D
derekat
I’m sorry this is long but I need to lay down the facts.
I’ve been in my house for 30 years. Prior to my ownership land to the side of the house was sold to the builder next door to expand his three bed house into a four with double garage rather than single.
This left my incoming mains under his garage and house. Because the house was extended forward and the level maintained my water main was around 5-6 foot below.
At some point, probably when the garage was built, the subsequent owner (also a builder) made what I suspect was an unlawful connection into my mains for a garage tap.
My incoming mains was in 15mm copper. I have had low water pressure since I arrived. I don’t recall ever bettering 1.75 Bar. I had assumed that more than the garage tap was connected so put it down to draw by my neighbours. Lately it had been 1.5 bar at best.
Early this year the pressure dropped to just over 1 Bar and showers and the washing machine became a problem. In May it dropped to .75 Bar on a good day.
To make it workable I bought a Salamander pump and pumped the rising main from which the shower was fed while I investigated.
I should add that following a good recovery from a tumour in my mouth in 2008 I became sick again in 2009 when I went downhill first with swollen legs and house maids knee. That rapidly became high blood pressure, balance problems, dizziness, hearing loss and tinnitus. I was no longer able to bend well due to my legs and a distended stomach. I became unable to climb a ladder due to the onset of vertigo. I’ve had many blood tests, an MRI, Ultrasound, Hearing assessment, Positional Tests and Physiotherapy to improve my balance.
I decided that I would investigate and to cut a long story short I discovered soft earth on my neighbours property. Once excavated water flow was considerable. I checked my neighbours and the usual supply pressure appeared to be 2.5 bar. I concluded that the loss was 1.5 bar.
Because of the development next door my mains is between 5 and 6ft below the floor level off the garage and a further 9 inches below the floor level of the house. The water table is high round here and it is quite likely that when the water table is at its highest there might be 5ft to 6ft of water pooling and presenting pressure at the leak.
The leak undermined a sewer serving the neighbour and water was seen running freely from it. The sewer serves their downstairs toilet and their utility room including butlers sink and a washing machine.
The site was also the rear garden of a farm workers cottage, no doubt littered with coal and wood ash, and the site of a former brick works. There is a near impermeable layer of grey clay which is why they made bricks in the area
I assume that if the water can escape into the sewer then the pool of water must be compromised in certain circumstances. My rough calculation says that 5-6 ft of water is nearly 2 bar at the pipe break.
Pumping the mains or indeed using the pressure washer could easily draw water from the pool as well as the pipe. There is about 30 meters of 15mm pipe from the neighbours plot to mine so my pipe work probably held 4-5 litres of possible bad water whenever the pump was operated or the pressure washer was used.
Following the discovery I project managed the replacement of my mains over my own property in blue. That gave me 2.5 bar. Within two days my dizziness went. I woke that morning to find my legs worked as they should, my tinnitus greatly reduced and my balance restored. My distended stomach lost an inch in a week. I went from being unable to bend at the knee to being able to squat and ride a push bike again in just over a week.
My neighbour’s insurance company came to site twice and made investigations but don’t have any real proof as to where the leak actually is just theories. It could be before the tap in the garage or after or at the joint. The garage floor is a raft construction over compacted hardcore spread on an existing driveway some 6”-9” thick of concrete with some clinker.
The insurance company were persuaded to contribute to my diversion rather than have a full scale excavation of the garage.
I have to consider making a claim (as I don't know what future well being might be) either against my or the neighbours insurance and decide what (if any) part the unlawful tap connection played. It may be that the connection passing between the two slabs for about a metre before descending vertically left the pipe unable to flex sufficiently to accommodate ground movement. I would be interested in hearing views.
Importantly does a shared main, even an unlawful one, stop being a shared main once it’s past the share. Logic tells me that it’s a shared main all the way to my stopcock and would only stop being a shared main if there was no longer a tap in the garage. The insurance company claim it’s only a shared main up to the garage tap. I think
Secondly as the main under the neighbor's house is no longer shared or even connected and the insurance company decided not to dig I assume he is now able to legitimately refuse to allow them any further access. He has a lovely house that he has improved over many years and I know he really can’t face telling his wife that the floors have to be dug up.
I would be interested in your views.
I’ve been in my house for 30 years. Prior to my ownership land to the side of the house was sold to the builder next door to expand his three bed house into a four with double garage rather than single.
This left my incoming mains under his garage and house. Because the house was extended forward and the level maintained my water main was around 5-6 foot below.
At some point, probably when the garage was built, the subsequent owner (also a builder) made what I suspect was an unlawful connection into my mains for a garage tap.
My incoming mains was in 15mm copper. I have had low water pressure since I arrived. I don’t recall ever bettering 1.75 Bar. I had assumed that more than the garage tap was connected so put it down to draw by my neighbours. Lately it had been 1.5 bar at best.
Early this year the pressure dropped to just over 1 Bar and showers and the washing machine became a problem. In May it dropped to .75 Bar on a good day.
To make it workable I bought a Salamander pump and pumped the rising main from which the shower was fed while I investigated.
I should add that following a good recovery from a tumour in my mouth in 2008 I became sick again in 2009 when I went downhill first with swollen legs and house maids knee. That rapidly became high blood pressure, balance problems, dizziness, hearing loss and tinnitus. I was no longer able to bend well due to my legs and a distended stomach. I became unable to climb a ladder due to the onset of vertigo. I’ve had many blood tests, an MRI, Ultrasound, Hearing assessment, Positional Tests and Physiotherapy to improve my balance.
I decided that I would investigate and to cut a long story short I discovered soft earth on my neighbours property. Once excavated water flow was considerable. I checked my neighbours and the usual supply pressure appeared to be 2.5 bar. I concluded that the loss was 1.5 bar.
Because of the development next door my mains is between 5 and 6ft below the floor level off the garage and a further 9 inches below the floor level of the house. The water table is high round here and it is quite likely that when the water table is at its highest there might be 5ft to 6ft of water pooling and presenting pressure at the leak.
The leak undermined a sewer serving the neighbour and water was seen running freely from it. The sewer serves their downstairs toilet and their utility room including butlers sink and a washing machine.
The site was also the rear garden of a farm workers cottage, no doubt littered with coal and wood ash, and the site of a former brick works. There is a near impermeable layer of grey clay which is why they made bricks in the area
I assume that if the water can escape into the sewer then the pool of water must be compromised in certain circumstances. My rough calculation says that 5-6 ft of water is nearly 2 bar at the pipe break.
Pumping the mains or indeed using the pressure washer could easily draw water from the pool as well as the pipe. There is about 30 meters of 15mm pipe from the neighbours plot to mine so my pipe work probably held 4-5 litres of possible bad water whenever the pump was operated or the pressure washer was used.
Following the discovery I project managed the replacement of my mains over my own property in blue. That gave me 2.5 bar. Within two days my dizziness went. I woke that morning to find my legs worked as they should, my tinnitus greatly reduced and my balance restored. My distended stomach lost an inch in a week. I went from being unable to bend at the knee to being able to squat and ride a push bike again in just over a week.
My neighbour’s insurance company came to site twice and made investigations but don’t have any real proof as to where the leak actually is just theories. It could be before the tap in the garage or after or at the joint. The garage floor is a raft construction over compacted hardcore spread on an existing driveway some 6”-9” thick of concrete with some clinker.
The insurance company were persuaded to contribute to my diversion rather than have a full scale excavation of the garage.
I have to consider making a claim (as I don't know what future well being might be) either against my or the neighbours insurance and decide what (if any) part the unlawful tap connection played. It may be that the connection passing between the two slabs for about a metre before descending vertically left the pipe unable to flex sufficiently to accommodate ground movement. I would be interested in hearing views.
Importantly does a shared main, even an unlawful one, stop being a shared main once it’s past the share. Logic tells me that it’s a shared main all the way to my stopcock and would only stop being a shared main if there was no longer a tap in the garage. The insurance company claim it’s only a shared main up to the garage tap. I think
Secondly as the main under the neighbor's house is no longer shared or even connected and the insurance company decided not to dig I assume he is now able to legitimately refuse to allow them any further access. He has a lovely house that he has improved over many years and I know he really can’t face telling his wife that the floors have to be dug up.
I would be interested in your views.
