[pp]

Hi

I wish to fit a water butt to collect rainwater from the roof but I have
noticed that the bath and basin water from the bathroom discharge into a
hopper that splits the downpipe from the roof. Consequently, the water butt
will fill not only with rainwater from the roof but also bath and basin
water from the bathroom. Surely this is not right? Would I be right in
thinking that this is an illegal setup? I must mention that the toilet does
not discharge into this pipe!
Any advice would be helpful please.

Phil

[Andrew Gabriel]

In article ,
"pp" writes:
Hi

I wish to fit a water butt to collect rainwater from the roof but I have
noticed that the bath and basin water from the bathroom discharge into a
hopper that splits the downpipe from the roof. Consequently, the water butt
will fill not only with rainwater from the roof but also bath and basin
water from the bathroom. Surely this is not right? Would I be right in
thinking that this is an illegal setup? I must mention that the toilet does
not discharge into this pipe!
Any advice would be helpful please.

It depends where you live if surface and foul drains are combined
or separate.

--
Andrew Gabriel
[email address is not usable -- followup in the newsgroup]

[EricP]

On Sun, 04 Feb 2007 16:44:14 GMT, "pp"
wrote:

Hi

I wish to fit a water butt to collect rainwater from the roof but I have
noticed that the bath and basin water from the bathroom discharge into a
hopper that splits the downpipe from the roof. Consequently, the water butt
will fill not only with rainwater from the roof but also bath and basin
water from the bathroom. Surely this is not right? Would I be right in
thinking that this is an illegal setup? I must mention that the toilet does
not discharge into this pipe!
Any advice would be helpful please.

Phil

How old is this pipework arrangement???

[Andy]

"EricP" wrote in message
...
On Sun, 04 Feb 2007 16:44:14 GMT, "pp"
wrote:

Hi

I wish to fit a water butt to collect rainwater from the roof but I have
noticed that the bath and basin water from the bathroom discharge into a
hopper that splits the downpipe from the roof. Consequently, the water
butt
will fill not only with rainwater from the roof but also bath and basin
water from the bathroom. Surely this is not right? Would I be right in
thinking that this is an illegal setup? I must mention that the toilet
does
not discharge into this pipe!
Any advice would be helpful please.

Phil

How old is this pipework arrangement???


For a thirties house this is a standard arangement.

Andy

[[email protected]]

On Feb 4, 4:44 pm, "pp" wrote:
Hi

I wish to fit a water butt to collect rainwater from the roof but I have
noticed that the bath and basin water from the bathroom discharge into a
hopper that splits the downpipe from the roof. Consequently, the water butt
will fill not only with rainwater from the roof but also bath and basin
water from the bathroom. Surely this is not right? Would I be right in
thinking that this is an illegal setup? I must mention that the toilet does
not discharge into this pipe!
Any advice would be helpful please.

Phil

Quite normal. In many areas it all goes into the same system below
ground anyway, so combining it higher up is fine, and was normal
practice

If you want to divert the water, you could bend the downspouut across
and run a second pipe parallel with the first down into the butt, then
have the butt overflow connecting into the original.

A

[EricP]

On Sun, 4 Feb 2007 17:31:54 -0000, "Andy"
wrote:

How old is this pipework arrangement???


For a thirties house this is a standard arangement.

Andy

It would make diverting the rain water to storage for grey use a bit
easier I suppose.

[David Hansen]

On Sun, 04 Feb 2007 16:44:14 GMT someone who may be "pp"
wrote this:-

I wish to fit a water butt to collect rainwater from the roof but I have
noticed that the bath and basin water from the bathroom discharge into a
hopper that splits the downpipe from the roof.

You have described a traditional UK two-pipe (above ground) drainage
system. What age is the property?

Consequently, the water butt
will fill not only with rainwater from the roof but also bath and basin
water from the bathroom. Surely this is not right?

There is probably little wrong with the existing drainage as it is,
however adding a water butt to it would be unwise.

Would I be right in
thinking that this is an illegal setup? I must mention that the toilet does
not discharge into this pipe!

The current setup? Unlikely.

What probably happens is that the rain water, waste water and foul
water all goes into one pipe below the ground. All normal for older
properties.

What you may do depends on how keen you are to save water and how
the house is laid out. One option is to separate the rain and waste
pipes at high level. Rain water goes down the existing pipe, with
water butt attached. Waste water goes from a new hopperhead down a
new pipe into the gully. You may want to intercept some of the waste
water for the garden.



--
David Hansen, Edinburgh
I will *always* explain revoked encryption keys, unless RIP prevents me
http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2000/00023--e.htm#54

[pp]

"EricP" wrote in message
...
On Sun, 04 Feb 2007 16:44:14 GMT, "pp"
wrote:

Hi

I wish to fit a water butt to collect rainwater from the roof but I have
noticed that the bath and basin water from the bathroom discharge into a
hopper that splits the downpipe from the roof. Consequently, the water
butt
will fill not only with rainwater from the roof but also bath and basin
water from the bathroom. Surely this is not right? Would I be right in
thinking that this is an illegal setup? I must mention that the toilet
does
not discharge into this pipe!
Any advice would be helpful please.

Phil

How old is this pipework arrangement???


The house was built about 1975 I believe but it has been extended. None of
our neighbours seem to have a similar arrangement.

Phil

[Colin Murphy]

On Sun, 04 Feb 2007 16:44:14 +0000, pp wrote:


Any advice would be helpful please.

If you can get access to the Rainwater pipe above the head that
collects the waste water then you need a Rainwater diverter kit. This
would allow you to collect water via a hose pipe for the rest of the fall
to the water butt.

Is the pipework plastic or cast iron?

[Roger R]

"pp" wrote in message
o.uk...
Hi

I wish to fit a water butt to collect rainwater from the roof but I have
noticed that the bath and basin water from the bathroom discharge into a
hopper that splits the downpipe from the roof. Consequently, the water
butt will fill not only with rainwater from the roof but also bath and
basin water from the bathroom. Surely this is not right? Would I be right
in thinking that this is an illegal setup? I must mention that the toilet
does not discharge into this pipe!
Any advice would be helpful please.

Perhaps its time for some new guttering and separate down pipes where you
could tap directly into the rainwater down pipe. Purpose made tap off
adaptors are available. (I'm not following this suggestion as I'm retaining
my cast iron gutters and pipes) Many water authorities offer a reduction
on water rates if the roof water runs to a soak away rather than discharged
into the drains.

Housing developments built after the war tend to have separate surface and
foul water drain systems. New towns built after the war have completely
separate drainage systems, but most older towns have mixed arrangements,
with separate systems in the newer parts and combined in the prewar areas.

The advantage of the separate foul and surface sewers is that the rainfall
water is discharged locally into a river or lake maintaining the natural
flows and ground water levels. Also a summer storm is less likely to
overload the foul system causing unpleasent flooding. The down side is
that some people consider a street drain as a suitable place to dispose of
their old engine oil/paint/thinners/creosote/garden pesticdes etc and this
then emerges in the local water course.

Combined foul and surface drainage sewers usually have some kind of storm
flood arrangement, for example an underground weir discharging any excess
directly into the sea or river, the high flows at that time minimising any
pollution problems.

Roger R

[Colin Murphy]

On Mon, 05 Feb 2007 10:46:46 +0000, Roger R wrote:

Purpose made tap off adaptors are available.
(I'm not following this suggestion as I'm retaining my cast iron gutters
and pipes)

There are rainwater diverter kits available that you could cut into an
existing stack.