Question about when to do it. So I still have my galvanized cold water
lines. I've replaced the hot with PEX, but now need to tackle the cold.
Question I have is how high my water pressure is, so that when I do replace
it will I need to install a reducer or regulator as well.

So I need to measure my water pressure - question is, would it be better to
measure it AFTER I replace the corroded and mucked up galvanized or will it
matter? The flow rate will increase for certain, and I would surmise that
the pressure will as well but that's just a guess on my part. There are
rumors in my neighborhood that the water pressure is about 75 psi,
fluctuating radically depending on time of day. Hence my interest in
measuring it.

"Eigenvector" wrote in message
...
Question about when to do it. So I still have my galvanized cold water
lines. I've replaced the hot with PEX, but now need to tackle the cold.
Question I have is how high my water pressure is, so that when I do
replace it will I need to install a reducer or regulator as well.

So I need to measure my water pressure - question is, would it be better
to measure it AFTER I replace the corroded and mucked up galvanized or
will it matter? The flow rate will increase for certain, and I would
surmise that the pressure will as well but that's just a guess on my part.
There are rumors in my neighborhood that the water pressure is about 75
psi, fluctuating radically depending on time of day. Hence my interest in
measuring it.


Flow and pressure are different things. Static pressure can be measured at
any time. It is either there, or it is not. If you open a valve and you
have low flow, the pressure may show a drop at the point of delivery because
the pipe cannot be filled fast enough. While it may be nice to know what
that number is, it does not tell you what pressure you will be seing.

Put the gauge in now and you can monitor fluctuations in your house if the
town is causing them. .

"Edwin Pawlowski" wrote in message
et...

"Eigenvector" wrote in message
...
Question about when to do it. So I still have my galvanized cold water
lines. I've replaced the hot with PEX, but now need to tackle the cold.
Question I have is how high my water pressure is, so that when I do
replace it will I need to install a reducer or regulator as well.

So I need to measure my water pressure - question is, would it be better
to measure it AFTER I replace the corroded and mucked up galvanized or
will it matter? The flow rate will increase for certain, and I would
surmise that the pressure will as well but that's just a guess on my
part. There are rumors in my neighborhood that the water pressure is
about 75 psi, fluctuating radically depending on time of day. Hence my
interest in measuring it.


Flow and pressure are different things. Static pressure can be measured at
any time. It is either there, or it is not. If you open a valve and you
have low flow, the pressure may show a drop at the point of delivery
because the pipe cannot be filled fast enough. While it may be nice to
know what that number is, it does not tell you what pressure you will be
seing.

Put the gauge in now and you can monitor fluctuations in your house if the
town is causing them. .

So if I read you right, install the gauge even though the numbers won't be
accurate because they'll show a trend. Just for level set here, we are
referring to an inline pressure guage, not a faucet gauge as I have seen on
inspections (yes/no)?

On Sun, 29 Jul 2007 18:45:00 -0700, "Eigenvector"
wrote:

Question about when to do it. So I still have my galvanized cold water
lines. I've replaced the hot with PEX, but now need to tackle the cold.
Question I have is how high my water pressure is, so that when I do replace
it will I need to install a reducer or regulator as well.

So I need to measure my water pressure - question is, would it be better to
measure it AFTER I replace the corroded and mucked up galvanized or will it
matter? The flow rate will increase for certain, and I would surmise that
the pressure will as well but that's just a guess on my part. There are
rumors in my neighborhood that the water pressure is about 75 psi,
fluctuating radically depending on time of day. Hence my interest in
measuring it.

Yeah, unless you're renting the gauge by the day, install it now.

This is off the top of my head, but it seems to me, If you're
interested in how much replacing the corroded helps water flow, you
should also do some water flow measurements before you replace the
oold pipe. Put a bucket oin the bathtube and measure how long it
takes to fill when the cold faucet is wide open. And when only the
hot is wide open. When you get the old pipes out, you can look
inside and see how corroded they are and you can compare that with how
much the flow increases. At least you'll learn something.

I was going to suggest putting in the pressure gauge in a place say
half way through your house's pipes. (when the clogged pipes are still
in place) So that if it is 40 feet of pipe from where the water comes
into the house to the farthest bathroom, if you put the pressure gauge
near the 20 foot location, then you could measure the pressure when no
water was running, and again when say, the sink or bathtub faucet is
running at maximum, I think in the first case you will see the static
pressure, and in the second you'll see reduced pressure caused by the
pressure drop through the first 20 feet of pipe. That would be very
interesting too.

My pipes are copper, I doubt even the main is clogged after only 30
years, but there is a big difference in the time the toilet in the
powder room takes to fill, from the other toilets. The powder room is
right above the main cold water pipe, 20 feet from the entry in the
foundation, and maybe 40 feet closer than the other bathrooms. It
fills twice as fast, or quicker. All very interesting.

Just get a guage that goes to 100, and adapt it to a garden hose female
adaptor. Screw it on your hose hydrant and open the valve. Static pressure
won't change with new pipes.

steve


"Eigenvector" wrote in message
...
Question about when to do it. So I still have my galvanized cold water
lines. I've replaced the hot with PEX, but now need to tackle the cold.
Question I have is how high my water pressure is, so that when I do
replace it will I need to install a reducer or regulator as well.

So I need to measure my water pressure - question is, would it be better
to measure it AFTER I replace the corroded and mucked up galvanized or
will it matter? The flow rate will increase for certain, and I would
surmise that the pressure will as well but that's just a guess on my part.
There are rumors in my neighborhood that the water pressure is about 75
psi, fluctuating radically depending on time of day. Hence my interest in
measuring it.

"Eigenvector" wrote in message
...

"Edwin Pawlowski" wrote in message
et...

"Eigenvector" wrote in message
...
Question about when to do it. So I still have my galvanized cold water
lines. I've replaced the hot with PEX, but now need to tackle the cold.
Question I have is how high my water pressure is, so that when I do
replace it will I need to install a reducer or regulator as well.

So I need to measure my water pressure - question is, would it be better
to measure it AFTER I replace the corroded and mucked up galvanized or
will it matter? The flow rate will increase for certain, and I would
surmise that the pressure will as well but that's just a guess on my
part. There are rumors in my neighborhood that the water pressure is
about 75 psi, fluctuating radically depending on time of day. Hence my
interest in measuring it.


Flow and pressure are different things. Static pressure can be measured
at any time. It is either there, or it is not. If you open a valve and
you have low flow, the pressure may show a drop at the point of delivery
because the pipe cannot be filled fast enough. While it may be nice to
know what that number is, it does not tell you what pressure you will be
seing.

Put the gauge in now and you can monitor fluctuations in your house if
the town is causing them. .

So if I read you right, install the gauge even though the numbers won't be
accurate because they'll show a trend. Just for level set here, we are
referring to an inline pressure guage, not a faucet gauge as I have seen
on inspections (yes/no)?
No, the numbers will be accurate as long as you are not actually using any
water.

"Eigenvector" wrote in message

So if I read you right, install the gauge even though the numbers won't be
accurate because they'll show a trend. Just for level set here, we are
referring to an inline pressure guage, not a faucet gauge as I have seen
on inspections (yes/no)?


They will be accurate for static pressure. No matter how bad the pipes are
clogged, the gauge will give an accurate reading of the pressure coming into
the house. That is the reading you are concerned about. It can be in line,
it can be on a faucet.

If water is running, you will see some drop. If the pipes are clogged, you
will see a greater drop as you open the valve more.

If you are not running water, and you see the needle bounce around, that
means the town water pressure is fluctuating. A few pounds is normal. If
you see 20 pound pressure drops, the town has a problem.

"Edwin Pawlowski" wrote in message
. net...

"Eigenvector" wrote in message

So if I read you right, install the gauge even though the numbers won't
be accurate because they'll show a trend. Just for level set here, we
are referring to an inline pressure guage, not a faucet gauge as I have
seen on inspections (yes/no)?


They will be accurate for static pressure. No matter how bad the pipes are
clogged, the gauge will give an accurate reading of the pressure coming
into the house. That is the reading you are concerned about. It can be
in line, it can be on a faucet.

If water is running, you will see some drop. If the pipes are clogged,
you will see a greater drop as you open the valve more.

If you are not running water, and you see the needle bounce around, that
means the town water pressure is fluctuating. A few pounds is normal. If
you see 20 pound pressure drops, the town has a problem.

Well I do live in the middle of the county and the evil land developers did
put up about 5,000 McMansions around me. I'm sure all those people are
happily using up more water than the county ever expected - what is it up to
now, 12 houses per acre, each 6,000 sq ft with 4 bathrooms and 2 kitchens?
At least they won't be wasting it on grass, because they couldn't possibly
have any living organisms in that postage stamp they call a lot.

Fair enough, water pressure meter it is.

Actually you shouldn't even have to buy an adapter.

At HD and Lowes, if you look in the section where they have the lawn sprinkler system parts, they should have gauges that
already have the adapters on them. Just screw it onto the hose spout, turn on the water, and take your reading.

Eric

"Steve Barker" wrote in message ...
Just get a guage that goes to 100, and adapt it to a garden hose female adaptor. Screw it on your hose hydrant and open
the valve. Static pressure won't change with new pipes.

steve

Edwin Pawlowski wrote:

"Eigenvector" wrote in message


So if I read you right, install the gauge even though the numbers won't be
accurate because they'll show a trend. Just for level set here, we are
referring to an inline pressure guage, not a faucet gauge as I have seen
on inspections (yes/no)?



They will be accurate for static pressure. No matter how bad the pipes are
clogged, the gauge will give an accurate reading of the pressure coming into
the house. That is the reading you are concerned about. It can be in line,
it can be on a faucet.

If water is running, you will see some drop. If the pipes are clogged, you
will see a greater drop as you open the valve more.

If you are not running water, and you see the needle bounce around, that
means the town water pressure is fluctuating. A few pounds is normal. If
you see 20 pound pressure drops, the town has a problem.

If his house happens to have an anti-backflow check valve in the
incoming water line and it's working, he'll only see peak pressure doing
it that way and won't notice any drops if they occur.

Could get around that by cracking a faucet open a little bit I suppose.

Jeff





--
Jeffry Wisnia
(W1BSV + Brass Rat '57 EE)
The speed of light is 1.8*10^12 furlongs per fortnight.