Correct installation of Supply Pipe

I am going to have to get a new one installed to replace a burst one (see my other post) and I want to check the rules and best practice. It looks like I can get a contribution to cost from Thames Water, but they will look to see it is done properly. The old pipe is lead so I will try to get the "replacing lead pipe" contribution as well as the "replace burst pipe" contribution.

Luckily, the water meter in the pavement has a T-handle to cut off the supply. The house has a large brick pit just inside the boundary with an iron trap at least 600mm square for the stopcock, so there is good working access. There is a gravel drive about 7 metres long and then the house, which is on a concrete raft. The run from the external stop cock to the pipe coming up through the floor is diagonal to the run of the road and the house frontage, I am surprised it is not straight. The pipe coming into the pit from the meter is very old and presumably ought to be replaced as well.

1) New one s/be in blue plastic?

2) must new one be in duct where underground? Is this a blue flexy duct?

3) old pipe appears to me half-inch lead, with half-inch copper alterations and stopcocks. Will 20mm plastic be OK

4) Must it be buried 750mm? (old one looks like it is about 18" down or less)
(a) what about when it is under the house?
(b) can I have it buried under the gravel, then turn up to come through the concrete floor at the edge of the house, and run it under the suspended timber floor?
(c) if under the suspended floor, what insulation must it have?

5) What about the under-pavement pipe from meter to consumers stopcock?

6) Is it OK to have a blanked-off plastic tee downstream of the stopcock, in the pit, for potential future garden tap?

7) anything I should know about joining the new plastic pipe to the internal pipe (which is in a plumbing duct rising up the corner of the front room, might be lead, copper or steel inside, but I believe there is an old brass stop-cock which has been walled up inside this duct)

8 ) if I have a tee-off from duct going through the house wall for a garden tap, are there rules or recommendations about frost protection or isolation?

9) I see there are plastic stop-cocks and brass ones, which is better?

10) can I run a temporary hosepipe to the loft CWC pending replacement of the supply pipe?

10 - even in Hep2.o or JG speedfit seeing as most here think it`s glorified hose pipe -You can leave that Live , I wouldn`t leave a hosepipe Live .

OK, thanks. I happen to have a roll of 20mm blue pipe in the shed, but I would only be connecting the pipe once a day or so while the job is going on, the loft CWC is very large. It wouls look unsightly if permanently connected.

Garden hose would be much easier to connect

You should use 25 mm MPDE blue pipe buried at 750 mm deep on a bed of pea gravel. Water co will inspect for this prior to connecting it up to the main.

Fix a new 25 mm to 15mm brass stoptap to it and connect up to your distributing pipework.

As for temporary hosepipe..........only for the brave.

John, sorry to but in, but did you find out what the deal is for Q's 2 and 4?

I've found the lead into our property runs from the front, under the front hallway floorboards resting on the oversite, then through a sleeper wall and under the old solid kitchen floor (through the mud) coming up in the rear corner of the kitchen. As I'm laying a new concrete floor would I be OK to run MDPE alongside the old?

No point in going down 750mm in the kitchen as I'm unable to dig up the oversite under the timber floor to match. Could I just insulate and sleeve in some gutter downpipe under the concrete, and run alongside the existing under the hallway.

I do not intend to connect up anything, instead I will leave the pipe in place under the floor, having fed it through using a long section of roof batten so it rests under the floor ready for future connection should it prove necessary.

Deluks said:

As I'm laying a new concrete floor would I be OK to run MDPE alongside the old?

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Can't see why not.

Deluks said:

Could I just insulate and sleeve in some gutter downpipe under the concrete, and run alongside the existing under the hallway.

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It needs to be protected from mice or frost damage so you should allow for this,

Wonder how John got on.

Bahco said:

Wonder how John got on.

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We started on the trench today and were surprised to find the old lead pipe does not run straight towards the rising pipe inside the front room of the house, it looks as if it goes under the concreted side way and then comes in under the side of the house. It turns just after the stopcock pit and runs diagonally. We are going to put the new poly pipe straight to the front of the house, perpendicular to the road, and under the suspended floor but above the concrete raft, which it is impractical to dig up. We will use Climaflex under this floor.

The local builder says the new polypipe is normally set in sharp sand, not pea shingle.

TW say they will charge £500 to replace the last metre of lead pipe between consumers stopcock inside the boundary, and company meter under the pavement just outside. So I will not have this done.

Their Lead-in-water test kit has not arrived yet.

They will give a subsidy of £210 to replace the whole pipe, or £95 to repair the leak. They are very vague about relief from metered water charges arising from the leak but say I can fill in a form after the new pipe has been inspected.

Right-o. Think I'll just insulate and sleeve in some downpipe, laid where the old pipe is, directly under the slab and coming up through some flexi conduit, then capped. Some water pipe warning tape laid directly on top of the pipe should eliminate any confusion.
Would've preferred to use the proper blue service ducting but no idea where to buy and I doubt anyone will sell just a few metres from a full roll.

I'll feed the rest of the mdpe through the sleeper wall. Can't really do much about any rodents under there, but I'll be able to sort that when (and if) the pipe gets installed. I don't intend lifting the carpet/floor in the hallway, or digging up the front garden at the moment but at least new conc floor will be spared any future digging.

Have now taken off the consumer's stopcock, and have a prob connecting to it.

The brass spigot is not a tapered jopint, it has a flange on it, but is too big to fit a 15mm connector. the socket is (just) too small for a 3/4" tap connector to go into it (though the nut fits)

Any suggs?

here is today's picture

View media item 24019
TIA

plumbers merchant has found me a 15mm x 18mm compression connector, which appears to be a reasonable fit

will see how we get on