - the wastes generated from the above sources (domestic
and industrial)
Sewerage: - The pipe networks which conveys the wastewater from the source
of production to the wastewater treatment plant. It includes the sewer reticulation
networks (collection pipes) and bulky lines.
Combined sewerage
A combined system includes domestic, industrial, infiltration and surface water
(surface run-off).
A separate system
A separate system includes industrial, domestic wastewater and infiltration. It
excludes surface runoff. In a separate system, the surface runoff will be
discharged directly into the receiving water bodies without treatment. This is the
commonest and also the cheapest system. A combined system may be
problematic during the dry season when surface run-off will be low resulting in
low cleansing velocities in the sewer pipes. The capital investments are also
high for a combined system. However, because of the environmental concerns,
municipalities are now being encouraged to have a combined system to reduce
the pollutant levels into water bodies
In practice even separate systems carry some surface water because of poor
workmanship, operation and maintenance problems, and illegal surface run-off
connections.
5.2 Domestic wastewater

The domestic wastewater flow mainly depends on the water consumption. The
percentage return flow from the potable water consumption varies from 75 to
85% of per capita water demand. However, when per capita water consumption
exceeds 200l/ca.day, the wastewater generation does not increase as it is
assumed that the excess flow is being used for irrigation (e.g. the 250l/ca.day
water demand for Cape Town).
5.3 Industrial wastewater

Industrial wastewater flow can be computed from the daily flows to be expected
from the type of industry. The projected flows can also be projected based on
the future industrial developments. The water demand based on the area and
type of development is given in the “Red Book”. Also 25-45 litres per working
person per day can be assumed for commercial water demand.

5.4 Infiltration into the sewers and exfiltration

Infiltration into the sewers is the subsurface infiltration into the sewer reticulation
system. It increases the flow during the wet weather season. Infiltration is
usually estimated between 25 to 40% of the ADWF. In most designs 15% is
normally added to the PDWF, and can be increased depending on site conditions
(rainfall characteristics, soil conditions and area drained).
Leakages from sewer occur in old pipes at joints and cracked potions.
Exfiltration will occur when the level of the water in the pipe is above the water
table (positive head). Wastewater leakages affect the groundwater due to
pollution and also can contaminant potable water distribution lines. Typical flow
conditions in a sewer line are illustrated in Fig. 3, WRC (2011).
Fig.5.5: Typical flow conditions in a sewer line

5.5 Mean Daily Flow

The total wastewater flow received per year divided by the number of days and is
higher than the ADWF.
5.6 Average Dry Weather Flow (ADWF)
Design Criteria
Different design approaches with regards to the design flows of sewers are
discussed in literature. There are basically two approaches:

 Designed at PDWF whilst flowing partially full (maximum flow depth

between 60 to 80% of pipe diameter (the remaining capacity will be for
extraneous flow). Checks for slopes, velocities and capacity are made for
both full flow and partial flow.
 Designed at PWWF and flowing at full bore as recommended by the “Red
Book” (Inclusive of extraneous flows). Checks for slopes, velocities and
capacity are made for both full flow and partial flow (60 to 80%)
 The minimum cleansing velocity of 0.7m/s must be satisfied at both partial
and full bore capacity.
The capacity of the sewer is the design flow and defined in accordance with Red
Book:
Where:

ADWF is the flow contributed from domestic and commercial water users. For
domestic wastewater, design average dry weather flow (ADWF) can be
measured from existing sewerage and treatment works. The ADWF is defined
as the average daily flow during seven consecutive days without rain (excluding
a period which includes holidays) following seven days during which the rain did
not exceed 0.25 mm on any one day (Nicoll, 1988). In the case of new
settlements where wastewater flow data is not available, the estimated design
ADWF is based on:
 water consumption per capita
 estimated number of persons per household or population
 percentage of return flow to the sewers (60 to 80%)
Typical values of the ADWF are given in Table 5.1.
Table 5.1: Typical ADWF
Income Group Unit Value Average persons

per dwelling
Lower l/dwelling.day 500 7
Middle l/dwelling.day 700 6
High l/dwelling.day 1000 5
Different Municipalities and Local Authorities have their own design guidelines. The
design guidelines for the City of Cape Town are shown in Table 5.2.1; City of Tshwane
in Table 5.2.2.

Table 5.2.1:- Design guidelines for the City of Cape Town
Income Group Lower Middle Higher

Litres per dwelling unit per day 500 750 1000
Based on average total persons per dwelling unit 7 6 5
Allowance for infiltration Minimum 15%
Minimum Velocity 0.70m/s (0.9m/s)
Maximum velocity 3.5m/s
Peak factor See Figure C.1, Chapter 1O of the Red
Book
Minimum diameter - house connections 110mm (nominal dia.)
Minimum diameter - main lines 160mm (nominal dia.)
Bedding type Class B (SABS 1200 LB)
Position in road reserve Centre line or slightly offset on cambered
roads
Minimum cover 1000mm
Maximum distance between manholes 90m
Minimum gradient for 160 mm pipes:
Number of dwelling units: 1 : 100
Less than 10
10 to 80 1 : 120
81 to 11o 1 : 150
111 to 130 1 : 180
Minimum gradient for pipe sizes >160 mm:
200 1 : 260
225 1 : 300
250 1 : 340
300 1 : 440
375 1 : 600
450 1 : 760
525 1 : 940
600 1 : 1080
Sewer Pipe Materials
Diameter Range (mm) Specification
110 to 160 uPVC Class 34
100 to 300 Class 34 heavy duty complying to SABS 966 using
spigot and socket rubber ring joints or Fibre cement
C.O.D. Class D bitumen dipped complying to SABS
1223 with Triplex Couplings
> 300 As specified by the Technical Support Services Manager
of the relevant Administration.
Source: City of Cape Town, Minimum Design Standards (2013)

Table 5.2.2:- Design guidelines for the City of Tshwane

Table: 5.3.3 Design flows from SABS 1993

5.7 Future Growth

The Designer has to make a decision on future growth in the generation of
wastewater and to be based on the available information or prevailing social
conditions. For sewer reticulation, it might not be necessary since they will have
been sized based on the occupants per household, which normally remains
unchanged. An uncertainty factor might be applied as a safety precaution.
However, for the treatment plants and trunk/bulk sewers there is need to take
into consideration future population growth. Certainly new developments will be
expected within the surroundings and the generated wastewater will have to be
accommodated in the bulk/trunk sewers.
3.18 Method to project population

There are several methods which can be applied to project population and
common ones are as follows:
 Arithmetical Increase Method

 Geometrical Increase Method
 Exponential
 Linear
Normally a statistical analysis (e.g. regression analysis) is carried out to establish

the type of growth. With regression analysis the trend in the population is
confirmed by the correlation coefficient, which should be 0.85 to 1.0.
Arithmetical Increase Method

The increase in population is assumed to be constant and an average increase
of the last 40 to 50 years is calculated and added in the present population to
determine the population of next 10 years. The population is computed as:-
Where:
Po =initial population
Pt =population after time t or t decades
t =time interval in years (design horizon)
r =yearly or per decade increase in population as a decimal
Geometrical Increase Method

The geometrical increase method is the commonly used method in the projection
of population.
Pt  PO 1  r 
t
Where:
Po = initial population
Pt =population after time t

t = time interval
r = growth rate as a decimal
5.8 Peak Dry Weather Flow (PDWF)

Wastewater flows varies diurnal, and the works should be able to accommodate
the peak flows. Peak flows for separate systems vary inversely with the
population or equivalent population served. This is also true for combined
systems in dry weather. In other words the peak flows are high for smaller works
(Fig. 5.4). The fluctuations for larger works are smoothed out during the time of
travel in the sewer (attenuation).
PDWF = PF x ADWF
Sometimes an arbitrary peak rate multiplier is used of between 2 to 3. When

data is available, graphs can be used to establish the peak factors. For
populations ranging from 1000 to 200000, the relationship between the peak flow
and the population may be estimated as (Mara, 1976; Nicoll, 1988):-
5
PF  1 (1)
P6
Where: - PF = Peak factor
P = Contributing population in thousands
Harmon’s equation can also be applied to compute the peak factors and is given as:
14
PF  1 
4 P
Where: P =equivalent population contributing to the generation of the

wastewater in thousands
If population equivalents are not used, the following peak factors can be used:
Table 5.4: Peak factors
Type of development Peak Factor Comments

Commercial 1.8
Institutional 4 Can vary considerably
Industrial 2
For South Africa conditions, the “RED BOOK” provides comprehensive design
guidelines for the peak factors.
5.8.1 Attenuation Factor

As the contributor area and population increases, design peak factors may be
reduced in accordance with Guidelines for Human Settlements. In other words

small settlements tend to have high peak factors compared to large settlements
(peak factors fall as population increases).
Fig. 5.6: Peak Factor for Domestic wastewater flow
5.9 Peak Wet Weather Flow (PWWF)

During rainfall or flooding periods, the infiltration from the surface runoff into the
sewer pipes through manholes and groundwater infiltration should be taken into
consideration. Normally 15% is normally added to the PDWF and can be more
depending on site conditions. Infiltration is defined as extraneous inflow from
runoff (after a storm) into manholes, subsurface infiltration due to broken pipes or
from storm water, illegal connections, rising water table, open and unrepaired
manholes,
PWWF 1.15 x PDWF
5.10 Sewer Reticulation Design

Sewer reticulation system can be viewed as a socket of pipes that are designed
to convey wastewater from point of disposal down until to the treatment plant.
The most common cross-section of pipe adopted in sewer reticulation systems is
circular section due to its good hydraulic and mechanical strength. Also a
circular section is more efficient. When designing a sewer reticulation system the
first step is preliminary horizontal layout done on the site plan.
Sewer pipes should preferably be located under the centreline of the roadway,
or slightly offset on cambered roads for easier access (Fig. 5.8; 5.9). They can
also be laid at the back of the house (mid-block, Fig. 5.7). Backyard sewers are
separated from the water supply pipes and hence less contamination. However,
backyard sewers may have high infiltration if there is irrigation in the premises

and also there is lack pavements compared to those sewers in the road reserve.
Backyard sewers also require less pipes and manholes. If they are laid on
private land, legal access to the property must be assured for both construction
and maintenance. In steep sloping terrain sewer lines should, if possible, be
located on the high side of the road reserve, underneath the roadway, which
permits relatively short connections. The minimum reservation width is
1000mm.
Sewers are laid straight, both vertically and horizontally and can also have a
curved alignment. This makes them easier to clean and to find. As much as
possible, systems should slope in the same direction as the ground (Fig. 5.6).
Most sewers work on gravity as pumping is expensive and often not reliable.
In designing a sewer system, the designer must:

 Conduct preliminary investigations
 Review design considerations and select basic design data and criteria
 Design the sewers which include preparation of a preliminary sewer
system and design of individual sewers
 Prepare contract drawings and specifications
Fig. 5.7: Back of the house sewer connections
Comprehensive preliminary investigations of the area to be served are required

not only to obtain the data needed for design and construction but also to record
pertinent information about the local conditions before construction begins.
These are:-
 Maps and other drawings of the area;

 Locations of streets, alleys, railways public parks and buildings, ponds,
streams, drainage ditches and other features and structure which may be

influenced or influence the sewer systems;

 A bench mark on each block of every street;
 If possible contours at suitable intervals, high and low points and changes
in surface slopes;
 Local rainfall and runoff data, if any, otherwise measurements in the field
should be taken;
 Character of the soil in which the sewers are to constructed;
 Estimation of waste flow rates for the design data and evaluation of any
local conditions, which may affect the hydraulic operation of the system;
 Selection of the hydraulic-design equation and alternative sewer pipe
materials.
Fig. 5.8: Typical sewer reticulation network laid in front


Fig. 5.9: Typical gravity sewer layout with reference to topography

Source: Mara et all., (2000), Simplified sewer system
5.11 Preliminary horizontal layout

This serves to show the positions of all pipes and manholes as they are to be
constructed on the ground. It should aim at achieving a balance between the
requirement to drain the whole contributing area and the need to minimise pipe
run lengths. The least costs in design are achieved when the pipe reticulation

broadly follows the natural drainage patterns and convey to a single outfall point.
Generally, sewers should follow the slope of the ground to minimise excavation.
The designer starts by locating the out-fall point, draining area, locating trunk and
main sewers and establishing the need for pumping stations.
5.12 Guidelines of a good layout

A good horizontal layout should satisfy the following conditions.
 Establish pipe lay out so that all potential users can readily connect into
the system.
 Try to locate pipes perpendicular to contours as much as possible to
facilitate effective gravitational system.
 Try to follow natural drainage patterns.
 Locate manholes in readily accessible positions.
 The sewer network should not form a closed loop or to have a lateral
diverging into two directions instead two laterals should converge to form
one sub-main and two sub-mains converging to give a trunk sewer.
 The most economic layout should be one that takes the shortest route
and minimises number of manholes.
 The sewer line should leave at least 1.5 m from buildings.
5.13 Manholes
In an underground drainage system access points are required for testing,
inspection and cleaning. In sewer reticulation systems these access points are
provided in form of manholes. Manholes can be as deep as 4 m and with a
diameter of up to 1000 mm and allows persons to enter if necessary. Minimum
manhole dimensions range from 610mm to 750 and working space of 910mm to
1000mm. Generally, the smaller the pipe the more frequent the access points.
However, manholes are not provided randomly but have specific locations.
These are:
i. Whenever sewer changes direction.
ii. When sewer changes gradient.
iii. At heads of runs.
iv. When sewer changes pipe size.
v. At major junctions with other sewers.
vi. After every 70m – 150m to allow for rodding when blockage occurs. A
maximum of 100m is allowed when hand operated rodding is used and
150 apart when machine rodding is used
vii. When a high level sewer has to be connected to one of significantly lower
level, a backdrop manhole has to be provided (Fig. 5.10).

Fig. 5.10: Typical standard drawing of a backdrop manhole connecting

a high level sewer to a significantly lower level sewer
It should be noted that the first manhole in a lateral should not be deep since the
flows would be very little. A minimum manhole depth of + or – 0.6m is acceptable at
the starting point.
If sewer changes direction in a manhole without change of size, a drop of 30 to

75mm should be provided in the manhole. For larger diameter pipes (>300mm) a
bigger drop is recommended (or the actual drop can be computed from the
Bernoulli’s energy equation). If the sewer changes size, the crowns (soffit) of the
inlet and outlet sewers should be at the same elevation. Branches coming into
manholes should have their crowns at the same elevation as that of the large sewer.
Drop manholes are used only if the invert of the branch is 0.6 m or more above what
its location would be when following the rule just stated.

Bernoulli’s energy equation to calculate the drop in a manhole:
p1 v12 p v2
  H1  2  2  H 2  h f  channel  h f  local
g 2 g g 2 g
Since sewers are open channels, the surface is exposed to the atmosphere, the
pressure head becomes zero.
v2 v2
H1  1  H 2  2  h f  channel  h f  local
2g 2g
Where:
H1 =Depth of wastewater upstream, m
H2 =Depth of wastewater downstream, m
v2
Velocity head = (kinetic energy)
2g
hf-pipe =Frictional head losses along the channel
hf-local =Local head losses e.g. due to beds, valves, and other
connections.
The losses at the left hand side can be estimated as gradient multiplied by manhole
diameter (S x Dm). Energy loss due to change in direction:
Where: Kb =Frictional loss coefficient at bend

v = Velocity at full flow
Table 5.5: Typical Kb values
Type of bend Value of Kb

0-22.50 0 to 0.1
22.50 to 450 0.1-0.2
450 to 900 0.2-0.4
Precast concrete manholes with standard covers are available. The common sizes
are in Table 5.6. There should sufficient working space in the manhole for
maintenance purposes. Benching is provided for maintenance staff to stand when
repairing the manhole and also to avoid deposition.
Table 5.6: Standard Diameters and lengths of manholes
Diameter Length Applicability

(mm) (mm)
675 250; 500; 750; 1000 Normally used as shaft sections
750 250; 500; 750; 1000 Normally used as shaft sections
900 250; 500; 750; 1000 Chamber section for house drainage
1050 250; 500; 750; 1000 Chamber section for normal manholes
1200 250; 500; 750; 1000 Chamber section for deep manholes
When a manhole is located at sewer junction, the outlet sewer elevation is fixed by
the lowest inlet sewer.
Sewers must be well ventilated to prevent the build-up of noxious and explosive
gasses and to help re-oxygenation of the wastewater. The nature of the wastes
may vary widely. Hence it is important that all components of the system are
capable of dealing with a wide range of pollutants.
When manholes are installed in flood plains, they should be raised above the 1:50yr
flood level to prevent ingress of flood waters into the manholes.
Roding eye
The rodding eye is a cleaning point where cleaning tools are inserted for inspection
and cleaning and has a cover on top. The rodding shall be installed at every 25m
along a house connection and at 1.5m away from the connection point with the main
sewer.

Source: www.mit.edu Source: www.mit.edu
Source: www.mit.edu Source: Vuuren et all., 2011
Fig.5.11 Benching in a manhole

Fig. 5.12: Typical Roding Eye Configurations
House Connections (City of Cape Town Guidelines)

 Sewer house connections shall be 110mm nominal diameter and shall
extend 1m into the erf boundary.
 The sewer house connection shall be terminated with an end cap,
rodding eye or boundary chamber. In low income housing developments
where the house is constructed within 2m from the road reserve the
house connection shall be extended so that the rodding eye is
positioned against the house wall, orientated to facilitate rodding.
 Shared connection for two properties will only be permitted in low income
housing projects.
 House connection depth shall generally be 1.0m, but deep enough to
drain the furthest possible point of an erf. House connections shall not be
deeper than 1.2m.
 Each house connection shall be linked to the main with a Y-junction or
be connected at a manhole.
 The position of the house connection shall be marked on the kerb by
cutting a slot 5mm deep into the concrete surface with an angle
grinder. The slot shall be painted with an approved paint.
 Marker posts to be installed at sewer house connection points to consist of
75mm x 150mm x 1000mm concrete edging stones placed vertically,
protruding 100mm above finished ground level.
5.14 Hydraulic analysis and guidelines
Numbering Lines and Manholes

It is necessary to number sewer lines and access points so that they can be
uniquely described, particularly during the design stage. There are number of
ways and some of the following recommendations can be considered:
 Isolate the longest run of the pipe starting at the outlet

 Number each pipe on this run: 1.1; 1.2; 1.3; 1.4 etc., starting at the
furthest point from and working towards the outlet/outfall
 Working towards the outlet, number each branch in order i.e. 2; 3; 4; etc.,
again starting at the furthest point up stream
 Should there be a branch, then give the next number
An example on numbering lines and manholes is illustrated in Fig. 13 to 14.

Fig. 5.13: Sewer Line Numbering
Fig. 5.14: Sewer Layout and Line Numbering

Having estimated the design flows expected from each residential stand a crucial
stage called hydraulic analysis has to be done in order to select a pipe with a
diameter which is adequate to convey the expected flow within standard design
limitations. The computation of the design flow to be conveyed by the pipe,
cumulative flow, pipe ID, ground and invert levels, assumed manhole depths and
pipe slopes are conveniently done in a spread sheet. The analysis (modelling)
using the appropriate equations like Manning’s equation can also be performed
in a spread sheet or by applying suitable softwares like Civil Designer Suite. In
any case the minimum pipe slope shall be equal to the reciprocal of its diameter
i.e. 1/D.
5.15 Hydraulic calculations

Sewers are normally designed to flow partially full (open channel flow, Fig. 5.15).
The maximum flow depth is between 70 to 80% of the pipe diameter to have a
surplus capacity for infiltration and stormwater ingress. Stormwater pipelines are
normally designed at almost full bore. In both cases the flow is under gravity due
to the provided slope. The “Red Book” recommends that sewers should be
designed at full bore during peak flows and to include 15% allowance for
stormwater infiltration. In this case the slope, capacity and velocity are checked
at full flow and compared against the recommended values
Fig. 5.15: Sewer Partially Flowing

Source: Vuuren et all (2011).
Hydraulic calculations are normally done based on Manning’s formula for open
channel flow, Kutter or Colebrook White-Darcy Weisbach and Chezy equations:
Manning’s Formula
Kutter formula

. .
41.67
.
√
1 41.67
√
Colebrook White-Darcy Weisbach
2.51
2 2
3.7 2
For partial full, D is replaced by 4R.
Chezy
12
18 √
Where:
Q =Flow in pipe m3/s
A =Cross sectional area of channel covered by water.
∆
S =Slope of pipes between two manholes , slope of energy grade
line, m/m
∆H =Change in levels between the two points
L =Length between the two points
n =Manning’s roughness coefficient, (s/m1/3)
= (for AC and plastic pipes, n varies between 0.011 to 0.015
P =wetted perimeter, m
R =hydraulic radius, m (A/P)
D =diameter, m
=kinematic viscosity of m2/s
ks =absolute roughness of pipe, m

g =acceleration due to gravity, m/s2
Assumptions made
 Manning’s formula for open channels is adequate and efficient in
computing flows and velocities of flow for circular sections at partial flow
depths.
 Flow is laminar, steady and uniform flow
 Flow occurs all along the pipe but for design purposes, the inflow between
access points is all considered to enter at the upstream access point.
5.16 Design limitations

If the velocity is too low, suspended solids will settle down and resulting in
siltation and blockages. Again if the velocity is too high, then the suspended
material may erode/scour the pipe wall.
Flow Velocities
 Minimum velocity of flow in lateral pipes should be 0.7 ms-1 (self-cleansing
velocity)

 Minimum velocity of flow in trunk sewers should be 0.6 ms-1

 Maximum velocity of flow should not exceed 3 ms-1in all pipes
 Ratio of actual depth of flow, d/D should not exceed 0.95 in all cases
Pipe Diameters
The pipe size is generally governed by the hydraulic design considerations, but in
the upper reaches, it is necessary to set a minimum diameter. This is commonly
100mm for domestic connections (occasionally 75mm) and 150 or 200mm for
public sewers. Most municipalities use a minimum pipe size of 100mm or
150mm, which is dictated by the type of cleaning apparatus used. The maximum
diameter depends on cost, maximum available size from the manufacturer and
other factors.
The recommended cover range between 0.6m (in servitudes) and 1.0m to 1.4m
(in road reserves).
Slopes
The pipe slope will depend on pipe diameter and velocity. The minimum slope is
usually set at about 0.0008. In general the sewer lines follow the slope of the
terrain. Some of the recommended slopes are given in Table 5.7.
At the heads of the sewers it will not be possible for the minimum pipe sizes to
run full at any slope. Experience has shown that a minimum slope of about
1/167 will usually be sufficient for 150mm pipes but will depend on the quantity of
wastewater. The higher the wastewater, the flatter the minimum slope. The
minimum house connection slope is usually taken as about 1/100.
Table 5.7: Minimum sewer diameters
Internal diameter, mm Minimum gradient

100 1:120
150 1:200
200 1:300
225 1:350
250 1:400
300 1:500
375 1:600
450 1:760
525 1;940
600 1:1080
675 1:1280
750 1:1500

825 1:1770
900 1:1920
975 1:2150
1050 1:2350
Summary of the Procedure

i. Mark the positions of the access points
ii. Number the branches and access points
iii. Mark the area drained by each pipe length and calculate the area
iv. Indicate the assumed access points into which the wastewater drain
v. Letter or number the drainage zones
vi. Starting with the line furthest from the outfall, calculate ADWF from each
drainage area for each pipe line
vii. Calculate cumulative the ADWF along each pipe line
viii. Calculate cumulative the PDWF along each pipe line
ix. Calculate cumulative PWWF along each pipe line
x. Work systematically towards the outfall stopping at each pipe junction to
calculate the inflow from all the pipes
xi. Determine the minimum pipe size that will give a velocity just above the
minimum velocity with a slope as near as possible to the ground slope
xii. Knowing the pipe slope, the soffit level can be deduced and hence the
inert levels and access depths (It is normal that when the pipes change
size the soffit remains level. It is not recommended to reduce the pipe
level downstream).
xiii. Check the design of the system for estimated flows at the beginning of the
system use. A commonly occurring problem is blockages in large
diameter pipes due to low flows at the starting of the operating life.
Table: 5.8 Manning’s Roughness Coefficients, n
Conduit Manning s Coefficients

Closed Conduits
Asbestos-Cement Pipe 0.011 to 0.015
Brick 0.013 to 0.017
Cast Iron Pipe
Cement-lined and seal-coated 0.011 to 0.015
Concrete (Monolithic)
Smooth forms 0.012 to 0.014
Rough forms 0.015 to 0.017
Concrete Pipe 0.011 to 0.015
Corrugated-Metal Pipe
Plain 0.022 to 0.026

Paved invert 0.018 to 0.022

Spun asphalt-lined 0.011 to 0.015
Plastic Pipe (Smooth) 0.011 to 0.015
Vitrified Clay
Pipes 0.011 to 0.015
Liner channels 0.013 to 0.017
Open Channels
Lined Channels
Asphalt 0.013 to 0.017
Brick 0.012 to 0.018
Concrete 0.011 to 0.020
Rubble or riprap 0.020 to 0.035
Vegetal 0.030 to 0.040
Excavated or Dredged
Earth, straight and uniform 0.020 to 0.030
Earth, winding, fairly uniform 0.025 to 0.040
Rock 0.030 to 0.045
Unmaintained 0.050 to 0.140
Natural Channels (minor streams,

top width at flood state)
Fairly regular section 0.030 to 0.070
Irregular section with pools 0.040 to 0.100
Source: Design and Construction of Sanitary and Storm Sewers, American Society of Civil Engineers and
the Water Pollution Control Federation, 1969.
5.18 Longitudinal profiles

The longitudinal profiles of a sewer reticulation are also called vertical alignment.
These are done after hydraulic analysis as they incorporate the manhole invert
levels, sewer slopes and diameters that would have been adopted in the analysis
to satisfy all the design limitations. The longitudinal profile aims at striking a
balance between coverage of area and depths of pipes. The goals of a good
longitudinal profile are:
 To ensure pipes are deep enough so all users can connect to the system.
 Try to locate pipes parallel to the ground surface.
 To ensure that pipes arrive above outfall level
 Avoid sewage pumping by all means but may be needed if excavations
exceed 10m.
5.19 Drawing of sewer longitudinal profiles

After performing hydraulic analysis of the sewerage system, drawing of sewer

invert longitudinal profile with respect to ground elevation profile is done using
AutoCAD (Sheet files for Civil Designer). Longitudinal profiles are drawn in
sections where each section comprises the first and the last manhole in a
lateral/sub-main. The are done to facilitate effective visual communication with
the construction team as such they would easily identify what should be done on
site. The drawings should show reduced levels on the ordinate axis and on the
abscissa should show:
 Manhole identity.
 Chainage from the first to the last manhole in a given section.
 Manhole ground levels.
 Invert levels.
 Manhole depths.
 Distance from one manhole to the other.
 Sewer pipe nominal bore.
 Slope of sewer from one manhole to the other

Fig 5.3: Longitudinal section of sewer.

Source: Sithole (2005), Design of Manama Water and Sewer Reticulation
Example 1
Design a house connection between a house and an existing sewer line. The number
of occupants is six. The sewer line from the house will connect at a point which is 10m
upstream of the downstream manhole. .
The distance of the house to the main sewer =25m

Average daily wastewater per person =70l/day.
Invert of downstream manhole =1531.3m.

Invert of upstream manhole =1532.1m

Ground level at rodding eye =1532.68m
The gradient of main sewer =1:100
Solution
Start at the junction connection at the main sewer.
Q =70x6 =420l/day
Invert level at connecting point =

=1531.3 +(1/100) x 10
=1531.4m
Assuming minimum pipe diameter of 100mm and minimum slope of 1:60
Invert level at rodding eye =

=1531.4+(1/60)x25
=1531.82m
Depth to rodding eye =Elevation at invert –Invert at rodding

=1532.68-1531.82
=0.86m (ok)
Capacity of pipe at full bore =0.00667m3/s

(6.67l/s)
n= 0.013; D/4=R=0.025
S=1/60 =0.0167
Average daily flow rate is 420l/day =0.00486l/s <6.67l/s (ok)
Example 2
Design a sewer reticulation network. The Design data and criteria is shown below. The
solution is by trial and error iterations. The start depth is assumed and the flows and
velocities are computed using Manning’s formula. The pipe diameter and pipe slope
are approximated until the velocity lies within the recommended values (also minimum
and maximum depths of excavations are checked). The computation is done step-by
step from the starting point of the drainage area and up to the outfall point of the sewer
line. The incremental lengths and depths of the sewer line can be used to compute the
volumes of earthworks/excavations. It’s quite a laborious exercise if the network is very
large and hence computer applications like Civil Designer Suite become convenient.

MH105
MH1 MH2 MH3 MH4
MH1
............ GL1=1270.8 Original ground Level
GL2=1270.8
MH2
MH3
Start depth =1.0m GL3=1270.05
IL start
SL
IL end
LMH1-MH2
1. Assume start depth at beginning e.g H1=1.0m

2. Approximate gradient based on the original ground level is 0.016670
3. Fall in distance (DBL-Wpipe or drop of elevation)
=slope x L=SL=0.01667x13=0.2167m
4. Depth at end H2=slope x L +H1=0.2167+1.0=1.2167m
6. Invert Level at start =Start GL- Start depth(H1)=1270.8-1 =1269.80m
7. Invert Level at end =End GL-Depth at end (H2)=1270.8-1.2167m =1269.5833
8. ADWF =demand of water per stand x no. of stands divide by 86400
ADWF =2litres per day x 2 stands divide by 86400 =0.012litres/day
9. PDWF =PF x ADWF =0.012 x 2.5=0.029l/sec
10. PWWF =1.15 x 0.029 =0.0345l/sec
11. Design flow Q=0.0345 x attenuation factor=0.0345 x 0.9=0.031litres/sec
(attenuation may not be necessary then use 0.029l/sec)
12. Select a diameter e.g =150mm
13. The grade has been selected =0.01667
14. Hydraulic radius A/P =pi x D=0.0375m
15. Velocity at full bore =From Manning’s formula

√ m/s or Colebrook –White equation

vo=0.65679m/s
16. Flow at full bore =Qo=voA= 0.01161m/s

17. Ratio of Q/Qo = (Actual to Full bore)=0.98
18. Actual flow Q =098xQo=0.98x0.01161=0.0114m3/s
19. Ration of actual velocity to full bore v/vo =1.14
20. Actual velocity, v =vox1.14=0.6537 x 1.114=0.74874m/s and
should be between 0.6m/s to 3.5 m/s ok. If not change your slope or diameter.
21. MH105 GL=12709.00
22. Repeat as MH1
23. Flow at MH2=MHI+MH2
24. Continue systematically or Use Civil Designer Suite or spreadsheets (Manama $
Capricorn sewer design).
References
1. Chadwick A., (1993) and Morfett J., (1992), Hydraulics in Civil &
Environmental Engineering, Chapman & Hall, London, UK.
2. Department of Water Affairs (DWA), Technical Guidelines for the
Development of Water & Sanitation Infrastructure, (2004), South Africa
3. Guidelines for Human Settlements, Planning and Design, CSIR, 2001
4. Mara D., (1976), Sewage Treatment in Hot Climates, John Wiley, UK
5. Nicol, IWPC, (1972), Manual for Small Works, UK
6. Sithole (2005), Design of Manama Water and Sewer Reticulation, NUST,
Bulawayo
7. Vurren (2011), WRC, Water Borne Sanitation and Design, Report TT 481/11

Appendix I Manama sewer design
Average Daily Flows (l/d) Velocity-Mannings Equation

Sub Station 300
Primary School(PS) 10000
Secondary School(SS) 15000 Initial Check is at full bore and Final check at 80% full.
Creche(Cr) 900 D/Do 0.8
Shops (S) 25000 /ha Q/Qo 0.98
Church (C ) 10000 V/Vo 1.14
Sports Facilities (SF) 16000 /ha n 0.022 Concrete pipes
Community Facility(CF) 1000 Vmin 0.6
Low income (LI) 500 Vmax 3.5
Medium income (MI) 600
High income(HI) 800
Peak Flow 2.5
Infiltration Flow(%) 15
Attenuation Factor 0.9
GL Ground Elevation
Start depth(cover at start) 1m
End depth(cover at end) slope x distance+start depth
D-BLW pipe(drop of elevation of pipe distance x slope
D-sqrd square root of depth
x Horizontal distance between manholes
y drop=distance x slope
L Actual distance between manholes
2 2 2
L =X +Y

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Crispen Mutsvangwa Reticulation Design & Management

Chapter 5: Sewer Reticulation Page 1 of 36

Water borne sewerage can be divided into two categories:

5.0.1 Vacuum sewerage system

Chapter 5: Sewer Reticulation Page 2 of 36

Fig.5.1: Typical Vacuum Systems

5.0.2 Small bore sewers

Chapter 5: Sewer Reticulation Page 3 of 36

Source: www.mit.edu Source: Little (Ninham Shand)

Fig.5.2: Typical small bore systems

5.0.3 Conventional sewerage system

The conventional sewerage system involves a huge capital investment and is

Conventional sewerage system Sewerage should only be considered when the

 Average per capita potable water demand is more than 60l/ca.day

Chapter 5: Sewer Reticulation Page 4 of 36

Fig. 5.3: Typical house connection to a sewer reticulation system

Fig.5.4: Typical house connection to the main sewer line

5.1 Quantity of wastewater and flows

Chapter 5: Sewer Reticulation Page 5 of 36

5.2 Domestic wastewater

5.3 Industrial wastewater

Chapter 5: Sewer Reticulation Page 6 of 36

5.4 Infiltration into the sewers and exfiltration

Fig.5.5: Typical flow conditions in a sewer line

5.5 Mean Daily Flow

5.6 Average Dry Weather Flow (ADWF)

Chapter 5: Sewer Reticulation Page 7 of 36

 Designed at PDWF whilst flowing partially full (maximum flow depth

Typical values of the ADWF are given in Table 5.1.

Table 5.1: Typical ADWF

Income Group Unit Value Average persons

Chapter 5: Sewer Reticulation Page 8 of 36

Table 5.2.1:- Design guidelines for the City of Cape Town

Income Group Lower Middle Higher

Source: City of Cape Town, Minimum Design Standards (2013)

Chapter 5: Sewer Reticulation Page 9 of 36

Table 5.2.2:- Design guidelines for the City of Tshwane

Chapter 5: Sewer Reticulation Page 10 of 36

Table: 5.3.3 Design flows from SABS 1993

Chapter 5: Sewer Reticulation Page 11 of 36

5.7 Future Growth

3.18 Method to project population

 Arithmetical Increase Method

Normally a statistical analysis (e.g. regression analysis) is carried out to establish

Arithmetical Increase Method

Geometrical Increase Method

Chapter 5: Sewer Reticulation Page 12 of 36

5.8 Peak Dry Weather Flow (PDWF)

Sometimes an arbitrary peak rate multiplier is used of between 2 to 3. When

Where: P =equivalent population contributing to the generation of the

Table 5.4: Peak factors

Type of development Peak Factor Comments

5.8.1 Attenuation Factor

Chapter 5: Sewer Reticulation Page 13 of 36

Fig. 5.6: Peak Factor for Domestic wastewater flow

5.9 Peak Wet Weather Flow (PWWF)

PWWF 1.15 x PDWF

5.10 Sewer Reticulation Design

Chapter 5: Sewer Reticulation Page 14 of 36

In designing a sewer system, the designer must:

Fig. 5.7: Back of the house sewer connections

Comprehensive preliminary investigations of the area to be served are required