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    njain's Avatar
    njain Posts: 4, Reputation: 1
    New Member
     
    #1

    Jun 25, 2009, 08:19 PM
    New Water Pipe Size
    We are putting new plumbing in the house. The size of the meter is 3/4".

    Can we put 1" pipe from the meter to the house, or should there be 3/4" pipe?

    Our contractor put 3/4" pipe from the main and then he put 1" pipe after the cut off.

    Is this right?
    iamgrowler's Avatar
    iamgrowler Posts: 1,421, Reputation: 110
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    #2

    Jun 26, 2009, 02:53 AM
    Quote Originally Posted by njain View Post
    We are putting new plumbing in the house. The size of the meter is 3/4".

    Can we put 1" pipe from the meter to the house, or should there be 3/4" pipe?

    Our contractor put 3/4" pipe from the main and then he put 1" pipe after the cut off.

    Is this right?
    If the fixture demand (calculated by assigning a fixture unit value to each plumbing fixture and then adding up the number of fixture units) requires a 1" feed and the water line from the meter was replaced, then your plumber should have run a minimum of 1" from the meter.

    There are other factors involved, of course: Pressure at the meter, length of run from meter to house, rise in elevation from meter to highest fixture in house etc.. .
    speedball1's Avatar
    speedball1 Posts: 29,301, Reputation: 1939
    Eternal Plumber
     
    #3

    Jun 26, 2009, 05:27 AM
    Growler,
    Correct me if I'm wrong but if you have a 3/4" meter would raising the water service to 1 inch increase the volume that the meter would produce? I don't think so. But I value your opinion so I'm asking. I always though a "one inch feed" to the house included a one inch meter. Was I wrong? Regards, Tom
    iamgrowler's Avatar
    iamgrowler Posts: 1,421, Reputation: 110
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    #4

    Jun 26, 2009, 05:53 AM
    Quote Originally Posted by speedball1 View Post
    Growler,
    Correct me if I'm wrong but if you have a 3/4" meter would raising the water service to 1 inch increase the volume that the meter would produce? I don't think so. But I value your opinion so I'm asking. I always though a "one inch feed" to the house included a one inch meter. Was I wrong? Regards, Tom
    The meter can and should be upgraded -- But doing so will be at the homeowners expense.

    But upgrading a 3/4" meter to a 1" meter is not compulsory, at least not in my area.

    OTOH, if the fixture unit demand for the dwelling requires an 1-1/4" feed or larger, then the Inspector would likely require a meter upgrade before signing off the job.
    speedball1's Avatar
    speedball1 Posts: 29,301, Reputation: 1939
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    #5

    Jun 26, 2009, 06:09 AM
    Thanks growler, But it would choke down the volume produced Correct? I mean isn't it like "unringing the bell"? Once the volume's choked down at the 3/4" meter you can't increase the volume produced by jumping the service up to 1". Am I correct in assuming this? Regards, tom
    iamgrowler's Avatar
    iamgrowler Posts: 1,421, Reputation: 110
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    #6

    Jun 26, 2009, 06:36 AM
    Quote Originally Posted by speedball1 View Post
    Thanks growler, But it would choke down the volume produced Correct? I mean isn't it like "unringing the bell"? Once the volume's choked down at the 3/4" meter you can't increase the volume produced by jumping the service up to 1". Am I correct in assuming this? Regards, tom
    You're correct, but you still need to size the water line and water piping inside the house to meet the fixture demand.

    What the Plumber did was hamstring the owner from upgrading their water meter at a later date -- Something that definitely wouldn't fly in my neck of the woods.
    speedball1's Avatar
    speedball1 Posts: 29,301, Reputation: 1939
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    #7

    Jun 26, 2009, 06:48 AM
    I agree and thanks growler. Tom
    Milo Dolezal's Avatar
    Milo Dolezal Posts: 7,192, Reputation: 523
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    #8

    Jun 27, 2009, 06:30 AM

    In my area we would install 1" water main even if you have 3/4" meter. Sometimes, water company comes and upgrades meter at no cost to you. 3/4" meter used to be adequate in the 50's but with size of today's houses 1" is minimum. FYI: I have 2" meter in my own house.

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