Practice 670 210 1160

Publication Date 20Sep95

Page 1 of 10

FLUOR DANIEL

SANITARY SEWER SYSTEMS

PURPOSE
This practice establishes the parameters of the various components involved in the design of
gravity and force main sanitary sewer systems.
Design of these systems will require compliance with regulations and standards of various
private and public agencies and applicable federal, state, county and city regulations. The
design data, dimensions, regulations and standards will reflect a considerable diversity
between owner and government agencies.
The Civil Engineer must review these various regulations and standards and select the
appropriate ones for the project. This technical practice should be used in conjunction with
textbooks and other publications on the subject, such as those listed in the references. The
design engineer should stay updated on materials, specifications, and design criteria.

SCOPE
This practice includes the following major sections:
SEWAGE FLOWRATES
GRAVITY SEWER DESIGN
MANHOLES
PUMPING STATIONS
SIPHONS
HYDRAULIC DESIGN
EXAMPLE PROBLEM
REFERENCES
ATTACHMENTS

APPLICATION
This practice provides guidelines for the design of sanitary sewers and applies to all projects
and work assignments being performed by Fluor Daniel Civil Discipline. The Lead Civil
Engineer on a project is responsible for the use of these guidelines in designing sanitary
sewer systems.

SEWAGE
FLOWRATES
Domestic sewage quantities normally are to be computed on a contributing population basis,
except as noted in subparagraph d and e on page 3-1 of Hydraulic Design of Sewers.
Subparagraph d (Industrial Waste Flows)
Such industries cannot be computed totally on a population or fixture unit basis.
Industrial waste sewers and sanitary sewers will be designed for the peak industrial flow
as determined for the particular industrial process or activity involved.

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SANITARY SEWER SYSTEMS

Subparagraph e (Fixture Unit Flow) The size of building connections, including those
from theaters, restaurants, chapels, clubs and other such buildings, will, in all cases, be
large enough to discharge the flow computed on a fixture unit basis.
The population to be used in design depends upon the type of area which the sewer
serves. If the area is entirely residential, the design population is based on full
occupancy. If the area served is entirely industrial, the design population is the greatest

Average Daily
Per Capita
Sewage quantities for different types of installations are shown on page 3-1 of Hydraulic
Design of Sewers. The average daily flow will be computed by multiplying the resident and
nonresident contribution populations by the appropriate per capita allowances and adding the
two flows.
Nonresidents working 8 hour shifts will be allowed 30 gallons per capita per day.

Flowrate
The average hourly flowrate should be used when designing sewers to serve small areas of
the installation where several buildings or a group of buildings are under consideration and
where the majority of sewage is generated by nonresidents or other short term occupants.
The peak daily or diurnal flowrate is an important factor in sewer design, especially when
minimum velocities are to be provided on a daily basis. The peak diurnal flowrate will be
taken as 1/2 of the extreme peak flowrate.
Extreme flowrates of flow occasionally and must be considered. Sewers will be designed
with adequate capacity to handle extreme peaks flowrates, ratios of extreme peak flowrates at
average flow will be calculated with the use of the following formula:

R = C 0.67
Q
where
R = Ratio of extreme peak flowrate to average
Q = Average daily flow or average hour flowrate in million gallons per
day, gallons per day or gallons per hour
C = Constant 3.8 for MGD, 38.2 for GPD, or 22.5 for GPH

Infiltration And
Inflow
In computing wastewater flows for new sewer design, allowances for groundwater
infiltration will be 500 to 1,000 gallons per day per inch diameter per mile of pipe and will
be added to the peak rate of flow.

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SANITARY SEWER SYSTEMS

Fixture Unit Flow

The size of building connections will be large enough to discharge the flow computed on a
fixture unit basis. This requirement applies to building connections only and not to the
lateral or other sewers to which they connect.

GRAVITY SEWER
DESIGN
Generally, it is not desirable to design sewers for full flow even at peak rates. Trunk and
interceptor sewers will be designed to flow at depths not exceeding 90 percent of full depth;
lateral and main sewers 80 percent; and building connections, 70 percent. However,
regardless of flow and depth, the minimum sizes to be used are 6 inch for building
connections and 8 inch for all other sewers.
The Manning formula will be used for design of gravity sewers:

V = 1.486 2/3 1/2

n R S
where
V = Velocity in feet per second
n = Coefficient of pipe roughness
R = Hydraulic radius in feet
S = Slope of energy line in feet per foot
Values of n (roughness coefficient) to be used in the formula range from 0.013 to 0.015, with
the lowest n value applying to new or relatively new pipe. Values of n will also depend on
the pipe material. Variation of n with depth of flow has been shown experimentally, and can
be considered in designing sewer to flow partially full.

Velocity
Sewers will be designed to provide a minimum velocity of 2.0 FPS (feet per second) at the
average daily flow, or average hourly flowrate, and minimum velocity of 2.5 to 3.5 FPS at
the peak diurnal flowrate.

Pipe Cover
Adequate cover will be provided for frost protection and against structural damage due to
any superimposed surface loading.

Hydraulic Profile
In most cases where small to medium sized gravity sewers are installed in long runs, it will
be safe to assume uniform flow throughout the entire length of pipe. A hydraulic profile is
recommended showing all the other utilities crossing the sewer line. Sewer plans generally
will be oriented so that the flow in the sewer is from right to left on the sheet and stationing
is upgrade from left to right. Each sewer plan should include a north arrow. Match lines
should be easily identifiable.

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SANITARY SEWER SYSTEMS

Critical Flow
Gravity sewers will ordinarily be designed to maintain subcritical flow conditions in the pipe
throughout the normal range of design flows. However, there are exceptions in which
supercritical flow may be required and will be justified.

Hydrogen Sulfide
In Sewers
Two of the most important problems occurring in wastewater collection systems are the
corrosion of sewers and appurtenances, and the propagation and emission of odors and toxic
gases. Both of these problems can be attributed in large part to the generation of hydrogen
sulfide (H2S) in sewers. Sewers will be designed hydraulically in accordance with U.S. EPA
(Environmental Protection Agency) guidelines established therein to prevent excessive
generation of hydrogen sulfide.

Corrosion Control
Plastic pipe PVC (Polyvinyl Chloride); HDPE (High Density Polyethylene); ABS
(Acrylonitrile-Butadien-Styrene), fiberglass, and vitrified clay pipe are best suited for
corrosive environments, whereas concrete (including ABS composite), asbestos cement,
ductile iron, and cast iron soil pipe should be avoided unless a special protective lining,
coating or treatment are provided.

MANHOLES
Sanitary sewer manholes will be spaced 300 to 400 feet. When the size is large enough to
permit a man to enter, a spacing of 500 feet may be used. Manholes should be located at the
junctions of sewers and changes in grades, sizes, or alignment. Manholes may be precast
concrete (assembled in the field) cast in place, or brick.

PUMPING
STATIONS
Pumping station and pneumatic ejectors will normally be required to remove waste from
areas which cannot be served hydraulically by gravity sewers. In certain situations, however,
a gravity sewer system can be used, but only at the expense of deep trench excavation. Both
wastewater pumping and gravity flow sewers may be technically feasible and capable of
meeting service requirements, however, they may not be equivalent in economic terms.
When it is not readily apparent which solution would be more economical, the decision to
use one or the other should be based on life cycle cost analysis. Initial capital and
construction costs for pumps, ejectors, structures, force main, plus operation and
maintenance costs should be compared with cost of deep trench excavation or other special
construction methods required for a gravity system. Generally, a gravity sewer system will
be justified until its cost exceeds the cost of a pumped system by 10 percent.

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SANITARY SEWER SYSTEMS

Pumping Equipment
Pumping equipment used in sanitary sewer systems may be classified into two general types;
centrifugal pumps and pneumatic ejectors. The latter are used only in the smaller
installations where centrifugal pumps, if used, would be too large for the application.
Centrifugal pumps fall into the following three general classifications:
Axial - flow or propeller pumps
Mixed Flow or angle - flow pumps
Radial - flow pumps (commonly referred to as centrifugal pumps)
The classification into which a pump falls usually can be determined by its specific (Ns) at
the point of maximum efficiency.
The specific speed of an impeller may be defined as the speed in rpm (revolution per minute)
at which a geometrically similar impeller would run if it were of such size as to deliver
1 gpm against 1 foot of head.
The formula for specific speed is as follows:

RPM GPM
Ns =
H 3/4
where H is in feet.

Pump Construction
Most pump casings are made of cast iron. Although for special applications where gritty or
corrosive liquids are involved, other materials sometimes are specified.
Pneumatic ejectors are usually used for lifting sewage from basement of buildings and small
lift stations where their advantage outweigh their low efficiency, which is limited to about 15
percent. Their advantages are the following:
Sewage is completely enclosed an consequently no sewer gases can escape except
through the vent.
Operation is fully automatic and the ejector goes into service only when needed.
The relatively few moving parts in contact with sewage require little attention or
lubrication.
Ejectors are not easily clogged.
The following is an empirical formula for the approximate capacity of air required to operate
an ejector:
Q(H + 34)
V=
250
where
V = volume of free air required in CFM
H = total head in feet
Q = rate of sewage discharge in GPM

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Publication Date 20Sep95
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FLUOR DANIEL

SANITARY SEWER SYSTEMS

Datum
All readings for suction lift, suction head, discharge head, and net positive suction head are
taken with reference to the datum which in the case of horizontal shaft, is the elevation of
the pump center line and in the case of vertical shaft pumps is the elevation of the entrance
eye of the suction impeller.

Suction Lift (Hs)

Suction lift exists where the total suction head is below atmospheric pressure. Total suction
lift, as determined on test, is the reading of a liquid manometer at the suction nozzle of the
pump converted to feet of liquid and referenced to datum, minus the velocity head at the
point of gage attachment.

Suction Head (Hs)

Suction head exists, when the total suction head is above atmospheric pressure, as
determined on test, it is the reading of the gage at the suction of the pump converted to head,
in feet, at the point of gage attachment.

Total Discharge
Head (Hd)
Total discharge head is the reading of a pressure gage at the discharge of the pump,
converted to feet of liquid and referred to datum, plus the velocity head at the point of gage
attachment.

Total Head (H)

Total Head (H) is sometimes referred to as total dynamic head or TDH. Total head is the
measure of the energy increase per pound of the liquid imparted to it by the pump and is
therefore the algebraic difference between the total discharge head and the total suction head.
Total head as determined on test where suction lift, and, where positive suction head exists,
the total head is the total discharge head minus the total suction head.

NPSH (Net Positive

Suction Head)
The NPSH is the total suction head, in feet of liquid absolute, determined at the suction
nozzle and referred to datum, less the vapor pressure of the liquid in feet absolute.

SIPHONS
The siphon in sewerage practice almost invariably refers to an inverted siphon or depressed
sewer which would stand full even with no flow. Its purpose is to carry the flow under an
obstruction such as stream or depressed highway and to regain as much elevation as possible
after the obstruction has been passed.

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SANITARY SEWER SYSTEMS

Single And Multiple

Barrel Siphons
It is common practice, at least on large sewers, to construct multiple barrel siphons. The
objective is to provide adequate self-cleaning velocities under widely varying flow
conditions. The primary barrel is designed so that a velocity of 2 to 3 feet per second will be
reached at least once each day, even during the early years of operation. Additional pipe
regulated by lateral overflow weirs assist progressively in carrying flows of greater
magnitude, that is maximum dry weather flow to maximum storm flow.

Profile
Two considerations which govern the profile of a siphon are provision for hydraulic losses
and ease of cleaning. The friction loss through the barrel will be determined by the design
velocity. For calculating the head loss it is sound conservative Hazen-Williams C of 100
(Manning n from 0.014 for small sizes to 0.018 for the largest). Siphons may need cleaning
more often than gravity sewers. For easy cleaning, siphons should not have any sharp bends
either vertical or horizontal; only smooth curves of adequate radius should be used.

HYDRAULIC
DESIGN
The first step in the hydraulic design of a sanitary sewer system is to prepare a map showing
the locations of all required sewers and from which the tributary can be shown. Preliminary
profiles of the ground surface along each line are also needed. They should show the critical
elevations which will establish the sewer grades, such as basements of low lying buildings.
topographic maps are useful at this stage of the design.
Sanitary sewer design computation, being repetitious may best be done on tabular forms.
The attached tabulation form is fairly comprehensive and can be adapted to the particular
need of the designer. In using this form for sanitary sewer design, supplementary graph or
tables are required to calculate wastewater flows and hydraulic data. It is recommended that
all flows should be converted to cubic feet per second (CFS). Calculations should start from
the highest elevation and proceed downward. Each building sewer outlet should be shown
and be connected to the nearest sanitary sewer manhole.
There is a tendency on the part of some designers to increase the size of the sewer in order to
obtain a theoretical velocity of 2 feet per second when the available slope would not produce
this velocity in a smaller pipe. Actually, in the larger pipe, the depth of flow would be
decreased to such extent that the velocity might be no greater, and perhaps less, than in a
smaller pipe laid on the same slope. In such cases, the net result of increasing the pipe size
would be to increase the cost without improving the flow conditions. Errors of this nature
can usually be eliminated through analysis of the velocity at various rates of flow.

Civil Engineering
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SANITARY SEWER SYSTEMS

EXAMPLE
PROBLEM
Refer To
Attachment 07:

Column 1 (Total Discharge in GPMs [Gallons Per Minute]) was taken from the 3 buildings
having a total of 236 fixture units designed by the mechanical department. With the use of
the supply demand curve (Refer to Attachment 01), it will read 98.16 GPM.
Column 2, Size of Pipe; Column 3, Length of Line in Feet; Column 4, Slope of Pipe in
Percent; and Column 5, Velocity Flowing Full, use slope of 2.0 percent.
Column 4 and 5 use pipe flow chart (Refer to Attachment 02) = 4.5 FPS.
Column 6 (Discharge Flowing Full) = 1.52 CFS.
Column 7, convert (Column 1) 98.16 GPM into CFS = 98.16 x 0.002228 = 0.2187 CFS =
21.87 (1/100) average flow to be 1/3.8 peak flow = 21.87/3.8 = 5.76 (1/100) CFS.
Column 8 (peak flow 1/100 CFS) = 98.17 GPM x 0.002228 = 0.2187 CFS = 21.87 1/100
CFS.
Column 9 (Discharge Average %) = (Column 7) 5.76 divided by (Column 6) 1.52 = 3.79
CFS.
Column 10 (Discharge Peak %) = (Column 8) 21.87 divided by (Column 6) 1.52 = 14.39
CFS.
Column 11 (Velocity Average %) = use proportionate flow chart on Attachment 03. Column
9 (3.79 discharge to velocity) = 0.46 FPS.
Column 12 (Velocity Peak %) = use proportionate flow chart on Attachment 03. Column 10
(14.39 discharge to velocity) = 0.70 FPS.
Column 13 (average flow velocity FPS) = (Column 11) 0.46 x (Column 5) 4.5 = 2.07 FPS.
Column 14 (Peak Flow Velocity FPS) = Column 12 0.70 x Column 5 4.5 = 3.15 FPS.
Column remarks, the designer will show the total discharge that are being added on that
particular line.
As specified previously, the pipe should not be designed flowing full. Attached are graphs to
be used in calculating the hydraulic elements. To use Hydraulic Elements Graph in
Attachment 04 for circular pipe.
Example:
Flows will be known, extreme peak, diurnal peak and average daily flow.
Extreme Peak = 1.71 CFS
Diurnal Peak = 0.91 CFS
Average Daily = 0.44 CFS
Q = 1.71
S = 0.003
12" Diameter
n = 0.013

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SANITARY SEWER SYSTEMS

From Attachment 05, for 12 inch the discharge is 2.0 CFS and the velocity is 2.53 FPS.
1.71 = 0.86 then on Attachment 04 hydraulic elements, with the use of this graph plot 0.86
2.0
= d/D = 0.71 is less than the lateral and main sewer 0.80. using the same line proceed to the
right where it intersects the dash line for velocity and it reads 1.14. 1.14 x 2.53 = 2.88 FPS.
Same procedure will be performed for the other flows. The minimum velocity for average
flow is V = 2.0 FPS. Q = 0.44 CFS = 0.44 = 0.22 from Attachment 04 = d/D = 0.33. 0.79 x
2.00
2.53 = 2.0 FPS for average flow.

REFERENCES
Design and Computation of Sanitary and Storm Sewers. ASCE Manual and Reports on
Engineering. ASCE. Practice Number 37.
Domestic Wastewater Treatment. Department of the Army Technical Manual (TM
5-814-3).
Engineering Manual. Part VIII, Chapter 1. Corps of Engineers.
Hydraulic Design of Sewers. Department of the Army Technical Manual (TM 5-814-1).
Plumbing. Engineering Manual. EM 1110-345-165. Corps of Engineers.
Sanitary and Industrial Wastewater Collection - Pumping Stations and Force Mains.
Department of the Army Technical Manual (TM 5-814-2).
Selye, E.E. Book of Design.
Sewerage Treatment Plant Design. ASCE Manual and Reports on Engineering. ASCE
Practice Number 34.
Steel and McGhee. Water Supply And Sewerage.
These standards provide guidelines for the design of sanitary sewers and applies to all
projects and work assignments being performed by the Fluor Daniel Civil Discipline.

ATTACHMENTS
Attachment 01:
Supply Demand Curve
Attachment 02:
Pipe Flow Chart
Attachment 03:
Proportionate Flow Chart (Manning's Formula)
Attachment 04:
Hydraulic Elements Graph for Circular Sewers
Attachment 05:
Alignment Chart for Manning Formula for Pipe Flow

Civil Engineering
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SANITARY SEWER SYSTEMS

Attachment 06:
Critical Depth of Flow and Specific Head In Rectangular And Circular Conduit
Attachment 07:
Typical Computation Form

Civil Engineering