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Data Centres · Tier III/IV · Colocation

H₂S from the drain.
Corrosion on the PCB.
SLA at risk.

Hydrogen sulphide and related sulphide gases from drain biofilm are a recognised contributor to creep corrosion on gold contacts and silver solder joints, and the damage often shows up months after the exposure starts. Green Drain™ is a passive one-way insert that keeps sewer gas in the pipe, removing one route by which those gases reach the room air.

Fits drains built to EN 1253Tested to ASSE 1072-2020No chemicalsNo maintenance window needed
One-way
Silicone barrier — no water seal to evaporate
−40 to +100 °C
Operating temperature range
~5 years
Expected service life
0
Chemicals required
Problem & solution

What ASHRAE and Telcordia say.

ASHRAE TC9.9 guidance and Telcordia GR-63-CORE both address corrosive gases in equipment spaces. Neither says anything about floor drains, but a dry trap is one of the simpler ways for sulphide gases to get into a building, and it is easy to fix.

Without Green Drain™

  • Dry traps in plant rooms and washrooms let sulphide gases into the building.
  • Creep corrosion on gold connectors — typically shows up months after exposure.
  • Silver solder and copper traces exposed to sulphides — reliability falls away.
  • Hardware faults caused by the room environment, which are slow and expensive to diagnose.
  • Traps in rarely used areas lose their seal within two to four weeks and nobody notices.

With Green Drain™

  • Mechanical one-way barrier — H₂S, SO₂ and CH₄ stay in the pipe.
  • Supports, but does not replace, your wider air-quality controls.
  • Rated from −40 °C to +100 °C, so hot aisles are no obstacle.
  • No chemicals and no fumes near sensitive IT equipment.
  • Tested to ASSE 1072-2020 and compatible with drains built to EN 1253 — documentation supplied for internal audit.
Standards and framework

A sector with strict standards.

ASHRAE TC9.9 guidance and Telcordia GR-63-CORE address the equipment environment, the Uptime Institute rates resilience from Tier I to Tier IV, and ANSI/TIA-942 covers infrastructure and environmental controls. None of these standards addresses floor drain trap seals, so drain hygiene is a housekeeping matter rather than a compliance one. Dublin remains one of Europe's largest data centre clusters.

ASHRAE TC9.9
Guidance on the equipment environment
Telcordia GR-63
CORE — telecommunications equipment
Tier I–IV
Uptime Institute resilience classification
Dublin
One of Europe's largest data centre clusters
ANSI/TIA-942
Data centre infrastructure and environmental controls
EN 1253
Irish gullies are built to it — Green Drain™ fits them
Data Sources and Regulatory Framework (2024–2025 data)

Statistical data taken from official Irish and EU sources: Central Statistics Office Ireland (cso.ie), Health Service Executive (hse.ie), Fáilte Ireland (failteireland.ie), Bord Bia (bordbia.ie), IDA Ireland (idaireland.com), Health Products Regulatory Authority (hpra.ie). Regulatory framework: EUR-Lex for EU directives — EU 2017/745 (MDR), EC 852/2004 (food hygiene, HACCP), EU 1935/2004 and EU 10/2011 (food contact materials), EU 528/2012 (BPR), EU 2014/34 (ATEX). Standards: EN 1253-1 (floor P-traps, water seal ≥50 mm), EN 1253 Parts 6/7/8 (gullies with a water seal below 50 mm, with mechanical closure, and combined types; 2023 editions), HACCP International RG-04, ASSE 1072-2020, NSF/ANSI 2, HSE AMRIC (Antimicrobial Resistance and Infection Control) guidance. Notes on status: Green Drain™ is an insert fitted into an existing drain, not a factory-made gully, so it is compatible with drains built to EN 1253 rather than certified to it; it is classified Class I under EU MDR 2017/745 with conformity self-declared under Annex IV (the manufacturer is registered in EUDAMED under SRN DK-MF-000052289 — there is no third-party MDR certificate), it does not prevent, diagnose or treat disease and supplements rather than replaces infection prevention and control protocols; NSF/ANSI 2 evidence is a listing (C0571796); HACCP International RG-04 is a private certification programme and it remains for the operator to decide whether to include the product in their own HACCP plan. Revision date: May 2026.

Implementation

Delivered through change management.

Nothing gets improvised in a data centre. Everything goes through formal change management and an agreed maintenance window. Fitting out a typical washroom takes about 30 minutes.

01

Technical review

We survey the drainage layout and note where traps sit in relation to the machine hall.

02

Pilot zone

One washroom and corridor over 30 days, with H₂S and SO₂ readings before and after.

03

Change management

The change is raised formally and added to the maintenance schedule.

04

Roll-out

Fitted during agreed maintenance windows, roughly 30 minutes per washroom.

Model Recommendation

Recommended sizes by data centre zone.

Irish data centres are typically built to Tier II–IV resilience levels. Staff washrooms use conventional DN50 drains, while mechanical zones, CRAC rooms and UPS rooms are heavier duty. The silicone insert is rated from −40 °C to +100 °C, so hot aisles present no problem.

Green Drain™ recommended sizes for data centres.

  • Staff washrooms and NOC support roomsGD 2. The zone that matters most: sewer gas from the toilets should never reach the machine hall.
  • Technical basement and UPS roomsGD 3. Traps here are rarely run and dry out unnoticed.
  • CRAC plant room and chiller zoneGD 4. Copes with condensation, damp and cold.
  • Central channel drains on the technical floorGD 5 or GD 6. Sized for high volumes of HVAC condensate.
💬 Not sure of the exact size? Send us a photo of your sink drain — our technical team will respond with a written recommendation within the same business day, free of charge.
Check out Green Drain™ → Request a quote
GD 2
DN50 · washrooms, support rooms
GD 3
DN80 · technical basement, UPS
GD 4
DN100 · CRAC, chiller
GD 5
DN125 · central technical channel drain
GD 6
DN150 · main drainage channel
Questions

What we get asked most.

Will this help with a Tier III/IV audit?

We supply the technical documentation and the ASSE 1072-2020 test report, and confirm compatibility with drains built to EN 1253. Uptime Institute tier certification does not cover floor drains, so this is supporting evidence for your own corrosive-gas risk assessment rather than a compliance requirement.

Can we measure the effect?

Yes. Take H₂S, SO₂ and CH₄ readings at chosen points before installation and again afterwards, and compare.

Complete solution

Three products.
One protection portfolio.

Green Drain™ works best alongside GD Uri-Tabs™ for urinals and GreenSwirl™ for clearing biofilm and slow drains.

Ready for a free audit?

We come to the site, map the drains, and provide a written recommendation — no cost, no obligation.