PE domestic sewage service pipes – Solutions for the various materials, dimensions, and connecting systems

The sewage system in Germany is made up of about 540,000 km of piping. According to expert estimates, private sewage pipes even exceed twice this length, together extending over about 1.0–1.3 million kilometres. They are laid under gardens, garages, pavements, and roads where they direct domestic sewage either separately or mixed with rain water into the public system. These pipes represent a huge asset for the private operator. It is all the more astonishing that these so called domestic services are given such little attention. At the same time – and experts are unanimous on this – they are in very poor condition, with about an estimated 50% leaking and in need of repair. At 20% each, pipe cracks and defect connections are the most common forms of damage (Figure 1). In other words, there are enough reasons to take a closer look at this transition between private sewage pipes and the public system. The mentioned damage types are typical of inflexible, brittle pipe materials like clay or concrete. Plastic pipes, on the other hand, flex under a load. Flexible pipes can deform without sacrifice to their performance. In domestic service installations too, plastic systems safeguard operational reliability.