(800) 853-2651
SHOP NOW

OT-Water Line to House: Sleeve it?

G

GarryinNC

Well-known Member
I have 3/4" blue poly line from water meter to front corner of my house. About 125 feet. Yesterday I patched the third leak since last October, so obviously it is time for a new line. My question is: Should I go to the trouble to sleeve the new line in something like 2 inch PVC? The old line is failing from age, it is thin wall(100 psi?) and is getting little splits in it. It was put in in early 1992. I was mainly thinking if it was sleeved, it would be easier to replace years down the road(I am 56 now). We will be in this house always and then some of our children will have it.

Also what is the best type of 3/4" to use as a replacement? 160 psi or is there something better? Some type of PEX? We bury around 2 feet around here and never have a problem.

Thanks to all for advice and opinions.

Garry
 
Garry, we have been using schedule 80 pvc for years and never had a problem. Our well pump pressure never gets above 65. It is not that expensive to use.
Richard
 
GarryinNC- What I did was run gray PVC conduit from meter to inside house. Then pushed 3- 3/4 PEX
lines through conduit. I sealed off the other 2 PEX lines at both ends. Connected the 'open' PEX
line to meter and house.

This way, if the PEX line in use ever fails, I'll have a line already installed and just needs
hooked up.

Not much more expense and sure is a lot easier than digging a new trench and installing new line.

HTH
 
Yes,put it inside of inch and a half or two inch black plastic. Then if you have to replace it,you only have to dig up each end and pull a new one through. You'll never be sorry you did it.
 
Mine is 160 too and about that length and was put in in 1979 depth a 2-3'. Have had several problems but all were connector splitting
problems due to earth movements...Houston Black Clay soil. Back then plastic was new and nobody had any Sch 40 pipe....around here
anyway.

Replace with schedule 40 and quit worrying about it. I'd have them put in a 6" wide trench and serpentine the pipe in that trench so
that it had room to give and take with the soil changes. Would backfill at least around the pipe for a few inches with clean sand to help
it move. Course if you are in sandy loam soil you already have your sand.
 
After thought. Got plenty of flow and water pressure at the faucets? If not go up the next size. Costs a few more cents per foot and will about double your volume.
 
I use schedule 40 for the outdoor water lines. Under
the lane and barnyard where heave machinery is
run I ran the one inch inside two inch galvanized
pipe. It used to be that roll black plastic one inch
and started breaking every year everywhere it was
driven over with big machinery. No problems in the
years since I abandoned those old lines and
sleeved the new. Digging up water lines is no fun.
I'd like to avoid it if I could.
 
Everyone uses the about 1.25" black PE with about 1/4" thick walls here. Its a bugger to work with but under pressure with a submersible pump lasts a long time. The well guy
says the light wall stuff used with jet pumps fails all the time. He said the pressure pulses break it over time, not sure if that is true.
 
We use Purecore (sp?) to go from the well to the house. I would not go with smaller than 1 1/4". We need to bury ours to about 6' to prevent freezing. That deep also prevents any damage from the surface.
 
If I were doing it, I would use Pex. It is more forgiving of shifting soil, can be run in one piece, no
splices.

Like any pipe, it can burst if frozen. Pex doesn't like exposure to sun.

Running inside PVC conduit is a good idea. If you go with the electrical conduit and long sweep turns, it
could be pulled through just like wire.
 

Replace the 3/4 with 1" and slide it inside a 2" or bigger PVC for a conduit. The trench is already dug and the conduit won't cost you hardly anything. You will never be sorry.
 
All of my main lines from my well are 1.25 inch Sched. 40 PVC ,
buried at 20 inches here in Southern Nevada, and they've been in
constant use for over 35 years with no problems.

Doc :>)
 
If you have that old polybutylene, you will never stop patching it. It fails, continually, I think that's why they stopped making it. I'd use 1 inch schedule 40 PVC, or PEX. Make sure the stuff rests on smooth, rock-free dirt or sand or small gravel. Make sure the backfill DOES NOT have any large rocks. Sleeving it is a good idea, but not necessary. NO galvanized. Copper not necessary.
 
We put our water lines in "Big-O " drain tile pipe then bury . If you ever have to change a water line ,you
can just connect the new pipe on to the end of the old pipe. Then pull the old pipe out, and at the same time
you pull the new pipe through. No digging needed. And you can change a water line in the dead of winter if
need be. Bruce
 
another vote for sch.40, mines been in for 20 yrs. and the ground is about as rocky as you'll find. i wouldn't use anything else..oh yea, use the glue together it
withstands more pressure then the threaded..
 
My father installed many feet (400+) around our farm in N MN in the early 50's, all 7-8 ft deep. As far as I know we never had a freeze-up or a break, and it was all just black plastic water line, I don't see a problem with it. But maybe like everything else, the quality isn't there anymore.
 
I have 1 1/4" steel pipe from the well to where it Tees into the steel line between the house and the barn. It was installed in 1955. In 1970 we ran 1 1/4" black water pipe about 400' to a trailer house. Used double stainless steel clamps on the splice joints. So far none of it has given any trouble other than the steel pipe will make for a bit of rusty water if the system isn't used for a month or longer.
 
Garry, I said below use schedule 80 PVC. I meant to say schedule 40. We have close to 1/3 mile of it on the place and never had a problem. We bury about 1 foot deep here. 20 foot sticks glued together.
Richard in NW SC
 
I would see no reason to use anything except the thick black plastic on a roll, it will last 50+ years if installed correctly, sleaving it is a waste of time.
 
You might price the extra cost of a sleeve against the cost of just going to a larger diameter and thicker walled flexible plastic pipe and maybe bury it deeper. Many plastic pipes have lasted 40 or more years including freezing shut a few times. Here utility companies will plow in flexible gas lines two feet deep without digging a trench.
 
The thick black plastic is what I use. I have to go to a special plumbing supplier to get the good plastic and good fittings. Never seen the good stuff in stores.
 
I am not a fan of PVC, it does not seem to handle stress, and iron rusts, thus I support the black ABS.
 
I would only use Schedule 40 PVC. Make sure you use the right PVC glue and primer. Don't use WET & DRY. The only PVC I've had blow apart was when I got sold on that. PVC installed properly will last for ever.
Dave
 
I like schedule 40 PVC with the purple primer and green glue (see below...). Over the
years I've put in over 10 miles on the two farms. Everything but the black PE to the
house that my dad put in. I've had 3 leaks in 20 years. One in the black PE where it was
on a rock, one in slip joint PVC that was installed by a contractor years ago and
erosion got it too be too shallow... and one in a 2 mile section of PVC I put in 5 years
ago that one of the guys in the ditch didn't glue a joint..... and of course it was a
section of 2 inch in a 6 in sawed cut in solid rock 24 inches down.

We install a lot of waterlines professionally now which is why I insist on the purple
primer and green glue so I can inspect what the men in the ditch do and ensure every
joint is done correctly. As I said, I like sch 40 PVC, never had a failure except that
one of mine due to employee error. Anything else, I'll put it but the warranty lasts
until we load the equipment. I'd run nothing less than 1 inch.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

W
What Is This ? Water Shock Arrestor ?
Replies
9
Views
451
showcrop
showcrop
Ultradog MN
Some musings about copper pipe
2 3 4
Replies
63
Views
4K
stevieb49829
stevieb49829
W
JD 45 combine fuel pump won't prime.
Replies
7
Views
436
Jim.ME
J
I
Ford 172ci Diesel Sleeves?
Replies
7
Views
419
showcrop
showcrop
P
Ford 3600 injector line (non-metal type)
Replies
10
Views
463
Fordfarmer
F
Tractor Parts Tractor Manuals

We sell tractor parts! We have the parts you need to repair your tractor - the right parts. Our low prices and years of research make us your best choice when you need parts. Shop Online Today.

Copyright © 1997-2024 Yesterday's Tractor Co.

All Rights Reserved. Reproduction of any part of this website, including design and content, without written permission is strictly prohibited. Trade Marks and Trade Names contained and used in this Website are those of others, and are used in this Website in a descriptive sense to refer to the products of others. Use of this Web site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement and Privacy Policy TRADEMARK DISCLAIMER: Tradenames and Trademarks referred to within Yesterday's Tractor Co. products and within the Yesterday's Tractor Co. websites are the property of their respective trademark holders. None of these trademark holders are affiliated with Yesterday's Tractor Co., our products, or our website nor are we sponsored by them. John Deere and its logos are the registered trademarks of the John Deere Corporation. Agco, Agco Allis, White, Massey Ferguson and their logos are the registered trademarks of AGCO Corporation. Case, Case-IH, Farmall, International Harvester, New Holland and their logos are registered trademarks of CNH Global N.V.

Yesterday's Tractors - Antique Tractor Headquarters
Website Accessibility Policy

Back
Top