Shared mains water

[theskit]

i live in a ground floor flat in a Victorian terrcae with a couple living above me on the first floor of the property. I have an old Vokera combi boiler which is fed from a shared mains water pipe. There is one mains water pipe entering my property from the stopcock in the street, the pipe then splits into 2, one smaller pipe feeding upstairs and another pipe feeding my boiler.

I am planning on renovating including replacing the boiler with a new unit, should I consider having my own dedictaed mains water installed ?

just wondering if new boilers need their own supply.

 

[simond]

You do not say whether you ave experienced any disadvantages with the way things are configured now. This would make the question a lot easier to answer.

If you don't have a problem it is possibly not worth fixing.

 

[theskit]

hi - yes shower goes hot and cold, however this could be due to very old shower mixer or possibly boiler or both I assume.

I would like to renovate the whole place and wanted to know when replacing the boiler whether I should consider getting my own supply, or is that not really necessary ?

 

[JohnD]

see what water flow (litres per minute) you get at your kitchen sink by filling a bucket at the cold tap and timing it. If your neighbours ever convert to a Combi (most people do) they too will want a good pressure and flow that is not impacted by your usage. Storage tanks are much more forgiving.

Try it again (if you can) when you know your neighbours are also running water

Personally I would always prefer to have my own water pipe. Do you think it would be difficult to dig a trench to the roadside? Is the old pipe lead or iron? Can you see how thick it is?

 

[theskit]

hi - the mains pipe looks like iron not lead, I havent measured it but would say it is slightly thicker than 20p piece.

the water in the kitchen sink shoots out very quickly, I will time it, thanks for the advice

I spoke to Thames Water, they said it would cost £500 quid for my own mains pipe.

 

[bengasman]

The basic answer is simple: independent pipe, especially when upgraded to larger size than you have now, with your own independent stopcock is better.
Is it really necessary? Probably not.
Worth the money? If I was doing the whole flat up, I would do it for the combined advantages, but this is something only you can decide.

 

[Agile]

There is also the question of water metering. That can be an advantage if your consumption is lower than average.

Its really a matter of considering the situation jointly with your neighbour.

I would almost suggest a replaced, but larger, supply pipe into the property and split in a balanced way. Costs shared of course.

The upstairs is most likely to be affected more than you. Any decision should take into account the upstairs installation, both current and future.

Tony