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Water pipe brake from the well?
waltermoe
Member Posts: 2,306 ✭✭✭✭
Water pipe broke from well to the house. Anyone ever have this happen?
Comments
Happens to the best of us and usually at the worst of times.
Should be easy to find, look for the wet spot.
Shut off the electric. Get out your favorite shovel. Don't cut the electric lines in the process of digging it up. If it's black plastic line, have a heat gun handy. If you're going to splice it with a coupler, for God's sake, double clamp it. That's two clamps on one side of the coupler and two on the other side. Does anyone owe you money? If so, get them to dig the line and excuse their debt.
Found the wet spot, water coming up. Wonder if I should shut off water pump until Monday?
And don't use shark bit couplings unless you never expect the line to freeze, they will push apart.
I know for a fact that it is galvanized pipe coming in. I figure it will have to be replaced with plastic.
Why did it break? Was it too shallow and it froze? Here in the NC mountains, code is it has to be 18 inches deep.
Yep. If it has been in use for may years you are most likely getting half or less flow of water.
PEX is a good water line product. Always use a size bigger as 3/4 is outside diameter not inside like other products.
If you run it in a sleeve, say 3 or 4 inch flexible pvc you can always snake out the line and replace if it gives trouble later.
Will also help protect it from freezing and damage from rocks and such.
Don't know the distance, but you could lay a temp line above the ground to the house BUT leave the water flow thru it till the ground thaws out and this time.. bury it deep.
Being galvanized pipe, you may be able to use a sleeve patch to fix it temporarily. Temporarily is the key word here. You'd still have to cut the pipe. If you could get your hands on a 4 wheel cutter, it would make the job simpler.
I’ve been here 30 years, and I know pipe is well below frost line. Pipe runs under are drive, which is rock, it just might be that time for it to break.
Either way will be a mess right in front of garage and 10x10 cement slab in front of door.
If you need to replace the line,PEX is your friend.
After speaking to a well known plumbing company he convinced me to go with PEX when I had my northern house re plumbed. Told me he went to some test facility to view how much stronger it was on burst strength. It will be in the house long after I am gone.
18" deep? Wow, here we need to go down minimum 6 feet to get below the frost line.
Good luck.
Ya Nanuq! I'm also pretty sure the bodies of your dead and buried are pretty well preserved for years and years as well! 😁
"Found the wet spot, water coming up. Wonder if I should shut off water pump until Monday?"
So, is this the suction line? If the suction line is broke, you should be getting muddy water out of the faucet and unless you're drawing water up a good grade, the water shouldn't be running back and seeping out above ground.
Better re-think your problem. and OH HE!! yes, you need to shut your pump off unless you want to replace that, too.
Better re-think your problem. and OH HE!! yes, you need to shut your pump off unless you want to replace that, too.
Yes Yes Yes
The This Old House show used to broadcast from Minnesota, and they said they had to bury water lines 5 feet deep. That was really striking to me because here in NC the code is 18 inches. And I am in cold Carolina, the mountains. Down in Charlotte it probably is 12 inches.
allen griggs, give a message to your girl friend... being almost out of the rental business is GREAT
She is a knucklehead and won't give it up! Still managing 5 rentals. She needs therapy.
😄 I still have 5 left but selling 2 more this yr. Then I have one buyer ready for Jan next yr which will leave 2 left. We are looking at property out of state so a rental management company can handle the rest till they sell the following yr or so. I tell you the stress level has gone down.
Called them Saturday, he said it would be better to leave pump on so ground wouldn’t freeze, makes it harder to dig up I figure. They are coming out today to fix. They said ok to shut water off now until they come out. I can under stand how it would be easier to dig up not being frozen. Water is running clear. Well is 125 foot deep. Pump is pushing water up, so pipe is under pressure pushing water out. Anyone care to wager what final cost will be? LOL. No wait I take that back, crying out load.
I have never had a pipe break. Hope this helps.
And fiery auto crashes
Some will die in hot pursuit
While sifting through my ashes
Some will fall in love with life
And drink it from a fountain
That is pouring like an avalanche
Coming down the mountain
I'd say consider yourself lucky if it's less the $500.00, but it really depends upon how much digging they have to do and whether by hand or a backhoe...Hopefully won't break the bank.
Cost depends if you are replacing all or patching it up. Just remember if it broke once it might break again with the old piping.
If it's that old, I would just run a new line & not have to worry about it.
Likely did not break but rusted thru. If it rusted thru in one place it will soon rust out / breakthru in another . Best bet is to replace entire line ,depending on what problem is found after digging it up .
Fix temp and do everything new as the weather breaks. I learned , and it wasn't easy.
Only way it would suck in muddy water if it was jet pump.
Two lines going into the well and pump above ground=jet pump system. Believe it or not there are some around but in fairly shallow wells.
That figures. Didn’t show up today, something about changing a pump to water cattle. I figure temporary, then change the pipe this spring. Hoping they come tomorrow . Going to get down to 0 tonight.
Remodeling rule of thumb, house plumbed with cast iron or galvanized pipes, you will most likely start repairs on one end and replace everything all the way to the other end.
Yes yes yes, about 6 o’clock they show up with truck and trac hoe. Took about 50 minutes and we were done. Those guys are good. This is and old house, I figure 130 years old, but I love this old house and it’s location in the country.
Thanks everyone for the suggestions and moral support.
So what did they find and how did they fix it ?
It was a rust spot from age. Made plans with them to replace pipe maybe come late march when weather is better. It was a patch fix bolted up tight, hopefully will hold until march. I’m as happy now as Tiny Tim with a prime rib at Christmas.
Ok thanks . Wise move to plan on complete replacement in better weather .
That is what happened to us. Rusted out. Replaced it with plastic pipe. This was 20+ years ago.
There was a backhoe involved. $$$
I live on top of a hill and the well head is at the bottom, a good 100 yards or so by my approximation. I had to get a specialized company that does underground side boring to drill and place conduit for new wiring. Between those specialists and the well company, the bill totaled just a tad north of 10K. 😓
Thank God for homeowners' insurance! My out of pocket deductible was just 1K. 🙂
Hoping it doesn't spring another leak till replaced.