A weeping tile (also called a drain tile or perimeter tileGradwell, John B., and Malcolm Welch. ''Technology--shaping our world''. South Holland, Ill.: Goodheart-Willcox, 1991. 116. Print.) is a porous

pipe Pipe(s), PIPE(S) or piping may refer to: Objects * Pipe (fluid conveyance), a hollow cylinder following certain dimension rules ** Piping, the use of pipes in industry * Smoking pipe ** Tobacco pipe * Half-pipe and quarter pipe, semi-circular ...

used for underground water collection or discharge. When the pipe is draining, it "weeps", or exudes liquids. It was named during a time period when drainpipes were made from

terracotta Terracotta, terra cotta, or terra-cotta (; ; ), in its material sense as an earthenware substrate, is a clay-based unglazed or glazed ceramic where the fired body is porous. In applied art, craft, construction, and architecture, terra ...

tiles. The modern material is typically a length of corrugated plastic pipe with small slits or weep holes in it, which is buried surrounded by

aggregate Aggregate or aggregates may refer to: Computing and mathematics * collection of objects that are bound together by a root entity, otherwise known as an aggregate root. The aggregate root guarantees the consistency of changes being made within the ...

larger than the slits. The aggregate rocks prevent excessive soil from falling through the slits into the weeping tile. With this arrangement, water in the surrounding soil above the weeping tile flows into the weeping tile. The weeping tile then drains into a solid pipe leading to a discharge or directly into a

sump A sump is a low space that collects often undesirable liquids such as water or chemicals. A sump can also be an infiltration basin used to manage surface runoff water and recharge underground aquifers. Sump can also refer to an area in a cave ...

, where the water can be removed by a sump pump. Weeping tiles are often used for water drainage near

basement A basement or cellar is one or more Storey, floors of a building that are completely or partly below the storey, ground floor. It generally is used as a utility space for a building, where such items as the Furnace (house heating), furnace, ...

foundations as a part of

basement waterproofing Basement waterproofing involves techniques and materials used to prevent water from penetrating the basement of a house or a building. Waterproofing a basement that is below ground level can require the application of sealant materials, the instal ...

, where they are called a French drain. They can be used in farmers' fields for the tile drainage of waterlogged fields. Such fields are called "tiled". Weeping tiles can be used anywhere that soil needs to be drained. Weeping tiles are used for the opposite reason in septic drain fields for

septic tank A septic tank is an underground chamber made of concrete, fiberglass, or plastic through which domestic wastewater ( sewage) flows for basic sewage treatment. Settling and anaerobic digestion processes reduce solids and organics, but the treatm ...

s. Clarified

sewage Sewage (or domestic sewage, domestic wastewater, municipal wastewater) is a type of wastewater that is produced by a community of people. It is typically transported through a sewer system. Sewage consists of wastewater discharged from reside ...

from the septic tank is fed into weeping tiles buried shallowly in the drain field. The weeping tile spreads the liquid throughout the drain field.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Weeping Tile Drainage Building materials