907
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| posted on 26/2/05 at 09:02 AM |
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Building Regs / Water pipe
Hi Chaps,
My Son and his neighbours either side have had an extension built on the back of their houses.
The water supply pipe was 15mm copper, buried in the back garden.
The builders layed a new alkathene pipe from the outside stopcock, but joined it onto
the old copper pipe outside under a concrete path. This old copper pipe now runs under
his kitchen floor, and his neighbours floor, and yup, IT LEAKS.
I'v had another builder take up the path and fit an alkathene pipe into the house, but next
door are having to connect to the mains, in the road. Expensive.
We spoke to the water board and they said that the builder should have put a duct in
the floor for an alkathene pipe to run in, and that copper should not be used under concrete.
So, is it against building regs to build over an old water pipe, or is it just advisory to use
alkathene (in a duct)
I'v tried searching google, but can't find the relevant rules.
The bottom line is WHO PAYS.
Any advise would be great.
A download of the relevant rule, even better.
Thanks Paul G
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chunkielad
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| posted on 26/2/05 at 10:41 AM |
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Advisory and you pay I'm afraid.
I went through this with my brother last year.
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clbarclay
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| posted on 26/2/05 at 10:47 AM |
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Theres a worse building reg to expected come in.
They are changing the coulurs of house hold electrical wires, and you will need a lisence to work on even your own home.
The result is that once it comes in if you need to do a bit of wiring then you will need to hire a lisenced builder and the builder will have rewire
the whole house.
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flak monkey
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| posted on 26/2/05 at 10:54 AM |
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quote:
Originally posted by clbarclay
Theres a worse building reg to expected come in.
They are changing the coulurs of house hold electrical wires, and you will need a lisence to work on even your own home.
The result is that once it comes in if you need to do a bit of wiring then you will need to hire a lisenced builder and the builder will have rewire
the whole house.
Afaik all they are doing is making fixed wiring colours the same as the colours used in trailing wires for appliances. ie brown + blue instead of red
+ black. If you add in any new wires you dont have to change the existing install, but you need to put a warning note on the fuse box...
Can find out loads about it on google, just type in 'wiring colour changes'.
But yes the regulation saying you cant add to existing installs in your own home is now inforce. You can add in sockets and lights on an existing ring
AFAIK, but you cant put in new rings. Also you are no longer allowed to fit things like electric showers yourself. Thats how i understood the new regs
anyway...could be wrong.
David
Sera
http://www.motosera.com
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JohnN
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| posted on 26/2/05 at 10:59 AM |
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Local water bylaws.....
Generally our responsibility after the stopcock.
Good practice to have it in a duct, ie accessible, but your decision at the end of the day. Alkathene replaced lead pipe as preferred buried pipe
years ago. Copper pipe not recommended for burial.
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JoelP
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| posted on 26/2/05 at 11:19 AM |
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quote:
Originally posted by clbarclay
The result is that once it comes in if you need to do a bit of wiring then you will need to hire a lisenced builder and the builder will have rewire
the whole house.
ROTFLMAO 
its not quite that bad! the law, as i understand it, relates to certain areas of the house - specifically the kitchen and bathroom, and maybe others.
And you dont need a full rewire, thats just scaremongering!!!!
Its called part P, we had a thread about it recently. A poster (tony) is qualified and had some good advice. Law gets enforced from the end of march,
im booked in for the course then.
ps, sorry for the hijack paul! 
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chunkielad
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| posted on 26/2/05 at 11:53 AM |
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quote:
Originally posted by JoelP
Law gets enforced from the end of march,
Why I am trying to get my loft done quick!!
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MikeR
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| posted on 26/2/05 at 12:04 PM |
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aaah but prove when you did the work????
i bought my house about 5 years ago. Any re-wiring was done then
its going to be interesting going into b&q and the like. Are they going to stop selling electrical stuff???? hell no, they'll sell you gas
stuff you can't legally install.
I'm sure as long as its checked by a qualified person (like with gas) it will be fine.....
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MikeRJ
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| posted on 26/2/05 at 01:34 PM |
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Exactly, as with all these laws that are allegedly designed to prevent cowboys and dodgy DIYer's, it just makes thing more difficult for people
who know what they are doing and the cowboys will carry on as per normal.
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wicket
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| posted on 26/2/05 at 06:33 PM |
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Useful info here http://www.niceic.org.uk/consumers/ppnotify.html
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907
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| posted on 26/2/05 at 07:01 PM |
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Thanks Chunkielad & John.
Looks like I'm paying the bill then. 
Paul G
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Peteff
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| posted on 26/2/05 at 07:56 PM |
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You pay for yours, next door should have his own supply anyway. His is nothing to do with you. I had this many years ago when I bought my first house
and renovated it. One of the qualifications was that it had to have its own supply with its own stop cock on the boundary.
yours, Pete
I went into the RSPCA office the other day. It was so small you could hardly swing a cat in there.
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Jon Ison
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| posted on 26/2/05 at 08:37 PM |
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slightly off subject but proves the water board dont allways win,
whilst having a drive dug up the JCB dug thru the water pipe, rushed to turn mains off. without thinking when using the "boyz room" i
pressed flush (water off remember) and it started to fill, mmmm the penny dropped "waters off at mo" anyhow found we had two supplys into
the house, dunno why, but as only one was metered, i give you all one guess which supply i altered the outside tap, dish washer and washing machine
too....
dont live there now BTW if your Mr water board reading this.....
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Mark Allanson
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| posted on 26/2/05 at 09:08 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by clbarclay
Theres a worse building reg to expected come in.
They are changing the coulurs of house hold electrical wires, and you will need a lisence to work on even your own home.
The result is that once it comes in if you need to do a bit of wiring then you will need to hire a lisenced builder and the builder will have rewire
the whole house.
Wait until you see what they are trying to bring in about the welding qualifications required to repair cars, I looked at the wording very carefully,
nothing about building cars though
If you can keep you head, whilst all others around you are losing theirs, you are not fully aware of the situation
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907
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| posted on 27/2/05 at 08:44 AM |
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Hi Chaps,
Our dispute is not with the water board,
nor is it with the neighbours.
To do a build that extends 3 houses, now twice the size,
you have to get on VERY well with your neighbours.
Our dispute is with the builders, but mainly the architect,
who was payed to oversee the project.
I feel that they should know the right way to do things.
We're talking six figure sums here.
Paul G
P.S. I'll try and find a piccy.
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907
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| posted on 27/2/05 at 09:03 AM |
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This is the new bit.
The chimney pots are on the old roof.
( It's now a double apex roof with a lead gully down the middle. )
Paul G
 
Rescued attachment painted house 002 s.jpg
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NS Dev
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| posted on 28/2/05 at 08:42 AM |
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really useless answer now, as my knowledge of building regs is not good, but I am pretty sure that burying copper pipe directly is a no no.
I will be organising a visit from a building inspector this week to do the final inspection on my garage (doing a drain check) so I will ask him then.
Certainly the alkathene is normally extended into the house.
as with the other comments on wiring, as Mike R said, how will they know who wired what in???????????? That's a load of cobblers I'm
afraid, and I for one will be ignoring that particular reg!!! I wired in all of my parents outbuildings (lighting and ring mains) when I was 13, so I
don't struggle with that sort of thing now!
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Ferg
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| posted on 28/2/05 at 05:51 PM |
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Copper should never be buried in any cement based medium. However whether it should be in a duct or not is another matter. Simply covering it with a
tape or water resistant lagging will keep the lime off it.
Oh, as a matter of interest we don't use 'alkathene' any more, MDPE if you don't mind. 
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907
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| posted on 28/2/05 at 09:25 PM |
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Thanks NS Dev, that would be really helpful.
Wraped in loft insulation (the orange stuff) was the best they could do Ferg.
Paul G
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