How should you go about designing a new system?

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Hello,

I'm looking for a bit of advice as I'm feeling a little bit out of my depth... Oh boy... Not a good pun when I'm talking about plumbing and water! :eek:

Anyways, as the title says I'm interested how you should go about designing a new system. I'm needing to replumb an old building we use. It's at the moment got a lead pipe coming in and the copper work inside is in a terrible state, it was done 40+ years ago (before my time) with no design or plan. To give an example, one length of pipe is around 4 meters but changes diameter just as many times! So, it's all getting taken out and replaced. The CH system has already been removed and replaced with a hot air system and I'm now looking at replacing the domestic part (not sure that is the correct wording, but the part that deals with toilets, sinks etc.).

But, I'm not sure if I'm making things much harder than they actually need to be or what. I'm starting to get to grips with what seems to me rather intricate details of fluid dynamics such as the Darcy-Weisbach equation and calculating friction factors from reynolds numbers etc. All of which I'm sure is right and good but I cannot imagine a plumber using such things for what is really a straight forward job.

I know that the new mains pipe will be 32mm MDPE and the water supplier has told me they guarantee a pressure of 1 bar, but how does that translate into flow rates inside the house etc.

Where should I be starting with this?

Thanks! :)
 
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As part of the basic design principles then what needs to be used is achievable pressure and flow, loading units and water velocities. All that coupled with pipe lengths, sizes, bends etc.

Have a read at this - should give an idea on how to look at it if you want to use tables - http://copperplumbing.org.uk/sites/...ttachments/pipe-sizing-basic-principles_1.pdf. Even then this really only gives optimum design sizing.

There's lots of information available out there, just look under 'domestic water pipe sizing'. Light commercial is much the same but diversity is more prevalent.
 

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