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Presently, I have a 3/4″ supply line from the street to a large, old Victorian house. The water pressure on the 2nd. and 3rd floors is not so good. What is the benefit of increasing the supply line, from the street, to 1″? Will it help if I avoid 90 degree angles wherever possible, and substitute 30 or 60 degree turns,inside the building? (I am basically replumbing the house, anyway). Are in-line water pressure boosters the short solution to this potentially long problem, or do they have downsides? And, can I split the main line with a Y connector into two 1″ supply lines for each of the two units in the building and insert a meter into each line – thereby independently measuring water use in each unit(the cost of water is extreme in Boston).
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Yes, you can put in separate meters. Certainly you can put in your on and do your billing as a part of the lease. I get 5/8 totalizing water meters for about $60. Hard to find though. You might be able to get the water company to do it but they'll charge you each month for an additional meter reading, account billing, etc. And if there are no-ggrowth or slo-growth regs in your area, it could be tough to get a "new" water service.
Do you always have low pressure, or just when there is a high flow of water? If you always have low pressure, the problem is a borderline pressure out in the city further lessened by the building's height.
If the pressure drops when their is a large use or multiple uses of water, the problem is pipe size (although can be worsened by low pressure in the street). By pipe size, I mean nominal pipe size, deposits on the inside and how it is used.
Typically 3/4" to multiple fixtures and 1/2" to individual fixtures works fine. If deposits have built up inside either the 3/4" or 1/2" branch lines, then you will low pressure during high flow uses. I've seen copper pipes in Mass narrowed down to an effective 1/4" pipe size. Took an hour to refill the water heater! That was a well and in Boston you drink water from the Quabbin, right? (With all those heavy metals from those old leather tanneries).
Don't worry about 45's versus 90's in your pipe runs. There are bigger fish to fry. (Those tricks ARE important when running DWV piping and ductwork). Just get an effective 3/4" where multiple fixtures are being served. No drawback to using 1" (other than cost and slightly greater difficultly in sweating the joints) but don't do it on the hot water - it will take longer for the hot water to get to the fixture. But 1" to feed the HWH and distribute cold water is a nice touch.
So investigate little. Do you have low pressure when there is no flow? Your hardware store as a little gauge that screws into a garden hose - you can take the gauge (and hose) around the house with you as you open and close faucets and shower valves.
Is the pressure low only during high use? Then check out the insides of the pipes for deposits that may be choking down flow rates.
Yes, there are booster pumps available. They help more in the first situation (low street pressure) than with narrowed pipes. You'd want a set-up that either 1) detects usage and comes on only then so you don't pay to run the pump all the time or 2) tops off a pressurized holding tank (like a well pump does) and cycles on again as that pressurized tank is drawn down. -David
*In most old houses, the issue isn't water pressure, but water flow. If the pipes are old galvanized steel, the inner diameter is probably significantly reduced, which reduces the flow, but not the pressure.Check the size and type of pipes in the house: main from street, horizontal runs in the basement, risers to the bathrooms.If you have older galvanized, if you turn the main off, turn it back on slowly; otherwise, you might break loose some internal corrosion and reduce flow further.If you have mixed metals, they are supposed to be joined with dialectic fittings.In my area (NW Ohio) intenal piping is usually dealth with before the street supply line because of costs involved.
*Like the guys said The first place you need to start is to find out what your water pressure is. If its ok going into the house(check upstream from your pressure regulator valve). If its ok then check after the pressure regulator valve. If its not ok then theres your problem. If everything is ok, Next you need to find out the material used for the piping. if its galavanized then you might have corroded pipes. if its copper then you might want to change the pipes to a larger size. But thats what id do in that order. Im not a pro just a DIYer. But thats my opinion.
*"(check upstream from your pressure regulator valve)."Just don't be frustrated if you don't have one; not all areas do.The pressure in your house is (for all intents and purposes) the pressure in your town/neighborhood.Unless all of your neighboirs have the same problem (check with them and your water utility) the problem is with FLOW: pipe size & obstructions.
*Sure Bob What i was trying to do is figure out if the pressure coming from the main was adequate or if the pressure reduceing valve was set to low or maybe there was a problem with it. I didnt know that the valve wasnt required in some areas. Most of the homes here have them.
*Jinfadato:No one has mentioned lead water services. I grew up in Framingham in an old farm house and can vividly recall in 1947 watching the local plumber , Mike Cavatorta, down cellar, making a "wiped" joint on the 1" lead water service where it joined the bronze bushing of the Trident water meter. Out here in the Chicago area older homes also have lead services. Even though municpalites add chemicals to the water supply designed to bond with the lead and keep it from leaching into the water, we are still replacing services to the street whenever a remodeling job installs additional fixtures. You might try talking to a reputable local plumbing contractor about pressure and volume problems. Even if you decided to replumb the inside piping yourself, you'd need a plumber to do the hook up with the city main. Good Luck.
*i Even though municpalites add chemicals to the water supply designed to bond with the lead and keep it from leaching into the water,Whaaaaaa ??? Chemicals that bond with the lead, are being added to the water supply ? Is this an exercise in futility or evil ?What kind of chemicals ? What will these chemicals do to people, and/or other things ? How much of these chemicals are being added ? Enough to actualy do the job, and you are likely poisoning the people with the chemicals instead of the lead, 'eh ? Keep the chemicals within reason for humans, and it will take many years of those chemicals running through the lead pipe, to start to make any difference, 'eh ? (Even at that, maybe over those same years, those same chemicals build up in the people as well, anyway, 'eh ?)So which is it ? Evil, or futility ? If I lived there, I would dam sure want to know.... Seems like the ethical thing to do would be to simply replace the lead, and be done with it...