underground water pipe

Apr 20, 2004 6 Replies

What type of underground pipe will last the longest w/o having a leak develop? Application is in shallow trench from pump house to house. Frank Georgia My correct e-mail address is gno52 (not gn52) Fake adddress given to avoid spams



Check with your local health department or building department. Some types of pipe are not allowed in certain jurisdictions for certain uses.

Depends on the situation and installation. If you have a lot of rocks you will need to purchase some sand or clean dirt backfill. There are a lot of local issues. Call a well contractor locally and see what they use. You might be able to use Schedule 40 pvc. Our well in Iowa, some 400 feet from the house used a plastic pipe in a single roll. But that was because of the freezing problem that happened every once in a while. Our trench was 4 feet deep. Georgia may have other issues that I am un aware of. Do not think that you need to go 4 feet deep, probably 2.5-3 would be ok. Remember to run the power at a different depth and in conduit. I would run a spare conduit for communication in the future, just a 1/2 inch pipe.

I used 1" pvc to run 400' from pump to house here in E TN, still working after 25 years.

"Frank Thompson" wrote

IMO 1" 200 psi rated PE (polyethylene) tubing. It is common in rolls from

100' to 500'. Some pump supply houses will stock rolls of 1000'. It uses insert fittings and SS hose clamps. Double oppose clamp each fitting and keep sharp rocks off it or under it. I don't suggest PVC with all its couplers/joints and rigidity.

Gary Quality Water Associates

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The problem with PE tubing is that it tends to crack at the fittings under the hose clamps. Might be OK if you use only ONE piece and have all fittings exposed for service.

OTOH, 1" PVC is quite flexible in longer lengths and the glued joints never seem to fail.

"Nick Hull" wrote

Then you aren't preparing the bed right, you're using the wrong fittings or not watching the overfill for rocks. I've been doing well work for many years and here in PA PE is used for well service lines 99% of the time without that problem. It's been used for 30+ years. And we have the second or third highest number of wells in the country. It's also used for city water from the street. PVC isn't felxible, it's rigid, solid and only bends when you allow it to which you aren't supposed to; unlike PE tubing. :)

Gary Quality Water Associates

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