Trench Drain Grates and Frames

Custom grates, covers and frames for trench and channel drains, fabricated and supplied to the project’s approved drainage, loading and opening details.

Request a Quote
See configurations

TrussMetal is a metal fabrication shop in North Vancouver that works across Metro Vancouver. This page is for landscape architects, architects, drainage designers, general contractors and strata or property managers. A trench drain, also called a channel or linear drain, collects surface water along a line in paving; the grate covers the channel and the frame holds the grate at the paving level.

We fabricate and supply grates, covers and frames. The drainage design, the channel body, its outlets and connections, the concrete and paving, and installation are by others.

Configurations

Custom grates

Slotted, bar or perforated grates in lift-out sections, made to the channel’s opening and the pattern drawn. Patterns are cut by our partner shops; fabrication and welding are done in our shop.

Frames and edge angles

Steel angle frames that line the channel edge and hold the grate level with the paving, cast in or fixed to the approved detail.

Grates for a specified channel

Made to the seat dimensions of the channel system the project specifies. The channel’s published rating is its maker’s; it does not rate a custom grate or the installed assembly.

Replacement grates

Made to fit an existing channel from its measurements. On a proprietary channel system, fit and compatibility are confirmed for that system before fabrication, and the original system’s rating does not transfer to a custom replacement grate. Whether a damaged frame or channel is repaired or replaced is decided for the project.

Concept drawingGrate and frame over a trench drain (section)Section through a trench drain: a fabricated frame lines the edges and holds a grate level with the paving; the channel body, its concrete surround and the paving are by others. Concept only; loading, openings and details are set for each project.Paving by othersGrate made toapproved detailsFrame andanchor lugsChannel andconcrete by othersSection
Concept drawingGrate run in sections (plan)Plan of a run of grate sections in a frame, with a slot pattern set by the designer and optional locking points shown dashed, included only where specified. Concept only.Grate sections, lift-outLocking point,if specifiedSlot pattern and width set by the designerPlan
Concept drawingGrate bearing on the frame seat (detail)Detail of a grate bearing on the seat of a fabricated frame; the bearing, support and fixing are designed for the project. The channel wall and the paving are by others. Concept only.Paving by othersFrame seatGrate bearingChannel wall by othersDetail
Concept drawings, illustrative only: not a tested design, a shop drawing or an installation detail, and not a photograph or record of completed TrussMetal work. Dashed parts are by others. Parts marked “if specified” or “per project” are included only where the project’s approved details call for them.

Typical applications: patios, terraces and pool decks, building entrances and garage thresholds, courtyards and plazas, and replacement grates where an existing one is damaged, missing or no longer matches the paving.

Drainage and Loading: Who Sets What

Drainage design
The channel size, length, falls, outlets and connection to the storm system are set by the project’s drainage designer, such as the civil, mechanical or landscape designer, and connected by the plumber or civil contractor. We don’t size drainage.
Loading and design
For every configuration, pedestrian or otherwise, the project establishes the intended loading and the design of the grate, frame, bearings, supports and fixings, with an engineer involved where the project requires one. We fabricate to those approved details and don’t publish load ratings. A channel or grate maker’s published rating does not rate the installed assembly.
Openings and traffic
Slot or opening size, orientation and how the grate meets the paving are set by the designer for the intended drainage and for the walking or wheeled traffic that crosses it, against the requirements that apply to the project. We don’t publish a standard slot size or an accessibility or slip-resistance rating.
Fixing and removal
Grates lift out for cleaning. Locking them down, and how, is included only where the approved details call for it.
Interfaces
Frames are fabricated to the approved detail for the channel and the concrete around it. The channel body, its bedding, the concrete surround and the paving are by others.

Materials and Fabrication

Materials
Stainless steel, hot-dip galvanized steel, or galvanized and coated steel, chosen for grit, de-icing salt, pool or salt water and the look of the paving. Contact with a different metal in the channel is checked at detail stage. We don’t make cast iron or ductile iron grates.
Finishes
Galvanizing and coating are done by specialist applicators and named in the quote.
Sections and joints
Grates are made in lengths that can be lifted out and handled, with joints and any expansion allowance shown on the shop drawings.
Fit
Grates are made to the channel maker’s seat dimensions or to measured openings; how fit is checked before delivery is agreed in the quote for that order.

Not part of this page: channel bodies, catch basins and area drains, and roof drainage (see roof scuppers and collector heads). Decorative water channels are on water rills and spillways, entrance mat frames on mat-well frames, and tree pit grates on tree grates.

Who Does What

Responsibilities that affect the quote

TrussMetal: grates, covers, frames and anchor lugs made to approved details; shop drawings for review; finishes through specialist applicators. Supply only.

Designer: drainage design, intended loading, the grate, frame, bearing, support and fixing design with an engineer where the project requires one, and the openings; approves the details.

Contractors: the channel and its bedding, concrete and paving, outlet connections, and installing the frames and grates.

Owner: keeping grates clear and in place, and lifting them for cleaning.

Related Work

See metalwork for landscape architects and commercial metal fabrication. For the materials, see stainless steel.

Questions

Do you size trench drains?

No. The channel, falls and outlets come from the project’s drainage designer. We make the grates and frames to the approved details.

Are your grates rated?

We don’t publish ratings. For every grate the project establishes the intended loading and the grate, frame, bearing and support design, with an engineer where required, and we fabricate to it.

Can you make a grate for an existing channel?

Yes, from measurements of the opening and seat and photos of the existing grate. On a proprietary channel system, fit and compatibility are confirmed for that system first, and the original system’s rating does not carry over to a custom grate. If the frame or channel is damaged, the project decides whether it is repaired or replaced.

Do you install them?

No. We fabricate and supply them; the contractor installing the channel or paving, or another installer the project appoints, installs the frames and grates.

Can grates be locked down?

Where the approved details call for it. Otherwise they lift out for cleaning.

Request a Quote

Send the drawings, or measurements and photos for a replacement.

What to include in your message

  • Plan of the drain run with lengths, ends and corners
  • The specified channel system and model, where there is one
  • Clear opening, and the bearing or seat dimensions and support the grate sits on
  • Grate depth available, or the depth the design sets
  • Intended traffic and loading (foot, carts, vehicles), and who approves the grate, frame, bearing and support design
  • Opening or slot requirements the designer sets for the drainage and the traffic
  • Fixing and removal: lift-out or locked down, and how often grates are lifted for cleaning
  • Material and finish, quantities, delivery location, timing and who installs them

The form starts blank: in “What do you need?”, select Other Custom Metalwork.

Request a Quote

Sending photos of your pet? After submitting, email 3–6 clear photos — front, side, three-quarter, full body and a close-up of the face — to sales@trussmetal.com with your name in the subject line. Photo tips

Have photos or drawings? Email them to sales@trussmetal.com after submitting this form. A photo of the site is the single most useful thing you can send.

Prefer to talk it through? Call (778) 805-5333, Monday to Friday, 8:30 to 5:00.