Lead main leaking

[david1805]

Hi all,

The house that I'm renovating has a lead main which emerges from the ground up the external brickwork before going through the wall to the stopcock inside the house. The pipe is leaking at the point where it enters the house. Is it the responsibility of the water board to fix at their cost or is this my problem?


Many thanks.

 

[kevplumb]

your problem

 

[Agile]

If you can see the exact point its leaking from you could tap it with a hammer and that might stop it as a temporary repair.

Tony

 

[david1805]

Thanks, I'll give that a try as a temporary fix.

Do you know whether it is 'normal' practice to route mains pipes such as this under the floor of the house (the shortest route to the tap in the road) or do they generally follow the perimeter of the house?

 

[kevplumb]

shortest run normally but it's not a rule

 

[clf-gas]

make a temporary repair as Tony mentions (dont hit it like you tryin to break it light tapping will surfice). Contact your water supplier and complain of lead service, will take time but they should replace.

good luck

 

[Agile]

Its normally taken as the shortest route and under the floors when the house is built.

It sounds as if mains water was added later and in this case it might explain why it was not done in a compliant way.

Tony

 

[BoxBasher]

The pipe is leaking at the point where it enters the house. Is it the responsibility of the water board to fix at their cost or is this my problem?

Entirely your problem. Water Co's responsibility ends at the highway boundary. They may have a scheme to assist with leaks but these usually don't extend to anything visible, above ground, or within the building itself.

Contact your water supplier and complain of lead service, will take time but they should replace.

They will only replace what is theirs which is just the communication pipe in the street (from distribution main to highway boundary). Contacting them to let them know you have a leak may just end up with an inspector serving a notice for the repair (giving you anything from 7-14 days to get it fixed or else).

Its normally taken as the shortest route and under the floors when the house is built.
It sounds as if mains water was added later and in this case it might explain why it was not done in a compliant way.

On the contrary, it doesn't follow any strict convention. It all depends on when the plumber was there. If he was on site when the footings were open, it went alongside the footings. If he went in and the floors were open, or it was a terrace with main at front, it went under the floor.

Do you know whether it is 'normal' practice to route mains pipes such as this under the floor of the house (the shortest route to the tap in the road) or do they generally follow the perimeter of the house?

As above, it depends on the plumber. As is the case with most jobs done these days - easier the better. Cowboys aren't a new thing, they just had a higher degree of skill in the old days.