Design of water supply systems

Water is the source of life for any living organism – a plant, animal, insect and even for a microbe. Our planet consists of oceans and seas as much as 70%, a human being consists of water depending on the age at the level of 60-80%. A normal life is not possible without water. It is quite a rare thought but every day when taking a shower, washing etc. we consumer around 150-200 liters of water. Water dripping from a tap makes about 80 liters of water per day. Hot and cold water consumption is a significant expense item for any family. Payments for water supply used to be carried out in block houses according to the average consumption coefficient. Counts are set up nowadays what helps not only save money but also control the consumption levels.

A well-engineered water supply project may reduce the material costs, assembly process and system operation. It also turns out that an engineered water supply project is the only prerequisite for operation or connection to external networks.

Aspects of water supply engineering in Russia

Our country is huge and divided into zones with subtropical, mild and arctic climates. To engineer external water supply systems it is necessary to consider such a parameter as the depth of soil freezing which is differed for the regions and for different soil types. For instance, for the clayed soil of St. Petersburg this indicator is 120 cm, for the sandy soil – 132 cm; in Arkhangelsk this value is 160 and 176 cm and for Astrakhan 80 and 88 cm respectively.

Engineering of water supply systems is realized on the basis of the SNips (construction norms and rules) and SPs (code specification). Although a new code specification SP 30 13330 2012 titled “Internal water pipe and sewage system” issued, the calculations shall be done pursuant to the method specified in SNip 2.04.01-85 titled “Internal water pipe and sewage system of buildings” dependent on the function of the object and number of water consumers. The norms of water consumption may be changed based on the climate region or time of the year. The use of the method specified in SNip 2.04.01-85 provides the most precise results. The process of water supply engineering depends also on the function of the water pipes. This may be drinking water, water for household use, water for production needs and water for pouring. The drinking and household water facilities are often combined with the fire lines (fire cocks with hydrants).

The following documents are necessary to engineer a water supply project:

• A performance specification with the function of the building indicated as well as with the number of people specified in the building and the number of water consumption devices;
• Architectural plans of the building with the spots for connection to the existing systems indicated;
• Fire precautions;
• Technical specifications to connect to external water supply systems;

The types of pipe works depend on the connection procedure. Generally the systems which are connected to the central water supply facilities require thermal metering units pursuant to TSIRV regulations (Water consumption rate measuring center).

In the course of engineering the use of modern materials is obligatory. Depending on the water quality commonly-used steel pipes have a 10-20 years life-time while polymer materials have a significantly prolonged life-period. For cold water supply systems it is recommended to use polypropylene pipes (welded) or metal-reinforced plastic pipes (press-fitting).

Pursuant to the technical standards base the hot water temperature shall be minimum 55°C. The use of polypropylene or metal-reinforced plastic tubes is also possible for such systems.

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