Caskade®HYDRA
Caskade®HYDRA is an ‘evolved siphonic’ rainwater management system, which has been designed due to a demand to improve conventional siphonic systems. The Caskade®HYDRA system virtually eliminates the need for intrusive internal rainwater discharge pipework. The body of the gutter contains two sealed siphonic water channels, a primary and secondary, keeping rainwater discharge where it belongs – completely outside of the building envelope.
The Caskade®HYDRA system is fully operational once the gutter has been installed, eliminating the need for temporary drainage management and moreover, there is no surface water to create slip hazards to operatives.
Designing Out Risk
Rainwater management is one of the critical issues in a building’s design. Even the smallest buildings need effective rainwater management but the bigger the building, the more critical it becomes and buildings in Britain are getting bigger by the year.
Such buildings demand designs and construction techniques which allow a quick and simple integrated build programme so that clients can commence trading at the earliest possible opportunity. They also bring the requirement for cutting edge engineering practices to maximise free spans, and minimise elements within the building which interfere with its principal function.
Elements which are likely to require excessive maintenance or repair, or which involve unnecessarily intrusive components, or which represent potential failure points, need to be addressed through clear and innovative thinking, to ensure unhindered business flow and maximum space optimisation. Anything which interferes with these fundamental issues must be avoided at all cost.
In recent years, the boundaries of architecture have been stretched to the limit, with building lengths greater than 200 metres becoming commonplace. This development will only intensify the potential risks associated with vulnerable and intrusive high-level internal pipework – risks which do not exist Caskade® HYDRA
Caskade®HYDRA Further Information
Rainfall Intensity
The system is fully calibrated for total inflow control and capable of handling the most extreme rainwater intensities with ease. Tested to extreme worst-case conditions at the University of Sheffield, verified for negative pressure resistance by UKAS, and with a full capacity calculation service using advanced rainwater software techniques, each Caskade® HYDRA installation is tailored for the specific project, providing a unique rainwater management solution every time.
No delays in the primary compartment going negative as the Anti-Vortex plate flows directly in and does not require tail pipes.
Project Schedule
If a standard siphonic system is incorporated into a buildings design it’s not just the rainwater ingress risks that can cause problems for building owners and project manager’s. Keeping to the projects critical build path is of the up most importance if unnecessary costs are to be avoided. When installing typical siphoinc systems the project critical path can be some cause for concern. The internal pipework installation programme will need to be taken into account and the time and resources needed to install the internal pipework will need to be factored into the over all project schedule.
The Caskade® HYDRA evolved siphonic rainwater management system offers real project schedule and cost benefits as it does not require the internal installation programme, risk assessment and management needed for internal pipework, removing man-hours, working at heights, falling object risk and clear working area requirements, reducing the overall project schedule.
No Internal Pipework
In recent years, the boundaries of architecture have been stretched to the limit, with building lengths greater than 200 metres becoming commonplace. This development will only intensify the potential risks associated with vulnerable and intrusive high-level internal pipework caused by installation a conventional siphonic rainwater management system.
An increase in building length leads to an increase in rainwater volumes and the amount of pipework needed to cope with such volumes. Pipework that is not only expensive, but unsightly and takes up valuable space needed by the buildings tenant and also introducing an unnecessary risk of failure into the building.
The Caskade® HYDRA system delivers exceptional rainwater management, whilst removing the issues and costs associated with intrusive pipework –as it eliminates the need for internal pipework in all but the very largest of buildings.
Siphonic Vibration
Traditional siphonic systems struggle with contraction and expansion issues as rainwater is always taken from the cold exterior of the building to the warm interior through internal pipes. Due to contraction and expansion considerations, these pipes need to be bracketed and restrained to avoid movement and vibration.
With Caskade® HYDRA, this problem is eradicated as the system removes the need for internal pipework within the building. All rainwater is managed completely outside of the building, meaning the temperature of water remains the same and no contraction or expansion issues will occur. This not only eliminates the problem but helps to reduce project costs, as there is no need to install costly pipework or put measures into place to reduce vibration and noise contribution associated with contraction and expansion.
The Impact Of Poor Steel & Workmanship
Ingress of water can be devastating to a business and is often very costly. Building owners, designers and specifiers spend damaging amounts of time and money to ensure that roofing and cladding systems are weathertight and not susceptible to water ingress. Yet when designing or specifying a rainwater management system it is deemed acceptable to deliberately introduce rainwater and all the associated risks into a building.
The Caskade® HYDRA rainwater management system can eliminates water ingress by managing the rainwater requirements completely outside of the building. The body of the Caskade® HYDRA gutter system contains two sealed siphonic water chambers. A primary and secondary, The rainwater flows through calibrated anti-vortex inlets into the primary chamber to a single downpipe, which is designed to cater for the primary rainwater capacity of the roof. Should the primary channel reach capacity, such as in extreme storm conditions, the secondary channel is brought into play, discharging the remainder of the designed storm flow, to further protect the building. Keeping rainwater discharge where it belongs – completely outside of the building envelope.
The Power Of Water
During the installation of conventional siphonic systems the siphonic outlets will be sealed to avoid water ingress into the building. Instead temporary drainage measures will be put into place while the system is being installed.
The Caskade® HYDRA evolved siphonic rainwater management system is fully operational once the gutter has been installed, eliminating the need for temporary drainage management and moreover, there is no surface water to create slip hazards to operatives.