Complete the Look

Elegant gratings to deliver an aesthetic surface finish and effective drainage

Select from ACO’s Complete the Look gratings and combine with an ACO channel to deliver both an aesthetic surface finish and effective drainage for your paved surfaces. 

• Select a grate to complement your aesthetic: Make your ACO channel drainage blend in, stand out or disappear against your paving wth a grate that fits your budget.
• Effective surface drainage: All gratings are compatible with ACO’s HexDrain and RainDrain channels, which deliver effective surface drainage for most domestic installations.*
• Carrying the load: Each grating is tested to withstand either pedestrian or vehicle traffic, as listed below.

Achieve effective drainage for your paving with an ACO channel system and an elegant surface finish with a Complete the Look grating.

*A 10m run of HexDrain or RainDrain could drain up to 145m² paved area during a 50mm per hour rainfall event (in accordance with the guidance in Building Regulations for England 2015 Section H3 2.4).

We want more from our outdoor spaces. The outside is the new inside. We relax with family and friends in our outdoor living and dining spaces, plus we need to charge the e-vehicle on the driveway. We select from a broad range of porcelain and natural stone to create these outdoor living spaces. 

Yet we live in a changed world of increased rainfall. If we pave over the rain-absorbing ground, we must also install effective drainage to manage the rainwater runoff from these paved surfaces.

These drainage solutions can be aesthetic, rather than utilitarian, complementing the elegant paving upon which we enjoy time with family and friends in our outdoor living spaces.

• For more on domestic rainwater management, see our Water Talk page

Make the channel drain almost disappear against your paving with a slotted product.

The striking and creative pattern in the Voronoi grating or the contemporary design of Wedge Wire grating makes an elegant statement against your paving.

The different finishes of gratings delivers the look you want. The dark finish of Anthracite blends in against surrounding slate paving, while Stainless Steel sits well with grey paving tones.The black of Mosaic and Intercept supports the transition from paving to tarmac at the driveway end.

HeelGuard™ grate openings are no more than 10mm to reduce risk of a shoe heel becoming caught in the grate.

All Complete the Look gratings fit both ACO HexDrain® and RainDrain® channels which provide effective drainage for paved surfaces in most domestic installations. 

HexDrain and RainDrain channels and RainDrain sumps available without gratings, to which the grating of your choice is added from the range above.

• Find out about HexDrain channels
• Find out about RainDrain channels

Ensure the load class of the grating and channel match for either pedestrian (A 15) or vehicle (B 125) installation. HexDrain channels are rated A 15; RainDrain channels are B 125. An A 15 grating on a B 125 channel will only be rated for pedestrian use.

• For more on load class, click here.

Use the ACO Building + Landscape visualiser tool to see what a grating looks like against different paving types. Make a selection based on:

• Grating choice
• Installation location: patio, driveway or threshold drainage
• Paving surface finish

• ACO Building + Landscape visualiser tool