INSTALLATION GUIDELINES

Landfills and mines

Landfills and mines

Introduction
Recommendations
This installation manual gives general recommendations for the installation of the drainage geocomposites
InterDRAIN and TechDRAIN in landfills and mines. These recommendations are subjected to the guidelines
exposed by the site engineering management.

and

InterDRAIN and TechDRAIN drainage geocomposites are widely used in mining as well as in landfills. Common appli-
cations are: drainage of infiltrating water, collection of gas from anaerobic decomposition and/or collection of leachate.

Since the installation process is the same for both products, throughout this installation manual InterDRAIN will be
used to refer to both, InterDRAIN and TechDRAIN.
 Landfills and mines

Preparation of the
supporting ground
Step 1
InterDRAIN may be installed over a regularized soil layer,
granular material or another geosynthetic material.

Ground preparation must be performed before procee-

ding with the installation of InterDRAIN, ensuring that the
ground is as flat as possible. All cavities, irregularities and
bumps that exceed 1 cm should be eliminated.

If InterDRAIN is installed on top of a waterproofing geos-

ynthetic (GBR-P or GBR-C), this element should be fully
installed (including all seams and welds in all panels).

ANCHOR TRENCH
Anchor trench
>1m COVER SOIL

INTERDRAIN
Step 2
Anchor trenches must be executed at the top of the
> 0.5 m

WATERPROOFING slope and in the intermediate berms of the slopes,

> 0.5 m unless dead weights are used.

Anchor trenches can be rectangular with minimum

dimensions of 50 x 50 cm or can also have another
geometry if it is accurately justified.

For anchor trenches on top of the slope, the minimum

distance between the trench and the slope is 1 m.

It is not recommended to execute anchor trenches in

the intermediate berms of the slopes in order to avoid
transversal welds. If they must be done, they will be
placed as close as possible to the upper slope.

There is no need for anchor trenches in the bottom of

COVER SOIL
the slope. If trenches are opened in order to accommo-
date perforated drainage pipes, which will collect the
INTERDRAIN water coming from InterDRAIN, these trenches may
also be used to anchor the geosynthetic materials.
WATERPROOFING
SEW OR STAPLE
> 0.5 m

GEOTEXTILES

> 0.5 m
Landfills and mines

deployment
Step 3
The first roll of InterDRAIN must be unrolled along the
slope, from the crown downwards, ensuring a full contact
with the ground. Subsequently the second roll will be
unrolled next to the first one.

The installation procedure must continue accordingly roll

by roll, bottomed or overlapped along the roll length. The
deployment of the rolls must be executed in the expected
main flow direction (maximum slope direction) and in a
continuous manner in order to avoid their movement due
to the winds action.

The product must be installed well stretched, avoiding

folds and wrinkles. If it were necessary, the position of
InterDRAIN must be manually corrected after its deploy-
ment.

In the presence of wind InterDRAIN must be weighted

with sandbags or equivalent, preferably along the over-
laps.

These weights must remain installed until the soil cover or

another geosynthetic layer has been placed on top of the
drainage geocomposite.
Landfills and mines

Overlaps
Step 4
Adjacent drainage geocomposites must ensure a conti-
nuity of the drainage core. To do so, the drainage cores
INTERDRAIN OVERLAP (10cm) CONTINUOUS SEWING OR
must be bottomed and the geotextiles should present a
minimum overlap of 10 cm.
ROLL 1 GEOTEXTILES LEISTERING (Recommended)

PLASTIC TIE

A second option is to overlap, with a minimum of 10 cm,

one geonet on top of the other geonet.
INTERDRAIN
ROLL 2

OVERLAP (10cm)
GEOTEXTILES
It is recommended that adjacent geonets are joined by
tying the geonet cores together with plastic ties (1 tie
per meter).

It is also recommended to heat bond or wedge weld the

geotextile overlaps in order to guarantee continuous
properties for this filter and separation element.

OVERLAP (10cm) CONTINUOUS SEWING OR

GEOTEXTILES LEISTERING (Recommended)

INTERDRAIN
ROLL 1 INTERDRAIN
ROLL 2

Longitudinal overlaps between rolls must be avoided as

O
80 c VERLA
m (M P
much as possible. If they were to be needed, it is recom-
mended to execute them as close as possible to the
INIM
UM)

bottom of the slope and rolls must be overlapped by

placing the upper roll over the lower roll, in order to
INTERDRAIN
ensure a continuous flow inside the geonet. On the other
UPPER ROLL
SLO
PE
hand, this overlap will also avoid that the geocomposite
can be lifted by the wind. The minimum recommended
CONTINUOUS SEWING OR
overlap is 80 cm. It is also recommended to heat bond or
wedge weld the geotextile overlaps.
LEISTERING (Recommended)

INTERDRAIN
LOWER ROLL
 Landfills and mines

Cover layer and backfilling

of the anchor trench

Step 5
Before covering InterDRAIN it must be ensured that there are no uncovered geonet areas (without a geotextile or with
a cut or damaged geotextile).

If the geotextile has been damaged (during or after the installation), the damaged piece of geotextile must be substitu-
ted by a larger patch, ensuring at all times that the drainage geonet is not left uncovered.

Once all geosynthetic layers have been installed, prior to the cover soil extension, all anchor trenches must be backfilled
to avoid any possible movements in the drainage geocomposite.

It must be ensured that the cover soil mate-

rial in contact with InterDRAIN is free of
large or sharp elements that may puncture
or damage the geosynthetic layers.

It is recommended to place the soil cover

from the bottom of the slope upwards to
avoid high stresses on InterDRAIN , unless
it is otherwise justified through adequate
calculations.

Geotextiles must be covered within 14 days

after the installation unless they are UV
treated.
 Landfills and mines

Construction equipment
Wide track vehicles should never ride directly over InterDRAIN
unless a cover soil layer with a thickness > 0,15 m is placed as a
protection element for the geosynthetic layer.

It is not recommended to ride over the geocomposite with

vehickes that use rubber tires. Occasionally they may ride
directly over it in the planar areas (never in the slopes) redu-
cing as much as possible the speed and avoiding any sharp
turns and any fast accelerations or decelerations which may
damage the geotextile.

Notes
InterDRAIN rolls are packed in black plastic film bags to ensure that the geotextiles are protected against UV
rays. These bags must not be removed until the product must be installed. It is forbidden to store unpacked
drainage geocomposites.

When moving the product it is very important not to drag the rolls. They must be preferably lifted or rolled
because dragging them would damage the geocomposite, specially the geotextile layer.
Note that the geotextile is a filter element that ensures the hydraulic
properties of InterDRAIN by avoiding the soil to enter the geonet
core.

InterDRAIN may be modelled or slightly bended in order to adapt to

the soil's topography.

InterDRAIN rolls are manufactured in standard dimensions.

To adapt their length to the specific site conditions, they may be cut
with a knife or cutter.
It is recommended to install only the geocomposites that can be covered the same day of the installation.

After unpacking the drainage geocomposites and unrolling them, the material may not be exposed to the sun
for a period that exceeds 14 days, unless the nonwoven geotextile has special UV stabilization.

INTERMAS NETS S.A.

Ronda de Collsabadell, 11 (Polgono industrial)
08450 LLINARS DEL VALLS (Barcelona) - SPAIN
Tel. + 34 938 425 700
Fax. + 34 938 425 701
geo@intermas.com www.interdrain.net