Building Installations and Municipal Systems

Assignment 1:

Residential water installation design

Zsuzsa Iwanicka
iwanicka@pk.edu.pl

Desing principle:
Water main's pressure must be great enough to overcome all local
and linear resistances due to friction in pipe length, wall
irregularities, number of fittings and net vertical distance traveled
while still delivering the required pressure at the remote outlet.

Low water pressure

Water supply pressure in a residential or commercial
building should not fall below 0,05MPa at the point of
use. When pressure drops below this point, common
appliances and plumbing fixtures will no longer function
properly.

Source: http://www.ecosilesia.com

Task
Count the minimal pressure in the water main, that ensures proper
operation of the installation without using additional pressure
booster.
Steps:
1. Calculate the flow rates for the particular pipe segments
2. Size the water pipes
3. Determine the water pressure drop for pipe segments
4. Select a water meter and anti-pollution valve
5. Calculate pressure drop for the hydraulically most remote fixture

Flow rates in water distribution system

qn maximum flow [dm3/s] - depends on the fixture type
Fixture
qn
Sink faucet:
0,07 dm3/s
Shower head:
0,15 dm3/s
Bathtube faucet: 0,15 dm3/s
Toilet:
0,13 dm3/s
Washing machine: 0,25 dm3/s

This is the title

Source: Gd K. Sanitary Installation lecture notes

Minimal pressure in the water main - pmin

pmin g h pmeter pap ptot preq , [Pa or kPa]
gh hydrostatic pressure
h vertical height difference between fixture and water main
water density = 1000kg/m3
g acceleration due to gravity g=9,81m/s2

pmeter pressure drop on water meter

pap

pressure drop on anti-pollution valve

ptot

pressure losses of all of the piping, valves, elbows, etc.

preq

discharge pressure at the fixtures

qm - maximum probable flow [dm3/s]

Residential and office buildings:

qm 0,682 qn

0 , 45

0,14, dm3 / s

0,07 qn 20 dm3 / s and q n 0,5 dm3 / s

Hotels and shopping centers:

qm 0,698 qn 0,12, dm 3 / s
0,5

0,1 qn 20 dm 3 / s and q n 0,5 dm 3 / s

Use qm to calculate the pipe diameter

Water pipe sizing

dt - pipe diameter (theoretical) [m]
qm - maximum probable flow [m3/s]
Vd - water velocity, m/s,
Vd = 1,0 m/s service line, horizontal pipes,
Vd = 1,5 m/s risers
Pipes have fixed diameters -> Select a pipe
Vr - real water velocity
di - inner pipe diameter [m]

dt

qm

[m]

Vd

4 qm
Vr
[m/s]
2
d i

Calculate the linear pressure drop - pL

p

V
di
l
R

- pressure loss [Pa]

- friction factor (a number without dimension)
- density of water [kg/m3]
- flow velocity [m/s]
l V2
p L

- pipe diameter [m]

di 2
- pipe length [m]
- pressure drop coefficient Pa/m

R l , Pa,

R - depends on the pipe material, values are in nomograms or hydraulic

tables

Pressure drop caused by local resistances - ploc

Local resistances occur at elbows, tees, valves, diameter changes
etc.
Each element has its own flow resistance coefficient:

p loc

V2

A R l , Pa,
2

In practice for water installations pressure drop at local element is

expressed by coefficient A. Its value depends on the pipe material.
The smoother inner wall the higher the A value
A= 0.3 for steel

A =0,51,0 for plastic pipes

The total pressure drop occuring in the pipe segment:

p tot pL ploc (1 A) R l, Pa

Steel pipe nomogram

qm [dm3/s]

PEX nomogram
Linear pressure loss coefficient for cold water pipes

Flow rate

qm [dm3/s]

PP nomogram

part 1

PP nomogram

part 2

Determine the water pressure drop for pipe segments

Sqn

qm

di

Vr

Rl

(1+A)*Rl

dm3/s

dm3/s

mm

m/s

dPa/m

kPa

kPa

0,15

0,15

15

0,85

160

3,5

5,6

7,3

0,22

0,21

15

1,16

300

3,0

3,9

0,35

0,29

20

0,91

150

4,5

6,8

8,8

0,42

0,32

20

1,02

150

1,5

2,3

2,9

0,55

0,38

20

1,21

200

4,5

9,0

11,7

1,02

0,55

25

1,12

107

2,1

2,8

1,14

0,58

32

0,73

35

1,4

1,8

1,14

0,58

40x3,7

0,70

24

12

2,9

4,3

Segment
nr

Source: Gd K. Sanitary Installation lecture notes

Water meter selection

It is based on the service line flow rate. In order to protect the
water meter:

Q max meter

qm

[m 3 /h]
0.7

Source: www.powogaz.com.pl

Water meter catalogue

Source: www.powogaz.com.pl

Pressure drop on water meter pmeter

Important!
1. Use qm to determine pmeter
2. Convert qm to m3/h!

Anti-pollution check valve

Protects the water main against pollution in a result of back-flow from
the installation.

Source: www.ferro.pl

Pressure drop on the anti-pollution pap valve

To determine pap:
1. Take qm for the service line

2. The same di as water meter

Source: www.ferro.pl

Calculate pressure drop for the hydraulically most remote fixture

pmin g h pmeter pap ptot preq , [Pa or kPa]

Fixture

Segments

*g*h

ptot

pmeter

pap

preq

pmin

kPa

kPa

kPa

kPa

kPa

kPa

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8

5,60

55

43,5

40

20

100

258,5

9, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8

5,40

53

34,5

40

20

50

197,5

16, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8

2,80

27

25,5

40

20

100

212,5

15, 11, 10, 6, 7, 8

2,80

27

35,9

40

20

100

222,9

13, 12, 11, 10, 6, 7, 8

2,80

27

41,9

40

20

100

228,9

18, 7, 8

2,60

25

9,1

40

20

100

194,1

 The highest pmin value indicates the .hydraulically most remote fixture
The minimal pressure in the water main, that ensures proper operation of the
installation without using additional pressure booster is 263.9 kPa.

Fixture

Segments

*g*h

ptot

pmeter pap

kPa

kPa

kPa

preq

pmin

kPa

kPa

kPa

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8

5,60

55

43,5

40

20

100

263,9

9, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8

5,40

53

34,5

40

20

50

202,7

16, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8

2,80

27

25,5

40

20

100

215,7

15, 11, 10, 6, 7, 8

2,80

27

35,9

40

20

100

226,1

13, 12, 11, 10, 6, 7, 8

2,80

27

41,9

40

20

100

232,1

18, 7, 8

2,60

25

9,1

40

20

100

197,1