Water mains stop cock not deep enough.

Xcellor

With all the freezing of pipes etc I'm just curious about this. Our water supply is provided by Longford County Council. It appears that the builder did not put the stop cock deep enough in the ground so the pipes that feed this are obviously to high in the ground also. The builder is well and truly gone now so no recourse there just wondering if the council bears the responsibility of this now? We are talking about 25 houses which could potentially face freezing water mains if the ice age returns.

I would imagine that any work at this level would require the whole estate being switched off in terms of water while work was being carried out?

Thanks for input.

X

Xcellor

Also is there no council supervision of this task? I mean basic utility services like water/drainage I would have thought someone in council needs to rubber stamp that minimum requirements have been met...?

yawn

Just out of curiosity where in Longford are you?

I am in the same position. Stopcock & pipes are only so far down. I know someone across from is in worse condition it is half again what I am down and I reckon mine was only buried about 8"

Xcellor

I'm in Newtownforbes, Castleglen just outside the village. Not all my neighbours froze but some left their taps dripping.. Since the council advises against this I wonder if they are going to be willing to fix the problem??

yawn

Was it a private estate when you moved in?

I moved into a private estate and unfortunatly the builders were cowboys to say the least. Pipes are at most 8" down ( some houses are no more than 5" ). The developer is in another county but he does have some houses here still so the council are refusing to help any further than opening the mains water feed into the estate for a few mins for people to fill up. They said they will not bear the costs to do anything as it will be up to the developer but they can only ask him and not make him do anything.

luap_42

yawn wrote: »

Was it a private estate when you moved in?

I moved into a private estate and unfortunatly the builders were cowboys to say the least. Pipes are at most 8" down ( some houses are no more than 5" ). The developer is in another county but he does have some houses here still so the council are refusing to help any further than opening the mains water feed into the estate for a few mins for people to fill up. They said they will not bear the costs to do anything as it will be up to the developer but they can only ask him and not make him do anything.

You house should have a Homebond or other insurance to cover major problems occurring. Maybe you can get them to investigate.

The builder is also almost definitely liable, as it sounds like the pipes were not laid observing building regs. The residents could sue the builder for any remedial work that is required to fix the situation. I'd be talking to a solicitor very seriously if I were you.

qc3

luap_42 wrote: »

You house should have a Homebond or other insurance to cover major problems occurring. Maybe you can get them to investigate.

The builder is also almost definitely liable, as it sounds like the pipes were not laid observing building regs. The residents could sue the builder for any remedial work that is required to fix the situation. I'd be talking to a solicitor very seriously if I were you.

Homebond only cover the structure of the dwelling in the event of bad workmanship.

The builder will not be liable unless the hydodare pipe is in a shallow trench. The urban and county councils used stopcocks that were only 6" deep for years, then changed them to the metered, round deeper ones. They will not take the blame but if they are shallow then they should be held accountable for fixing the problem

mad m

Pipes should be at buried at least 2ft down...

dawnymac

My house was built in 2002, by a private contractor who has since gone out of business. My stopcock is only buried 6 inches. Was this the regulation depth in 2002? My house is covered under homebond, will this give me any come back? To bury the whole thing deeper will involve digging up my drive and footpaths and as such will be a major job!
I've stuffed the entire stopcock opening with insulation in the hope of helping but not sure what else to do! Any advice gratefully received!

Sparkpea

12-18 inches should be sufficient

Buford T Justice

Outkast_IRE wrote: »

Ya i think 700 or 750 is the minimum if i was burying the minimum i would prob feck some lagging on for peace of mind especially where pipe rises to enter builiding or pump house etc , if i went a bit deeper i wouldnt be so worried

From a P&H Thread

Menas

We are in a 1970s estate that is run by Dun laoghaire/rathdown council.
Had the same issue with pipes not burried deep enough and freezing over every time someone opened the fridge.

But interestingly, the council are now replacing all the old pipes in our estate and installing water meters. As part of this they are ensuring that the pipes are now 2ft down which will hopefully stop then freezing over.

Of course, the downside is that the meters are been added too!

dawnymac

Right, so I have the stopcock insulated and so far so good. Does anyone know if I should shovel the snow from the path above the pipe or should I leave it to act as insulation?

Thanks!

martin46585

sometimes the design of the stop cock dictates the depth of the pipe at this point, the mains is much lower in the ground, and the 1/2" pipe rises upto the s/c and then back down again, paired this with a brass fitting or two at the s/c its here it freezes, so a well placed door mat, or piece of carpet may just be the difference in having water or not, probably not a great looking fix, but none the less a quick one................

dawnymac

Thanks Martin, I've stuffed the entire thing with insulation, the same stuff the new Stopcock Cosy is made from (too shallow for the actual cosy).
The entire opening is well stuffed with it anyhow! I also have a door mat over the lid. I've left the snow on the foot path around it as I heard this can help insulate so fingers crossed!

Hightower21

Just wonder if there is any building regulation that states the min depth that a watermain and stopcock should be at.?
Have been looking everywhere but no idea

gsxr1

makes a big difference being deep.

Mine is 24 inchs below the concrete and insulated . No problems at -19.

nightster1

Xcellor wrote: »

With all the freezing of pipes etc I'm just curious about this. Our water supply is provided by Longford County Council. It appears that the builder did not put the stop cock deep enough in the ground so the pipes that feed this are obviously to high in the ground also. The builder is well and truly gone now so no recourse there just wondering if the council bears the responsibility of this now? We are talking about 25 houses which could potentially face freezing water mains if the ice age returns.

I would imagine that any work at this level would require the whole estate being switched off in terms of water while work was being carried out?

Thanks for input.


X

its a contravention of building regulations not to put the pipes in deep enough. Was there a supervising engineer?

magicmick

there is a plumber down in kerry advertising on done deal who,ll replace your pipes 3ft deep. buy drilling a new hole.

Hightower21

Just wondering Nightster1 where does it say this? have been looking around but cat find it.

nightster1

Hightower21 wrote: »

Just wondering Nightster1 where does it say this? have been looking around but cat find it.

Not sure exactly, but the supervising engineer has a duty of care under the buildin regs to ensure that the below ground pipes are deep enough to avoid frost action

Hightower21

The only thing I can find is a recommendation from the Dept of the environment as to what depth for a water main.
900mm for a watermain and 600mm for a service main (servicing your house.)
There doesn’t seem to be any regulation to say this only a recommendation that any builder or engineer can ignore.

I hope I am wrong!