An outdoor drainage system is an essential feature in any property. However, drainage trenches cannot function effectively without grates. Notably, grates are necessary for preventing accidents and barring solid debris from blocking drainage. Homeowners can choose either standard off-the-shelf grates or customised designs for their outdoor drainage systems. While both function as expected, it is always advisable to go for customised outdoor drainage grates for optimal efficiency. Nonetheless, you must make certain considerations during the design phase of custom outdoor grates.
Multipurpose Functions -- Drainage grates have come a long way as an outdoor feature, and while they are primarily designed to cover drainage channels, you can achieve more with customised pieces. For instance, driveways are an excellent place to install drainage trenches to guide wastewater from your house and compound to the main drainage on the street. However, rather than install lights on your driveway, you can install LED-lit grates on your driveway. The customised grates go a long way in transforming your drainage trench into an illumination feature, thereby eliminating the need to add a lighting system along the sides of your driveway.
Special Needs -- Before ordering custom drainage grates, it is crucial to identify any special needs you might have with regards to the use of the grates on a drainage trench. The requirements play an essential role in ensuring that you get all-rounded drainage grates. For instance, if a family member uses a wheelchair, it is easy for the tires to get caught in the spaces of drainage grates. Consequently, it makes access to various areas of your compound a challenge. Therefore, rather than buy standard grates, you can ask a manufacturer to include cover spaces through which the wheels of a wheelchair can pass comfortably.
Ease of Cleaning -- It was mentioned earlier that drainage grates help to prevent debris from getting into a drainage trench. Therefore, most homeowners will not bother to lift a grate to clean the trench although some waste might find its way through. In some cases, the lock system on grates discourages a homeowner from cleaning the trench. With this in mind, you should ask a manufacturer to design a drainage grate system whose locking mechanism is easy to undo for ease of cleaning. Additionally, you can choose a convenient location for the lock, so that you don't have to walk to the end of your driveway or fence to undo the latch.
To learn more, contact a resource that offers custom grates.