How to cover a basement drain

[Borrall Wonnell]

Hi all,

A basement floor drain is 6" across but sits 8" below the surface of the concrete floor. The concrete floor slopes down to the drain (like a funnel), the entire thing is about 36" in diameter. How can I cover this up so that it is still accessible, while allowing enough strength for a person to stand on it.

I'm considering pouring new concrete to reduce the diameter from 36" to something a bit more manageable. Use sonotube, wood framing, or ABS pipe as support and to keep new concrete from plugging the drain. Alternately, adjust floor drain to (nearly) the height of the concrete floor and fill the area with concrete.

Does this seem like a sensible approach?

Anyone want to hazard a guess as to why the builder would go through the effort of sloping a 36" drain?

[jamesgangnc]

I'd probably do you second solution.

[John]

Filling with concrete is better, though be careful not to slope things upward. With plywood, you would have to take all kinds of measures to ensure the wood doesn't touch the concrete, and doesn't get wet (doable, but the concrete idea is better).

[dadiOH]

So water would run to it?

[Borrall Wonnell]

Heh...true, but (a) the rest of the basement floor isn't sloped toward the drain and (b) a slight dip in the floor would have sufficed for water to 'run'. No need for the concrete to have a 45 degree slope!

[tnom]

Are you sure this isn't a built in swimming pool?

[DerbyDad03]

If the rest of the basement isn't even sloped towards this drain, why do you need to keep it accessible?

Does it (or will it ever) serve any purpose at all?

[HeyBub]

1. Put dog in center of depression.
2. Hose him down.

[Borrall Wonnell]

Apparently I can swim in it and/or wash my dog. :)

From a local building code perspective, it has to be accessible. It will also be convenient for the annual 'drain-the-water-tank' maintenance, but generally it will be unused.

I think the answer in this case will be to pour new concrete to fill the area in, then use it as if it was a normal floor (with an access hatch cut for the drain).

[Joe]

Call city hall and ask if they have any retired manhole covers. If so, pick one up and install over the opening with whatever concrete mods are needed to make it tidy.

Joe

[Vic Smith]

Most water leaks end up in the basement, even if they don't start there. Besides sticking a hose in it to drain the hot water tank or boiler. I can't imagine not having a basement floor drain.

I would extend the current drain with PVC before pouring in the concrete, then fit the drain plate in before it sets. But I don't know your intent. My drain is in the unfinished sink/washer area of the basement.

--Vic

[DerbyDad03]

re: "I can't imagine not having a basement floor drain."

Then there are a lot (and I mean *a lot*) of houses you couldn't imagine living in.

I'd like a show of hands:

Whose house has a floor drain (right hands) and whose doesn't (left hands)?

[Vic Smith]

Never seen a house without one, but it might be code here. Chicago area. I've had a leaking foundation, which I got fixed, and a few inches of water in the basement when a so-called "100 year rain" also knocked out power to my pumps. Both times the drain was very useful. Other than that I've used them to drain hot water heaters and boilers.

I never look at a basement as something I'd finish except maybe one room. Others go the full nine yards around here and never have a problem. Just a personal habit. I'm in such a room now, finished by the previous owner. Takes about 1/3 of the basement. Tiled floor and dark 1/4" paneling on studs. No insulation. Acoustic tiles ceiling. Not bad really. But if I ever get to it I'll tear everything but the floor tiles out and paint it all white. And junk the bar, which just gets in the way. I see a basement as mostly shop/storage and a place to get away. Handy, but I always figure it's ripe for flooding. Maybe that comes mostly from TV reports of all the basement furnishings on the street after a big rain that fills the storm sewers. The few inches of water I had down there wasn't a big deal because except for a few cardboard boxes of junk nothing was lost. Now I've got about $400 worth of plastic containers for my wife to keep her "stuff" in. Most of it is clothes, curtains, drapes, and the kids old toys and school stuff. You know - the stuff a woman can let go of. All my stuff is man stuff. Wipe it down and it's good as new (-:

--Vic

[DerbyDad03]

How do you keep the traps from drying out if they don't get used?

[Vic Smith]

I've read about pouring a pitcher of water down there once in a while, or mineral oil if you're going to cover it. But I've never had a problem with odors from floor drains. I just looked and sniffed. The drain pipe is full of spider webs, but I saw water down below. It's at least half a year since anything went down the drain. Think I poured maybe a pint of water from a bowl in there when I rodded the laundry tub drain, which was full of caked lint. If it ever dries up where I get an odor I'll just pour some water down there.

--Vic

[Borrall Wonnell]

Now THAT (manhole cover) is an excellent idea!

Quick update: I carefully chiselled away the concrete surrounding/ covering the ABS drain plate (I thought it was about 5", but turns out to be closer to 8" after I removed the concrete). Had to drill the two philips screws that were holding the plate in place (slots were filled wtih concrete).

Turns out that the plate was covering a bowl-shaped fixture with a 2" drain in the middle (and a floating plastic ball to prevent back flow). Most of the bowl was full of hardened concrete...with enough room for water to pass down the drain. What an ugly piece of work.

Ultimately I ditched the concrete idea and scribed some lumber to follow the curve of the 36" depression. Seems to work so far...