Analysis of Siphonic Roof Drainage Systems with EPANET

Analysis and design of siphonic roof drainage systems are usually performed with specific software developed by the system’s manufacturers. An experimental study was carried out to verify if a general software for the analysis of hydraulic pressurized pipe networks can be used to analyze a siphonic roof drainage system. A test model was built and tests were conducted to compare the prototype results with simulation runs in EPANET. A new EPANET data model was developed to overcome software limitations for the siphonic drainage systems analysis. Considering the results, less than 5% of average error was observed between the measures in the real test model and the simulation results, which can be attributed to measurement error. To validate the EPANET data model, it was compared with a specific software that analyzes siphonic roof drainage systems. It can be concluded that EPANET is a software that can be used to analyze and, therefore, to design, siphonic roof drainage systems in buildings.