Drainage Slope Calculator

Calculate required vertical drop for drainage lines from horizontal run and target slope.

Author

Prof. Hans Muller

Plumbing editorial contributor

German renewable energy engineer at TU Munich, pioneering grid-scale hydrogen storage solutions

Reviewed by

Dr. Isabella Rossi

Plumbing content reviewer

Italian neuroscientist at Sapienza University of Rome, studying the neural mechanisms of bilingual language processing

Last updatedFebruary 22, 2026

PublishedFebruary 22, 2026

30 ft run at 0.125 in/ft =

3.75 in drop

Representative value from the Drainage Slope Calculator reference table.

Reference Values

Browse 40 reference values with individual detail pages for quick lookup.

Browse all reference values

Drainage Slope Calculator

Compute vertical drop from run length and planned drainage slope.

Calculated Drop

Reference Table

Use this complete table for quick lookup and internal linking to specific value pages.

Drainage Slope Calculator Reference
Drain ScenarioDrop (in)Drop (ft)Slope (%)
5 ft run at 0.125 in/ft0.625 in drop0.0521.042
5 ft run at 0.25 in/ft1.25 in drop0.1042.083
5 ft run at 0.5 in/ft2.5 in drop0.2084.167
5 ft run at 1 in/ft5 in drop0.4178.333
10 ft run at 0.125 in/ft1.25 in drop0.1041.042
10 ft run at 0.25 in/ft2.5 in drop0.2082.083
10 ft run at 0.5 in/ft5 in drop0.4174.167
10 ft run at 1 in/ft10 in drop0.8338.333
15 ft run at 0.125 in/ft1.875 in drop0.1561.042
15 ft run at 0.25 in/ft3.75 in drop0.3132.083
15 ft run at 0.5 in/ft7.5 in drop0.6254.167
15 ft run at 1 in/ft15 in drop1.258.333
20 ft run at 0.125 in/ft2.5 in drop0.2081.042
20 ft run at 0.25 in/ft5 in drop0.4172.083
20 ft run at 0.5 in/ft10 in drop0.8334.167
20 ft run at 1 in/ft20 in drop1.6678.333
25 ft run at 0.125 in/ft3.125 in drop0.261.042
25 ft run at 0.25 in/ft6.25 in drop0.5212.083
25 ft run at 0.5 in/ft12.5 in drop1.0424.167
25 ft run at 1 in/ft25 in drop2.0838.333
30 ft run at 0.125 in/ft3.75 in drop0.3131.042
30 ft run at 0.25 in/ft7.5 in drop0.6252.083
30 ft run at 0.5 in/ft15 in drop1.254.167
30 ft run at 1 in/ft30 in drop2.58.333
40 ft run at 0.125 in/ft5 in drop0.4171.042
40 ft run at 0.25 in/ft10 in drop0.8332.083
40 ft run at 0.5 in/ft20 in drop1.6674.167
40 ft run at 1 in/ft40 in drop3.3338.333
50 ft run at 0.125 in/ft6.25 in drop0.5211.042
50 ft run at 0.25 in/ft12.5 in drop1.0422.083
50 ft run at 0.5 in/ft25 in drop2.0834.167
50 ft run at 1 in/ft50 in drop4.1678.333
75 ft run at 0.125 in/ft9.375 in drop0.7811.042
75 ft run at 0.25 in/ft18.75 in drop1.5632.083
75 ft run at 0.5 in/ft37.5 in drop3.1254.167
75 ft run at 1 in/ft75 in drop6.258.333
100 ft run at 0.125 in/ft12.5 in drop1.0421.042
100 ft run at 0.25 in/ft25 in drop2.0832.083
100 ft run at 0.5 in/ft50 in drop4.1674.167
100 ft run at 1 in/ft100 in drop8.3338.333

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about Drainage Slope Calculator, formulas, and typical use cases.

How is drainage drop calculated?

Drop equals horizontal run multiplied by slope in inches per foot.

What does a slope of 1/4 in per foot mean?

It means the pipe drops 0.25 inches vertically for every 12 inches of horizontal run.

Why convert slope to percent grade?

Percent grade is commonly used for site and civil coordination, while in/ft is common in plumbing layout.

Is steeper slope always better?

Not always. Excessive slope can separate liquids and solids in gravity drainage systems, so follow code and design guidance.

Methodology and Review

This page combines a live calculator, precomputed reference values, and FAQ content from the same conversion definition to reduce mismatch between calculator output and lookup tables.

Editorial metadata (author, reviewer, and update date) is rendered on the page and in structured data. See our editorial policy, review process, and corrections policy.

For compliance-sensitive work, verify final values against project requirements, governing standards, and manufacturer documentation.