If all the showers plus additional water is used at same time,pressure will drop which isn't all that bad until somthing turns off causing pressure increase and tempature change in showers. There is no reason you souldn't be alowed to pay extra for a 1 inch meter and 1 inch line. Ask them. Better still ask your water supply company.

This is where it's complicated. Our community is in essence our own water supply company. We buy the water at wholesale rates from the county. We never even had water meters in the past, but with the upgrade to the community potable water supply, it's required by law to have a meter installed even if we don't read them.

It's the HOA that has made the determination that a 3/4" water meter is adequate. The quoted output is 30 GPM at 50-60 PSI.

Well I will take you at your word that it's already chiseled in stone, so you have no options. I'm not there and you are so I trust you when you say you understand all the ins and outs but I will tell you I have never heard of a residence served by a 4" 85 psi water line. That's adiquate for several houses. I double checked on what country you live in that tolerates such hardnose approch to spending other peoples money. Seeing you live in USA,has me wondering if you took time to read the bylaws of your HOA. I don't mean to be rude but I think you are believing some inacurate information and misunderstanding some other. Were I actualy stuck with exactly what you say,I would; A. Increase line size at first point it was my option unless line size in the yard and house is regulated. B. Install a good quility pressure regulator set below main line pressure. C. Install an air charged surge tank. D. Attend HOA meetings to see what else is brewing and possibly change an officer or two.

There is a regulator at the lot line dropping the 85 psi down so that we don't have plumbing problems. Sorry, I forgot to mention that. And the branch line coming off the 4" main is much smaller - I'm not sure of the size but it can't be much more than 1" I would think.

The new main is going to increase in size from 4" to 8" with a branch line coming in. That will enter a new backflow device (something we now don't have) and a new regulator set at the aforementioned 50-60 psi with a flow rate of 30 GPM.

I just got back from a water board meeting at the HOA and this is what we were told.

And if you think that individual billing, in addition to those already "included" in your HOA fees, are far behind, guess again.

Portions of California's Central Valley area have historically not had residential water meters. It makes no sense, it's an area of dry hot summers and high per capita water use (besides the ag usage, which is the largest piece of the pie)

Snoonyb, what's wrong with paying for what's used? Everything else works that way.

snidely

"what's wrong with paying for what's used? Everything else works that way."

There is nothing wrong with it.

It's the "poor me" political process.

I don't want to get side tracked on this issue, but our community buys the water from the water district at a wholesale rate and passes on the savings to its members. The ONLY reason water meters re being installed is because this is now codified into the regulations by the water district. There is no intention to bill each house individually, but the board does have that power, although it would be subject to immediate recall if that were to happen. This is an extremely tight knit community with mult-igenerational residencies.

I have been in the water business for 15 years. It is required that all water services have a meter on them. Even if it's not billed. It is used to account for water used versus water pumped.

The vast majority of the water meters I have installed were 3/4 in. These will provide enough water for most residences. The really large houses will sometimes have a 1 inch meter but never larger than that. What size water service line do you have now? Also, most folks don't wash clothes, dishes, and take a couple of showers at the same time.

BTW, 4 inch mains are not suitable for fire protection so many water systems are replacing them. This should help with your fire insurance.

jacalhou you are exactly right. The 4" water mains are inadequate for fire protection. That's the biggest reason for the upgrade.

I'm not sure what size the existing service line is right now. We're not living in the house right now.

My concern is we have triplet boys who are now toddlers, but when they get older there's going to be 3 showers going on at the same time, will we have enough water?

Based on what I've read so far, this would could be more of a problem with a tankless unit asked to deliver a 70F water rise in temp during the coldest part of the winter, rather than during the warmer months since those units restrict flow as the temps drop as they are asked to deliver a bigger water temp rise.

But we're getting two 75 gal tank WH's so I'm hoping their reserve is more than enough for the kids.

If you already have a 1 inch service line going from the house the main then you could ask them to provide you with a new 1 inch service connection, meter and backflow device. You may have to pay the difference in cost but that should give you enough water at all times. Besides, they should try go back to the original service line size if at all possible.

If your existing plumbing and service line is 3/4 inch then going to the larger 1 inch service won't help much if any. However, it will be easier to upgrade to larger size later if you already have a 1 inch meter. Just weigh your options.

You don't want to have to get a new service tapped later after the main is buried. Tapping a water service is much easier to do when the main is still in the trench rather than buried. They'll charge you according if you wait until later.

Not trying to confuse you. Just giving options.

I'm investigating this right now, but from my conversations with the people on the "water committee" they're doing 3/4" meters only. NO other options are being offered. I forgot that the backflow device and regulator is also sized. It looks like if they don't offer an upgrade those items in addition to the meter, having a bigger pipe from the backflow device to the meter and then on to the house is moot is it not?

The backflow device is between the meter and house.

Can you find out what size service is there now?

If you can't get the 1 inch service a 3/4 inch service is used on about 85% of residences. You just have to decide when to wash clothes, dishes, baths, etc since you can't do all at once.

This is what I found out from the engineer. From the 8" main line there will be a 1" copper service line to our home, a valve, a 3/4" meter, a back flow and finally a 3/4" pressure regulator typically set at 60 PSI from the factory, that is adjustable to more or less pressure.

It is recommended that we run a 1.25" or 1.5" line from the meter/backflow device to our house.

Water meter diameter does not need to be matched to pipe diameter. Pipe diameter should be matched to water meter flow capacity. The 3/4" meter will not be a problem - it has adequate capacity for your home, provided you install adequate line size after it. Follow the engineer's recommendation for line size.

If you have a 1 inch service line there is no reason you can't have a 1 inch meter/backflow installed. The cost is a little more for the meter and backflow but it easier for the crew since all the parts are same size. They will have to install reducers and adapters to make the 3/4 meter, bf, and regulators work with the 1 inch service line. If you pay the extra cost for the 1 inch parts I'm sure somebody can make it happen.

When you make the run from the meter to the house stay away from the 1.25 inch stuff if possible. It's not very common anymore and sometimes hard to get the parts when you need to fix it. 1.5 is way more common. Bury the pipe at least 18 inches deep (about 2ft is ideal) so it won't freeze or break when a vehicle drives over it.

Once all this is swapped over and working there will be some air and discoloration in your plumbing. It's normal so just flush all your faucets and bathtubs for a while.