Underground Water Pipe

[HDRider]

What is the best pipe to use for an underground water line?

Normally I can find the stuff on the webnet but I did not.

 

[JMJ Farms]

PVC. You can also bury PEX. Black poly pipe will work also but it's not much cheaper than PVC.

 

[Jogeephus]

I use pvc.

 

[cowboy43]

The black poly pipe last forever and is easier to lay because you can get it in 300 ft rolls.
I buried 1200 ft by myself and it was easy.

 

[JMJ Farms]

Here's a tip if you go with PVC. Lay it out and glue it together (behind where you want to start). Take a one row subsoiler and run your trench. Go back to the beginning, wire your PVC to the bottom of the foot (put a cap on pipe), put it in your lowest gear, and you can drag it right in. When you get to the end unhook the pipe and run both sides of the trench with your front tire. No digging and no covering. Have drug in 2000' foot this way.

 

[dun]

Here's a tip if you go with PVC. Lay it out and glue it together (behind where you want to start). Take a one row subsoiler and run your trench. Go back to the beginning, wire your PVC to the bottom of the foot (put a cap on pipe), put it in your lowest gear, and you can drag it right in. When you get to the end unhook the pipe and run both sides of the trench with your front tire. No digging and no covering. Have drug in 2000' foot this way.

See the posts about rocks! Around here we consider anything head size or smaller to be gravel. Sadly we don;t have much gravel, mostly rocks the size of cars.

 

[Jogeephus]

Here's a tip if you go with PVC. Lay it out and glue it together (behind where you want to start). Take a one row subsoiler and run your trench. Go back to the beginning, wire your PVC to the bottom of the foot (put a cap on pipe), put it in your lowest gear, and you can drag it right in. When you get to the end unhook the pipe and run both sides of the trench with your front tire. No digging and no covering. Have drug in 2000' foot this way.

See the posts about rocks! Around here we consider anything head size or smaller to be gravel. Sadly we don;t have much gravel, mostly rocks the size of cars.

That's how I do it too. Dun, its obvious you guys need some sand and I'm your man. While normally I'm asking six cents a pound I'll sell it in volume for 3.5 cents per pound. :mrgreen:

 

[dun]

While normally I'm asking six cents a pound I'll sell it in volume for 3.5 cents per pound. :mrgreen:

Delivered? Helluva deal, I'll take you up on that!

 

[John SD]

HDPE pipe in rolls is bulletproof if you have rocks in your soil. I've got a couple miles of it with 7 watering locations. Takes a little more doing at installation to hot weld the joints instead of gluing together but you will likely never have to see it again in your lifetime. With PVC, you have a potential problem at every glue joint :idea:

IIRC, NRCS specs require minimum of 1.5" pipe, and I would not got smaller than that for any distance at all. This is the pipe I used all the way right in to the brass pipe in the bottom of the tanks. With water line, size does matter. With pressure being equal, if you double the size, you quadruple the flow.

Also used 1.5" curb stops which makes for good water flow rate even over a mile away uphill from the 1HP submersible pump. 20/40 pressure switch on the pump. 2000 ft in a roll of pipe eliminates a lot of joints and gluing you must do with PVC. HDPE also stands up to sun and weather. Unlike PVC, freezing doesn't seem to hurt it. You could lay HDPE out on top of the ground for summer or temporary use.

http://store.cammackranchsupply.com/product-p/91512.htm

This is the 1.5" threaded SS connection I used to connect the curb stop/drain and under tank brass reducer to 1" for the Lewis float valve. The threaded connection welds to the HDPE pipe with a double female coupler.

http://store.cammackranchsupply.com/product-p/95152.htm

 

[Clodhopper]

How far you running? The PVC or the black (polyethelyne) plastic both are good. The PE pipe may be more forgiving in the rocks. Just make sure you size it right for the distance you run. Also, if you transition between PVC and something else, do not use the threaded PVC fittings. You're asking for a leak with them. There are other ways to make a connection that are much better.

 

[HDRider]

The black poly pipe last forever and is easier to lay because you can get it in 300 ft rolls.
I buried 1200 ft by myself and it was easy.

This is what I am considering. I did one 3,000 run with 1.5" and 2" PVC. It worked out fine. I just worry about all those glue joints, plus it just seems easier to use the long rolls of poly pipe instead of doing all that gluing.

PVC seems used most often, and I don't want to invite trouble.

Thanks all.

 

[Kingfisher]

The black poly pipe last forever and is easier to lay because you can get it in 300 ft rolls.
I buried 1200 ft by myself and it was easy.

It also won't get punched in rocky soil where the ground moves around a lot.

 

[John SD]

The black poly pipe last forever and is easier to lay because you can get it in 300 ft rolls.
I buried 1200 ft by myself and it was easy.

This is what I am considering. I did one 3,000 run with 1.5" and 2" PVC. It worked out fine. I just worry about all those glue joints, plus it just seems easier to use the long rolls of poly pipe instead of doing all that gluing.

PVC seems used most often, and I don't want to invite trouble.

Thanks all.

I have 4 miles of PVC here at my home place put in by the local guy and it has been good, no leaks. Not as many rocks here, but there were a few doozies the trencher couldn't touch and the guy had to bust them out with the backhoe. One big rock he gave up on and just piled more dirt on top. NRCS said it was OK.

That's why I like the HDPE because you can put in water line where ordinary trenchers fear to tread.. First guy doing the HDPE line had 2 D9 Cats hooked together on a ripper he built himself. He did not encounter a rock he could not get through if he backed the Cats off and took another run at it 8) The ground was sure a shakin' though :lol2:

 

[Nesikep]

Only problem I see with putting it in with the subsoiler is that the same subsoiler will also dig it up if you ever pass that way again!

 

[JMJ Farms]

Only problem I see with putting it in with the subsoiler is that the same subsoiler will also dig it up if you ever pass that way again!

This is very true Nesikep. Just have to remember where it is and run parallel to the water line.

 

[Jogeephus]

While normally I'm asking six cents a pound I'll sell it in volume for 3.5 cents per pound. :mrgreen:

Delivered? Helluva deal, I'll take you up on that!

:lol2: :lol2:

 

[John SD]

Only problem I see with putting it in with the subsoiler is that the same subsoiler will also dig it up if you ever pass that way again!

This is very true Nesikep. Just have to remember where it is and run parallel to the water line.

I don't know of anyone who uses a subsoiler to break up hardpan, but if someone does I see no need to go water line depth with it.

Now hitting a telephone line, I could see how that could happen. I've heard it can be quite expensive to hit a fiber optic line, so call before you dig :shock: :shock: :shock:

 

[Anonymous]

Also check with any gas company some of the old lines around here are still almost forgoten !
pvc and glued right will last. had 2 joints leak in last 5 yrs on the farm it was put in 1981

 

[Nesikep]

If it's really a long-term water line, I'll take the back hoe and put the line down 6 feet.. on such lines I usually go with white PVC, which requires it to be glued and bedded, and it's a lot of work, but lasts a heck of a long time... If I'm just doing a quick job somewhere I'll go with black poly

 

[Nesikep]

I do use a big 3 shank subsoiler, If I can sink it down 20" or so and still pull it, I will... of course that also depends on how rocky it is.

A benefit to very deep water lines is the water gets significantly warmed, and a little flow will keep a water tub open in darned cold weather (-15F and there's no ice here)