Can this system be adapted to cold climates? What about winterization, and frost heaves?
Initial technical development of the EPIC design actually had its birth in Western New York, so the brutality of winter conditions have been well observed with no negative affect on the design. Water distribution is by gravity, and it is not a pressurized system where freezing water enclosed in a pipe expands and breaks the pipe simply because it has nowhere else to go. The EPIC chamber has an open bottom, and the six-inch high arch never has water content deeper than the bottom three inches. The short connection stubs made of 2″ Schedule 40 PVC pipe simply transfer water from Chamber to chamber and are never full of water. Winterization is a simple act of shutting off the water supply source or flicking the switch that supplies the power to the recirculating pump. There is no need to blow out any pipes, and the system simply works as a drainage system as the plants and grass become dormant. If it’s a dry winter even the residual water left in the EPIC chambers gets absorbed into the s
