Outside tap advice - front before house

Discussion in 'Plumbers' Talk' started by Kieran Brooks, Sep 11, 2018.

  1. Kieran Brooks

    Kieran Brooks New Member

    Morning all, hope you're well.

    I'm after some advice, I'm looking to install an outside tap in my front garden between the street stop valve and my stop valve (in the house). My plan is to 'T' in to the mains pipe and come up on 25mm MDPE, then mounting on to the wall. That said, I have a few reservations and questions around whether it's allowed etc...

    1) is this allowed? Am I allowed to alter the pipe ( blue 25mm MDPE) before it enters my house? I.e. cut and T off?

    2) if so, is it allowed to come straight up from the ground rather than from inside the property to outside through a wall?? (Freeze risk etc)

    There are probably other considerations I'd appreciate advice on too if any one fancies offering them up.

    Thanks in advance
     
  2. rogerk101

    rogerk101 Screwfix Select

    Whatever is behind your water meter is yours to play with.
    I have done exactly what you did. I did this in order to be able to turn off my house water mains while I'm away on holiday, but still allow the neighbours to water my plants when we have heat waves like we did this last summer.
    The only requirement that you have is that you install a check valve between the T and the tap so that (possibly contaminated) water from your garden cannot flow back into the mains if the mains pressure drops for whatever reason.
    I also installed a stopcock under ground to enable me to turn that part of the system off during winter to avoid freezing. I used the a stop cock that has a purge. I buried it below a vertical piece of bog pipe which provides the access to the stop cock, and I just cover that with a bog-pipe cap and some mulch to hide it.
     
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  3. glob@l

    glob@l Active Member

    I believe if the water supply is within your boundary then you are responsible for it's maintenance, so on that basis I presume it would be okay to do as you suggest. However, at a certain depth underground it won't freeze, but will as it surfaces, therefore, if it comes from inside the property the tap will be the only part you will have to insulate.
    Years ago I woke up to an absolute blizzard of a storm only to discover the outside tap had frozen and the water from the leak was hitting the patio door.
     
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  4. Kieran Brooks

    Kieran Brooks New Member

    Do you need a standalone inline double check valve or would this tap do the trick? I'm assuming it has the check valve intergrated some how?

    https://www.screwfix.com/p/outside-...gclsrc=aw.ds&dclid=CMKY96HYst0CFQG1UQod1noKbA
     
    KIAB likes this.
  5. rogerk101

    rogerk101 Screwfix Select

    Kieran Brooks likes this.
  6. Kieran Brooks

    Kieran Brooks New Member

    Thanks for the input, much happier tackling it now!

    Hopefully it'll pan out as smoothly as getting these responses did! ;)
     
  7. KIAB

    KIAB Super Member

    Definitely fit a tap with a check valve.
     
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  8. The Teach

    The Teach Screwfix Select

    Heat likes this.
  9. Kieran Brooks

    Kieran Brooks New Member


    Thanks The Teach, I had a look at this last night but I couldn't come to a conclusion on it - have you derived that the pipe has to come up internally from this document or elsewhere?

    I've highlighted the bits I thought made it sound possible, what's your interpretation?

    As for the DC valve, would you recommend a separate one then rather than an integrated one?
     

    Attached Files:

  10. The Teach

    The Teach Screwfix Select

    From your proposed mdpe tee position with pipe running from below ground level up your external wall.this pipe will not have the necessary cover to prevent freezing.

    Pipe Insulation only delays freezing :(. external pipes are laid at a depth to prevent freezing,the idea works fairly well even with a foot of snow cover.

    The regulations act as guidance notes,they can be departed from by a registered plumber who will self certify their work or by having the work inspected.

    On the internal water feed pipe a separate combined double check valve& isolation valve is the way to go,the outside tap will not require check-valves.

    Plumbing :p
     
    Heat likes this.
  11. Kieran Brooks

    Kieran Brooks New Member

    Brill, cheers for the advice buddy, much appreciated!
     
  12. Heat

    Heat Screwfix Select

    I hate to see mdpe pipe coming up from ground to a tap on a wall. Looks like something in a farm.
    On really low temperatures it can freeze and burst.
    If you live in a mid terrace house, or a house without access to the rear, I can understand your problem, but if you can walk around the outside of the house, I would just use a long garden hose to a tap at rear
     
  13. Kieran Brooks

    Kieran Brooks New Member

    I live in a mid-terrace... :( it involves pulling a hose from the back garden which is a level lower than the front.. so through downstairs, up the stairs through the living room and out the door or window... a nightmare in short, especially win a dirty hose...
     
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