Low water pressure--who's fault?

[voicewing]

HELP! We bought our home in February, and it is only 8 years old. Our water comes from an association with a tower. Our water pressure is SO bad that it is almost impossible to shower, and washing clothes or the car takes hours! Our next door neighbor has poor pressure, also, and he says it's the water association's fault for splitting off from his line when our house was built. The association people have been nice enough to come dig up the line enough to check the water flow from both sides of the meter. It seems to be fine (I was there when they did it), and they blame the whole-house water filter under our house. However, when we turn the filter to bypass, it doesn't add enough pressure to even be significant. How can we find out what the problem is (and fix it) without spending hundreds of dollars? If it's the association's problem, how can we prove it and make them fix it without childish legal battles?

I JUST WANT TO BE ABLE TO KEEP SHOWERING WHILE MY HUSBAND BRUSHES HIS TEETH!!!!

Thanks!

Karen

[mrcaptainbob]

I would first try the system without a filter cartridge in place. That would most certainly eliminate any cartridge issues. Sometimes the by-pass may not work. One more point...are you also operating on a water softener?

[LazyPup]

In your post you state that your line has been tapped off the neighbors line.

The code minimum for a residential service line is a 3/4 inch line thus if the original line is 3/4 inch the section of line from the source to the point of tap is not large enough to meet code minimums to supply two 3/4 inch lines.

Disconnect your main line at the first union on the house side of the main shutoff and install a water pressure guage. Open the main valve and measure the supply service line pressure.

You would have to check your local codes to find out what their minimum line pressure requirement is, and if the supply pressure does not meet minimum you are required to have a pressure tank and pump installed.

The International Residential Code (IRC 2903.3) requires a pressure tank and pump if the supply pressure is less than 40psi, while the Uniform Pumbing Code (UPC) requires a pressure tank and pump if the supply pressure is less than 15psi (UPC 608.1)

[voicewing]

Thanks, guys, for your replies. First, when we first discovered that we had a filter, we blamed it and took the cartridge out. That didn't help very much.

Our neighbor and I are the only ones on our road who belong to this water association (and of course, not by choice). He personally laid the pipe (pvc, I think) all the way to the end of the road, and I think he said he used either 2 or 4 inch. (Either way, it should be enough for 2 houses.) He did this because the old pipes were small and metal and constantly stayed messed up or blew tons of rust in his lines. The association wouldn't change them, so he just did it himself. (He owns the land, so he could do that.)

I guess a pressure gauge at the pump would be our next step, then. We've got to start working with some actual measurements.

Thanks for your help!

Karen

P.S.> I used some of your earlier posting comments to fix my toe lift drain last night. Thanks SO SO much!

[voicewing]

Sorry, forgot---no water softener. We live in Mississippi.

[voicewing]

One more question--

About having that pump installed, did you mean that WE would be required to install it, or THEY would be required?

[LazyPup]

Determining who is responsible to install the pump would depend on local codes. Normally during construction the line pressure is measured and if a pump is required it is part of the home, however, on a public water system each municipality has set minimum standards for line pressure. If the supply line pressure is below your local code requirement the association may have to stand the cost of the pump and pressure tank.

[LazyPup]

Another possibility has come to mind. You stated that you believe the neighbor used PVC to lay the line. Although PVC is listed as approved for direct burial it is often not a good choice because PVC has a tremendious thermal expansion factor and as a result often joints fail.

You may want to walk the line and look for any possible signs of leaks that would result in a loss of water pressure. If possible you should check the line pressure at both the source and the residence end. Any substantial loss of pressure on the line would indicate a leak.

Seamless continuous Roll Poly line is the preferred line for direct burial of potable water supply systems.