A point drain collects water at a single spot. A trench drain collects it along a line — across a doorway, along a kitchen run, or at the edge of a loading area — which is why channel systems are the standard approach wherever water arrives over a wide area rather than at one outlet. Fanoos AlHadeeth Trading Co. supplies modular trench drainage from its base in Jeddah to projects across Saudi Arabia, on a quotation basis. This guide explains the choices a specifier or contractor works through when selecting a system from the trench and modular drains range: where the system will serve, which channel family fits, which grating belongs over it, and what to settle before requesting a quotation.
Where trench drains are used
Trench drainage appears wherever surface water has to be intercepted before it spreads, ponds, or crosses a threshold. Typical project locations include:
- Commercial kitchens and food-preparation areas, where wash-down water is produced along the whole working line
- Loading bays, service yards and car parks, where rainwater arrives across a wide paved surface
- Doorways and thresholds, where a channel stops water tracking from an external area into an internal one
- Washrooms, changing areas and plant rooms with regular wet cleaning
- External courtyards and paved areas that fall towards a building line
In each case the working principle is the same: the channel sits in the floor build-up, the floor falls towards it, and water is collected along the full length of the run and discharged at an outlet. Because the system is modular, a run is assembled from channel sections, grating sections and outlet units, so the layout can follow the shape of the area being drained rather than forcing the area to suit a fixed product.
Channel materials in this range
The channel family at the centre of the Fanoos range is the 7890 series: polymer concrete channels supplied with a choice of three gratings. The three variants are the Polymer Concrete Channel with Ductile Iron Grating (7890DI), the Polymer Concrete Channel with Stainless Steel Grating (7890SS), and the Polymer Concrete Channel with Stainless Steel Slot Grating (7890SD), where the opening is a narrow slot rather than an open grate. Starting from one channel family and varying the grating keeps specification straightforward: the drainage body stays consistent across a project while the visible surface changes from area to area.
Alongside the 7890 family, the range includes further modular trench drain units — the Modular Trench Drains 7880GC and 7840GC, the Modular Slot Trench Drain 7850SD, and a light-duty modular option, the Modular Trench Drains 7830GC — together with separate Modular Grate & Frame units such as the 7840GF, which are used where the frame and grate are supplied as their own assembly. Roof drain accessories (8020) are also listed within this category for projects combining roof and surface drainage in one schedule. The practical point for specifiers is that channels, gratings and accessories can be scheduled together, section by section, instead of being sourced as unrelated items.
Grating options
The grating is the part of the system that stays visible and gets walked on, washed over and cleaned, so it deserves as much attention as the channel below it. The options in this range are:
- Stainless steel grating — supplied with the polymer concrete channel as the 7890SS, a conventional open grate format.
- Ductile iron grating — supplied with the polymer concrete channel as the 7890DI.
- Slot grating — the 7890SD presents a narrow slot at the surface instead of an open grate, and the Modular Slot Trench Drain 7850SD applies the same idea in a modular unit. Slot formats are often chosen where a discreet surface line is preferred, such as at thresholds and in finished areas.
- Wire wedge grating — the Wire Wedge Modular Trench Drain 7810GC and the Wire Wedge Modular Grate & Frame 7810GF.
- Flat bar grating — the Flat Bar Modular Trench Drain 7810FC.
- Grate and frame units — the Modular Grate & Frame 7840GF and 7810GF, for positions where the grate assembly is scheduled separately from the channel body.
Choosing between them is a project decision, not a catalogue preference. The questions that drive it are practical: what traffic passes over the run, how the area is cleaned, whether the grating must lift out for access to the channel, and how the finished surface should look. Those answers differ between a service yard and a kitchen line, which is why the same project may legitimately use two or three grating types on different runs. Confirm the expected use of each run with the supplier when you request a quotation, so the grating scheduled for each section matches the area it serves.
Kitchen and food-area layouts
Commercial kitchens are the most common modular drainage application in this range, and they have their own product family: the 7820 series. The 7820GC مصرف مطبخ معياري forms the basic run, the Modular Kitchen Grate & Frame 7820GF provides the grate assembly, and the Multi-inlet Kitchen Drains 7820JC address the layout problem specific to kitchens — several appliances and wash positions discharging along one working line, each needing its own inlet into the same drainage run.
Planning a kitchen layout therefore starts from the equipment schedule rather than the drainage catalogue: mark every appliance and sink position that discharges to the floor, and the channel run is then arranged to pass those positions, with inlets where they are needed. In food areas, trench drainage is frequently combined with stainless point drainage under and around individual items of equipment; the stainless steel drains range covers those point-drain positions, so both elements can be specified together.
Layout planning questions
A trench system is easy to quote and schedule accurately when the layout questions are answered first. Before requesting a quotation, work through the following:
- Where does each run start and end, and what is its total length?
- Where is the outlet position, and what does the run connect into?
- Which direction do the floor falls run, and does the channel line sit at the low point of those falls?
- Which grating type belongs on each section of the run?
- What traffic passes over each section — foot traffic, trolleys, vehicles?
- How will the channel be accessed for cleaning, and which sections need removable gratings?
- In kitchens, which appliances and wash positions need inlets, and where exactly do they sit?
- Are accessories or matching roof drainage items part of the same schedule?
None of these questions requires a drainage engineer to answer at enquiry stage — a marked-up floor plan or a drainage schedule with run lengths and outlet positions gives the supplier what is needed to quote section by section.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a trench drain and a floor drain?
A floor drain is a point outlet: water flows across the floor to one position. A trench drain is a channel that collects water along its whole length, which suits wide areas, thresholds and working lines where water is produced or arrives across a broad front. Many projects use both — trench runs for the main collection lines and point drains for individual positions.
How do I choose between the grating options?
Start from the area the run serves. Consider what passes over it, how it is cleaned, whether the grating needs to be removable for access, and the finish you want at the surface — an open grate, or the narrower line of a slot grating such as the 7890SD. If different areas of the project point to different answers, specify different gratings on different runs; the modular system allows that.
Is this range suitable for commercial kitchens?
Yes. The 7820 family — the Modular Kitchen Drain 7820GC, the Modular Kitchen Grate & Frame 7820GF and the Multi-inlet Kitchen Drains 7820JC — is the kitchen-specific part of the range, designed around layouts where several appliances and wash positions discharge along one line.
What information do you need to prepare a quotation?
Run lengths, outlet positions, the grating type wanted for each section, and inlet positions for kitchen layouts. A drainage schedule or a marked-up floor plan covers all of it. Quantities per section are enough for the quotation to be built up section by section.
Do you supply trench drainage outside Jeddah?
Fanoos supplies projects across Saudi Arabia from its Jeddah base. Send the project location and your schedule with the enquiry, and the team will confirm how the supply will be handled for that project.
For a quotation, send your drainage schedule or marked-up layout through the quote request form, call +966546236905, or email sales@backup.fanoosksa.com. The Jeddah office is open Saturday to Thursday, 08:00–19:00, and will work through the channel and grating selection for each run with you.