Water line question

[jsconner1]

I've designed a few commercial water systems (more pressure sewer systems, but the principle is the same.) Usually the design is controlled by the local regs and what the guy doing the install wants to put in. Any of it will work for a long time if bedded and installed properly and below the freeze line. My preference is SDR11 HDPE, because it is self restraining and doesn't require any blocking at the elbows. If you run PVC you may want to put some blocking at the bends to spread the load out over the soil and keep the soil from being pushed away.

I wouldn't run anything smaller than inch and a quarter. I doubt that you need 2", but I would consider inch and a half.

 

[EddieWalker]

Eddie, good info as usual!

You and others advised against blue glue for pressure applications. Christy's rates both blue and clear for pressure in up to 4" PVC pipes. Q- what's wrong with blue?

BTW I use primer/blue glue for all water connections, medium clear for electrical PVC with no primer. Not sure why, but that's what I have always done and I can't ever remember a joint failure?

The blue glue is a glue. It does not soak into the PVC, or melt it together. AC guys use it all the time for their drain lines, and it's fine for that, but I wouldn't use it for a larger drain or vent pipe. But that's just me. I'm only comfortable with purple primer and heavy duty clear cement for all PVC, Vent and SDR pipes. The pipes really do melt together!!!!

About 7 years ago the Natural Gas company installed a yellow gas line to my house and when trenching the line, they cut the top of one of my 1 inch PVC water lines by my barn. They ran their trencher pretty much exactly where I dug for the water line, just a little above the line except for that one spot. They put it together with a coupling and Blue Glue. It held fine until this past winter when we got really cold. I found the leak a month ago. The ground stayed wet even after everything around it dried out. It took me a couple of days of seeing it before I realized it was a leak. I kept thinking it was odd that the ground was holding so much more moisture then any of the ground around that are. The leak was a minor drip, but a constant drip that had been going on for months. The pipe slid out of the coupling about 1/8th of an inch. I wonder if the pipe would have broke if they had used purple primer and heavy duty clear cement, or if it would have remained intact? Might be that having a weak link saved me from more serious damage? I don't know, but it does make me wonder when so many people around here had much worse damage from pipes breaking. That line is 2 feet in the ground, and usually well below our normal freeze depth.

 

[plowhog]

If you go to big you'll ruin your volume/pressure. Unlike a lot people think, you can not create pressure by down sizing your line

Believing you can increase PSI by reducing pipe size is commonly misunderstood.

So why do you say increasing pipe size will reduce pressure?

 

[plowhog]

Forgot to mention .. its recommended to pressure test the new pipe (using water) before covering it with sand. (maybe others already did ...)

 

[mgstevens]

In these parts (southern BC) we use a lot of black poly for the combination of continuous (any joint underground WILL fail), potable, forgiving of rock contact, and relatively inexpensive, given all the pluses. I see folks recommending PVC. I'm on a rural water system (25 properties, mountain creek fed...) and we use a combination of steel, PVC and poly. All the system's failures in the past 10 years have been PVC joints or pipe itself.

My own property uses PVC and poly. I've worked on both and where you need the minute workability of fittings - PVC - long runs: poly.

 

[grsthegreat]

All anyone here in n idaho use is the thick black poly rolls. Never heard of any failures. Our water is installed 5 feet down. Its not the Home Depot crap, I believe it’s rated 200 psi. A roll can kick your butt installing, as it can be 500 feet long and nearly impossible to unroll. Ive had it re-roll itself while I was in the trench...thought this is it.

 

[Tony H]

My new home install from a well, I ran 1" black 'Well' hose in 1.5" sch40. We are very Rocky with sharp shale..i did it all at once as I didn't want to get screwed if I couldn't pull the black.

 

[Hillfarmer]

Two years ago I had to reroute waterline to my house. The house is about 300 ft from the meter and 45 ft vertically over a 1-1/2 -1 slope. I didn’t want to have to dig on the slope again so I put a 1” sdr9 cts dr9 hdpe waterline (blue looks like pex but slightly different) through 2” electrical conduit with long sweep elbows. If I ever have an issue I just unhook both ends and pull new line in as old line comes out. I have never had a lack of water even at my barn which is another 300ft from house with similarly ran line from house. The local water company does run with higher pressures thought. Whatever pipe you chose make sure you get appropriate fittings. There are 4-5 versions of PE pipe in that size range.

 

[RalphVa]

I have to run a water line to a home I'm building and would like to get some of your opinions on what you guys would do. Now remember its hard to find most materials. I'm needing to get the water line in so they can pour the concrete pad for shop. The shop pad is about 350 feet from the meter and I'm running 1" line. My two options are 1" pex and schedule 40. This is somewhat rocky ground with a lot of clay, sand and small stone in the mix. I'm reading that it wouldn't be a bad idea if I go with Pex to sleeve it which is going to raise the cost.

Pex line 1" x 400' is going run around 400.00 and I will roughly have two fitting in the total run. If I sleeve the pex with 4'x100' black corrugated sewer and drain pipe its going add another 240.00 for a total of 640.00. The pex isn't a full one inch inside diameter and more like .830. I can get a 300' roll and 100' roll so really one connection to get to shop.

Schedule 40 will be in 20' sticks at around 300.00 and I wouldn't think I would need to sleeve this. With the schedule 40 I will have about 20 glue joints and of course would use the blue glue in a quart. The PVC is a full one inch ID which means more water up to home and shop.

I am somewhat familiar with both setups. Meaning I have experience gluing PVC and I also have a pex tool and have ran pex before. My pocket book is telling me to go with PVC. Probably no clear cut answers but what would you guys do in this situation?

I vote for PVC. It's tough stuff. Unless your pump rate is way in excess of 5 gpm, 3/4" is big enough. I've about 1100 feet of 3/4" just running down the hill and along a maintenance road to a little stream below. I run over it with the tractor a number of times in 2 or 3 places. Has ovalled it out a bit but only ever had a leak where I caught it with the bush hog. Much more careful. Haven't done that in a long time.

 

[workinonit]

Good grief. The man has no idea what to do based on the responses which I actually got tired of reading. I think 4" welded joint stainless steel is the way to go.

Oh, and bury it 6' deep.