Can I grind off the grate tabs on the Easydrain Compact drain?

[MarkW1]

I purchased some Easydrain Compact lengths from Bunnings for placing along the edge of a brick retaining wall to take water from a sloping paved area that I intend to undertake. As one edge of the drain will be along the brick wall it will not be possible to put a screw driver on that side to get the grate out. My query is whether I can simply grind off the 6 grate tabs along section so that the plastic grates can be easily removed and replaced without the use of a screw driver. Although I think this will work and make it much easier to remove the grates I am wondering if there are any issues with this approach and whether anyone has tried this solution.

[JacobZ]

Hi @MarkW1,

Thank you for your question and welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community, it is fantastic to have you join us.

The Everhard EasyDRAIN Compact Polymer Grate And Channels are designed to be installed flush with the ground, in which case there is no access to the outside of the grate.

You can see in the below photo there are 6 slots on the top of the drain where a screwdriver can be inserted to lever the grate off of the channel. 

If installed up against a wall, you will still have access to these slots, so there is no need to grind anything off of the drainage channels.

Let me know if you have any further questions.

Jacob

[MarkW1]

Thanks Jacob the main issue I will have is that the side that is against the wall will not allow a screwdriver to angle away from the drain to release the tabs as the wall will stop that.

[JacobZ]

Hi @MarkW1,

If you stick a flat head screwdriver into the slot and rotate it as opposed to levering it, the grate will flex enough for you to lift it out and the screwdriver will not need to lean over towards the wall.

Realistically, if you are concerned about ease of removing the grate, there is no real reason you can't grind off the tabs on the wall side of the channel, but I'd suggest leaving the opposite side so there is still a way of clipping the grate to the channel.

Let me know if you've got any other questions.

Jacob