Water connection for newbuild on a farm with existing water supply

[Furnace]

I own a farm and have applied for planning permission for a new build. There is an existing water pipe (shown in pink) running 250m from the road to a manhole (marked by red X) by my current home (the farmhouse). From the manhole, there are 3 pipes that serve the 3 properties on the farm. I had intended to obtain a separate water supply that would run 30m from this manhole to the newbuild's location. The water company is saying the Water Act does not allow this - all new dwellings must be connected to the water main, and has offered 2 options.
This suggests I am required to install a duplicate pipe running 250m from the mains in the road to an almost identical destination.
Do I have any options?.

Edited May 24, 2023 by Furnace
forgot image.

[Temp]

Appears not.. 

 

https://www.stwater.co.uk/building-and-developing/help-and-faqs/water/can-i-connect-a-new-property-to-next-doors-water-pipe/

 

Quote

 

Can I connect a new property to next door's water pipe?

 

No. Section 64 of the Water Industry Act 1991 requires separately occupied properties to be supplied by a separate service pipe. You're responsible for installing and maintaining the service pipe from your house to the boundary with the public highway. Water supply connections for domestic water purposes are provided under section 45 of the Water Industry Act 1991, as amended by the 2003 Act.

 

 

You can lay the new pipe yourself. 

 

Some water companies allow different depths. Sometimes as shallow as 24 inches.  I suppose it might be possible to lay 45mm pipe with a ripper and pipe layer on a tractor rather than trench but Ive not done that.

 

 

[Furnace]

11 hours ago, Temp said:

Some water companies allow different depths. Sometimes as shallow as 24 inches.  I suppose it might be possible to lay 45mm pipe with a ripper and pipe layer on a tractor rather than trench but Ive not done that.

Thanks Temp,
SES Water require 750mm minimum depth so about 30inches. I hadn't thought about using a tractor (I have one) and was considering digging a trench (I have a small excavator) and possibly using it to also lay fibre optic cable.  The village has FTTC, but the properties on the farm are served by very old and unreliable copper.

[Susie]

Our trench has the water, electric and a pull cord for Openreach in to save costs. 
 

we are over 150m from the road and have been told the pipe will need chlorinating due to the distance and it has to be done at a specific time prior  to water connecting to main. currently the tails are left out and bagged up as don’t want to pay standing charge until we are ready as like you water and 3 phase is already on the farm to other buildings. 
 

you can the the pipe yourself but they might want to check the depth so tractor and ripper might not be allowed. 
 

 

 

[Temp]

@Susie We had to divert a waterman and the process also involved chlorination. They put it in the pipe then come back  and test the water some weeks later, if the results are OK they make the connection. Only in our case they forgot to come back to test it so had to repeat the whole process over again 😞

[Furnace]

3 hours ago, Susie said:

they might want to check the depth so tractor and ripper might not be allowed. 

I've asked them what and when they need to inspect. It could be they need the entire trench to be open prior to any pipe going in but I'm awaiting their reply.

 

It all seems crazy since there's already a water supply here, but the rules may now forbid using it for a new dwelling

Another big sigh

[Furnace]

@Susie
Does your ducting contain water, electricity and the Openreach pullcord? Or did you have to install the services in separate ducts?

[Susie]

@Furnace

one trench , each in own duct, Openreach and electric provided the ducting, open reach also provided pull cord and cable. Duct for water was optional we chose to use one as stoneground.
Were actually not fully connected up yet the trench from the road which will only have water in it will not be done until near the end of build. From the road it passes a pole from which the electricity and bt start this is the section we have done but not as far as build. The final stretch will be from temp electric to new build once built. So it’s the middle section of a 150m length we have dug. We just needed to claim the electric as the village is short on supply with a next door but one property off grid. We have done just over 2/3 probably.  Hence why we have water tails wrapped and bagged as we didn’t want a joint. The guy who will eventually chlorinate the water dug the trench and lay everything in. Electric is connected to site box but as we don’t really need it yet we have not got the supplier yet. No point paying standard charges for things we don’t need as our other farm buildings have supplies near to build. The chlorination guy has a water number that means he can fill trench back in without an inspection. 

[Furnace]

@Susie That's really helpful. Many thanks. Did the water company require barrier pipe?

[Susie]

Sorry not sure other than it’s blue and the tail ends shouldn’t be left in the sun.  
no mention on the quote only a few months ago but my head has moved on 😂

[Furnace]

No worries. My head is 😵 too....and that's just dealing with the environmental, archaeological, conservation, forestry, ecology etc. I can only hope the build itself is not quite as bureaucratic.
 

[IanR]

Just to add my experience. Water company (and Electricity) wanted 1200mm depth due to crossing a field that could potentially be "deep ploughed". No one could give me an explanation of what typical agricultural process would go anywhere near that deep, but they had a drawing and were sticking to it.

 

I was told that up to 32mm water pipe could go in without requiring chlorination.

 

My trench went in 900mm wide (iirc) x 1200 deep and I laid the ducting for the electrical connection one side and the water pipe the other. Water wanted to inspect it before it was filed, so after they gave the OK, I back filled to around 600 deep and then laid  in the OpenReach duct and cable, plus another duct for my own data and power to the gate. 

 

The 100mm duct I used for power was really too small, it was a difficult pull for the 3 phase public supply cable (only drops to domestic supply at 25m from property). Next time I'll go with a 150mm duct. I also wished I'd left a pull chord in the BT duct, would have made retro-fitting FTTP (which has just been done) far simpler.

 

In truth the trench took no time, although we did bring in a 13T machine for it. 150m was dug in a day.

 

Edited May 27, 2023 by IanR

[TonyT]

Get a ball of string and a plastic bag and a vacuum cleaner.

 

tie string to handle of plastic bag, stuff into duct, go to other end with hoover and suck bag  which will pull the string, then pull a blue rope through for cable pulling.

[Furnace]

@IanRThat's really helpful. It seems a bit crazy to lay in a duplicate pipe, but if the rules require it...
Deep ploughing 1200mm???? Not on any land around here. It's 'min till' all the way in these parts.

I think using a larger machine is the way to go. My digger is only a 3ton job and will struggle with such a deep trench. I've probably got 250-300m to dig and in the winter the clay sticks like **** and in the summer it's like concrete, so power will likely be the answer.
Of course, the route that avoids tree roots will likely smash the clay land drains, leaving another problem to be resolved.
Did the water company require barrier pipe because it was a farm? What diameter conduit did you install for the Openreach connection?

Edited May 27, 2023 by Furnace

[Furnace]

1 hour ago, TonyT said:

Get a ball of string and a plastic bag and a vacuum cleaner.

Yup. It's amazingly quick and easy, although I've only done 50m lengths of 25mm diameter conduit.

How would one do longer lengths? I'd like as few connections as possible underground.

[IanR]

33 minutes ago, Furnace said:

Did the water company require barrier pipe because it was a farm? What diameter conduit did you install for the Openreach connection?

 

Not sure what "barrier pipe is". I know it has to be WRAS Approved. This is the MDPE pipe I went with:

 

https://www.pipestock.com/mdpe/mdpe-pipe/mdpe-pipe-coils-blue

You'll be needing to join the pipe I would think, so again, has to be a WRAS Approved joining method. We found someone with an "electro fusion coupling" gadget. Quick to do when you have the right kit.

 

For OpenReach I used the free-issue 50mm grey duct. 

Edited May 27, 2023 by IanR

[Furnace]

Barrier pipe is sometimes specified if the site has the potential for contamination. It's 8 times the price of regular blue MDPE pipe, so no doubt I'll get stung for that too even though the soil samples from the appropriate area are uncontaminated....

The welding/fusion jobbie seems a better option than screwfit couplings. I didn't know Openreach would provide free ducting, so that's a plus.
Cheers

[TonyT]

Scottish Water made  us use a boundary box for  a recent connection

 

the link also mentions other utilities so. It just specific to SW

 

https://store.jdpipes.co.uk/scottish-water-boundary-box-meter-chamber/

 

 

[TonyT]

1 hour ago, Furnace said:

Yup. It's amazingly quick and easy, although I've only done 50m lengths of 25mm diameter conduit.

How would one do longer lengths? I'd like as few connections as possible underground.

Use a compressor and blow it through rather than a domestic hoover sucking it…

[Furnace]

58 minutes ago, TonyT said:

Use a compressor and blow it through rather than a domestic hoover sucking it…

Gotcha. Good idea

 

[Temp]

6 hours ago, TonyT said:

Get a ball of string and a plastic bag and a vacuum cleaner.

 

tie string to handle of plastic bag, stuff into duct, go to other end with hoover and suck bag  which will pull the string, then pull a blue rope through for cable pulling.

 

A lot of duct is sold with a draw string pre installed. This should be used to pull a 3/8 inch polypropylene draw rope (or two) through.

[Furnace]

4 hours ago, Temp said:

A lot of duct is sold with a draw string pre installed.

👍

[Susie]

National grid free issue duct came in sections for bend and very large coil with no draw string. 
Openreach duct again free in numerous deliveries with  huge amount of draw rope about 500m apx all free. 
was advised by National grid to use our large compressor but the water guy had a spider for sending the rope through. 
I was giving perhaps too many cups of tea out in the first days (it was cold and wet) to him and his guys then he realised the job was taking too long so we agreed he would send young lad to house for drinks fine by me but I didn’t see cord go through duct.  We just inspected every night how far they had got.  When he comes back hopefully next year I might get to see if it’s drier.