Anyone Got A Metal Detector I Could Borrow?

danniemcq

So before this big freeze hits again this year i really need to find the water pipes and any others that are outside, last year and year before we had frozen pipes so no water. My thinking is if i manage to find the pipes i could possibly insulate them a bit more. landlady isn't sure where they are and in case of emergency it'd be nice to be able to turn off the water too.

So all i need it for is an evening/weekend morning for an hour or 2 so no point in buying one i don't think.

Anybody able to help?

muffler

You wont find a water pipe with a metal detector as the pipes are plastic. You might be able to locate the stop cock but that should be easily found in any event as it will have a little cast iron flip lid on top of it's chamber and should be flush with the surrounding ground/road/path.

Most times (not all now) the domestic water pipe coming from the mains will be at right angles to the said main. The mains supply should be located on the adjacent public road or below the footpath. So if you first of all locate the stop cock and then start digging straight back towards the public road then you should be able to unearth it.

danniemcq

never thought of the pipes being plastic but yeah that makes sense! hmmmm i will admit i have been looking for the stop cock but no luck finding it yet.

I'll try and look for where the main mian one is and see if i can trace that back roughly to the house and see what i find.

its very odd though cause i know what the wee flap thing looks like and roughly where it should be but can't see anything

KERSPLAT!

Last summer the council laid tarmaccadum in our estate. Come winter and frozen pipes it took us hours to find the mains and get it shut off! Luckily a plumber from up the road sorted the burst pipe pretty quick and there wasn't any major damage

Anyway, if theres any recent road resurfacing outside your house it could be there

danniemcq

hmmm not really... fecking bugging the hell outta me, even asked neighbour and he doesn't know and his water was grand all winter

muffler

You need to be looking for something like this type of cover for the stop cock



If you can locate that then you should have no problem in digging around it and seeing what direction the inlet pipe from the mains is coming.

The stop cock is normally located not far from the kitchen sink. Traditionally the service pipe from the mains will go directly to the kitchen sink (tee'd off with pipe going to storage tank in attic). So the stop cock will be located somewhere along that line. It could be 3' out from the wall where the sink is or it could be 1 foot inside the boundary. It does vary but is usually located closer to house than to road.

Another couple of things you could try is: If the house was built in the last few years try getting hold of the builder or one of his workers. They should know where the pipes are located. If the house is part of an estate ask some of the neigbours about their pipes as all would have been serviced in the same way/layout.

Again if its a reasonable new house you could pop into the local planning office to see if the file is available for inspection and have a look at the layout for the site.

If you know any of the guys in the water & environment section of the council maybe they might call with you the nest time they would be in that area as they have a "water detector" which will locate water pipes.

Flibbles

Not looking forward to this winter, last year we didn't lose water out in Ballymacool woods or in the fiances mothers house in Glenwood, but up here lost it last year apparently

danniemcq

hmmmm near kitchen sink..... crap all that back area was concreted over

its a fairly old estate afaik and land lady isn't sure where it would be either.

might send council and email and see if they would be in the area anytime soon. long shot but worth it i guess

i'll have a proper look at the house this evening too and try and trace where the pipes seem to head. pain in the arse having no water, its amazing how much you rely on it these days!