Pressure in the water supply network in the apartment

One of the most important indicators of the quality operation of the water supply system of a multi-storey building is the pressure level. Too low or, conversely, high water pressure in the water supply negatively affects the operation of plumbing fixtures and household appliances connected to the water supply system, and also entails a number of other problems. And if low pressure can be recognized by the weak pressure of the stream from the tap, then increased pressure will make itself felt by leaks and pipe ruptures. Each owner should have an idea of the number of bar pipes within his own apartment in order to take action in time and avoid many inconveniences.

What should be the water pressure in the apartment?

Let's start with the fact that water pressure is measured in bars or atmospheres. Since 1 bar is equal to 0.99 atmospheres, these units of measurement are considered conventionally equal. 1 bar (1 atm.) is capable of creating a column of water 10 m high.

There are documents that stipulate the minimum and maximum permissible pressure in the pipeline of an apartment building (SNiP 2.04.02-84, SNiP 2.04.01-85). Some of these standards relate to pressure at the entrance to a building, others - at the entrance to a separate apartment, the latter stipulate the amount of pressure in the intra-apartment wiring around plumbing fixtures. Let's find out what value should be in each section of the water supply system.

At the entrance of the water supply network to a one-story house, the pressure should be 10 m of water column or 1 atm. (1 bar). 4 m are added to each subsequent floor. Let’s make a calculation for a standard 9-story building: 10 + (4 x 9) = 46 m. This means that the inlet pressure should correspond to 4.6 atm.
The pressure in the water supply at the entrance to the apartment will already be below this value, since the water rises to the higher floors through a complex pipe system. For cold water the value should be in the range from 0.3 to 6 atm, for hot water - from 0.3 to 4.5 atm.
The water pressure level of plumbing fixtures must correspond to the following values: for a mixer installed on a washbasin - at least 0.2 atm;
for a toilet cistern - from 0.2 atm.;
for a bathtub faucet – from 0.3 atm.;
for a shower faucet - at least 0.3 atm.

A little about consumer rights

At the very end of 2021, Federal Law No. 485 was adopted, and in 2021, Federal Law No. 485 came into effect. The need to develop a new document with standards was dictated by changed realities in aspects of managing the functioning of apartment buildings.

Head calculation

The number of organizations that can take part in meeting the needs of people, complying with standards and pressure requirements for residents of apartment buildings has expanded.

This also required innovations in the field of legal regulation.

If previously only strictly limited agents could deal with pressure and standards, with the advent of municipal unitary enterprises (commercial municipal unitary enterprises not endowed with the right of ownership), MPA (municipal legal acts, or local regulations) and decrees of local authorities began to operate.

The average consumer can find out about the established standards directly at the office of the water supply company. In particular, the pressure and temperature required by the standards. Consumer rights are protected even under such conditions.

Can filling speed

The transfer of the relationship between a consumer and a supplier who does not have property rights, transferred to a new legal plane, does not exclude the obligations that are assigned to him in the resolution of the Government of the Russian Federation.

Water in the apartment, flow and pressure standards, instructions for issuing bills and even standards for the operation of drains - all this can be found in Resolution No. 354, which has not lost its relevance in 2021, although it dates back to May 2011.

Household losses in the apartment

Subtleties

Appendix No. 2 to Resolution No. 354 specifies the proper parameters for the quality of water supplies, which include pressure standards. And this is no coincidence, since the document is called “On the provision of utility services to owners.”

Violation of any standards, not just pressure, at the local level may be grounds for review of invoices issued by the manufacturer. If the cold water pressure does not comply with GOST and the non-compliance with the pressure parameters is not caused by blockages or malfunctions, but the house has a central water supply, then the management company must begin to resolve the existing problem.

At the water metering station

Of course, suppliers are not always ready to admit shortcomings in their own activities. Therefore, they will first send a company representative who must check whether the water supply level in the cold tap is normal, as well as whether the pressure meets the established standards. A pressure level that does not allow connecting water-consuming appliances and household appliances is considered unacceptable.

Normal level

What pressure will allow you to use the water supply comfortably?

Just 2 bar is enough for everyday needs such as:

washing and showering;
washing dishes by hand or using a household appliance;
washable in a washing machine.

Some plumbing fixtures require a higher water pressure of 4 atm. Among them:

Jacuzzi bath;
shower cabin with hydromassage function.

Why you need to know

The normal functioning of the entire water supply system depends on the indicator. Various equipment (taps, valves) are manufactured taking into account the required pressure in the water supply system. If it does not correspond to a specific value, then none of the pieces of equipment will be able to function normally.

Due to deviations of the value from the standard, pressure drops often occur in water supply networks. For such a situation to occur, a running shower or a flushed toilet tank may be enough.

It is important to know the in-pipe pressure in order to avoid possible changes and malfunctions in plumbing fixtures inside homes. This is especially true for couplings with valves. The pressure force in water pipes also needs to be known when it is necessary to establish the exact cause of a plumbing malfunction. The rate at which the resource in the pipes is supplied under a certain pressure is important to know when installing new plumbing or household appliances. This is especially true for connecting equipment that consumes a lot of water.

Consequences of high blood pressure

If the pressure is too high - from 6.5 bar - the fittings and connections in the pipes suffer; at 10 bar they can easily fail and burst. Only welded joints and industrial-type fittings can withstand such high pressure. A pressure of 6–7 bar can also lead to malfunctions of highly sensitive plumbing fixtures and damage to ceramic valves.

Tip: when choosing mixers, taps, pumps and pipes, you should take into account the possibility of sudden pressure surges in the network, called water hammer. To avoid unpleasant situations in the form of accidents and flooding, it is necessary to purchase devices and elements for installation in a system with an increased safety margin: in normal operation they must withstand 6 atm, but be designed for a short-term increase in pressure up to 10 atm.

Instructions for enlargement

The problem can be solved by installing an indoor pump . At the same time, only special devices designed strictly for one apartment are suitable for installation.

You should not try to install pumping equipment designed for private homes in apartments.

The pump must be installed according to the following diagram:

Notify the management company and the residents of the house in writing about the intention to install a pump in the apartment.
After receiving consent, purchase the device.
Before installing the device, clean all pipes from lime, check the condition of the mixers and filter elements. If necessary, clean them or replace them completely.
Turn off the water.
Cut a section on the pipeline for the pump.
Install ball valves on both sides of the pipes.
Connect the pump to the system using leads.
Check the tightness of the mechanism.
Perform electrical installation of the pump pump.

Installation of the pump in the apartment is carried out with special tools. Installation of the device can only be carried out by a specialist or person with sufficient knowledge.

Causes of low blood pressure

Pipe clogging with small debris and deposits on the inner surface, reducing the flow diameter. To eliminate this problem, you will need to replace the risers and intra-apartment wiring.
The coarse filter is clogged or the inlet valve is not fully open. In this case, it is necessary to check the valve and filters. It may be enough to just replace the mesh on the filter so that the water flows as usual.
Burst of a city water pipe. In this case, apartment residents cannot do anything; they can only wait for city services to restore the integrity of the water supply network.
An increase in water intake by residents of the house is usually observed in the evening and morning hours, when the water supply is especially actively used.
Malfunction of the pump at the distribution station or poor supply of electricity to it.

If you are no longer satisfied with the water pressure, try to first determine the reason for its decrease.

Ask your neighbors on the landing if they have problems with pressure. If everything is fine with them, then the reason is not a violation of the public water supply.
Forgive your riser neighbors who live on the floor above and below. This way you will know if the problem is related to a separate riser. If there are no complaints from your neighbors, you need to look for the reason in the wiring inside your apartment.
Compare the pressure in different rooms of the apartment - in the kitchen and in the bathroom, see if there is a difference between the flow of cold and hot water. Perhaps the problem is local in nature, and a certain section of the pipe is clogged.

Authorities responsible for water supply

Before contacting any authorities regarding poor water pressure, you must make sure that the reason for this is not the device being clogged with lime or other deposits, equipment malfunction, etc.

If the reason is not the above, then if the pressure standards of the water supplied to the apartment building are not observed, you can contact the following organizations:

Useful article

If the management company does not respond to complaints in any way, you should contact higher regulatory authorities - the housing inspection, Rospotrebnadzor and the court. Read more in this article

to the management company (MC) on whose balance sheet this house is located. The management company, by definition, is an intermediary between the provider of life support resources for apartment buildings and the citizen who is the owner or tenant of housing in a given house. The following must be done:
1. write an application to the Criminal Code describing the problem, with demands to eliminate the violation of water supply standards and recalculate the cost of paid housing maintenance services,
to expect the problem to be resolved, management companies are required to consider the complaint no later than 1 month after its acceptance.

to the city administration department, if the measures on the filed complaint were not timely considered by the Criminal Code . When contacting the administration, you should write a new application and attach to it a second copy of the complaint previously sent to the Criminal Code.

How to increase blood pressure

If all measures to stabilize constant low pressure, such as contacting the housing office or replacing intra-apartment wiring and filters, do not produce results, you can resort to installing special equipment. There are two ways to increase pressure:

Connecting a circulation pump that increases the pressure by drawing in water. This is an excellent solution for an apartment: the device is small in size and can be installed in the water supply in front of water access points.
Installation of a pumping station. Despite the advantage of such equipment in terms of power, this option has serious disadvantages: the station requires special approval and takes up a lot of space.

What it is?

In order for the water supply system to function properly, water supply services constantly maintain a certain pressure in it.
Pressure is measured by a physical quantity equal to the force of water acting on the walls of the pipeline.

With its help, the water supply is achieved in such a state in which it will fully function without the risk of emergency situations:

burst pipes,
shut-off valves
various plumbing equipment.

Reference! People call pressure pressure. And although these concepts are not identical, their essence is the same. Pressure is one of its many designations.

How to measure?

In order to choose the optimal method of regulating the pressure in the water supply, it is necessary to accurately determine its value. For these purposes, a water pressure gauge is used, installed on a section of pipe near the entrance of the water supply system to the apartment.

To measure pressure in plumbing fixtures you will need:

pressure gauge;
thread extension;
1/2 inch adapter;
fum tape.

Connect all the parts together, unscrew the shower head from the shower hose and screw in the improved pressure gauge. Open the water, wait for the air to come out of the hose and observe the readings of the device.

Important! When measuring pressure, you need to take into account the fact that at different times of the day, due to changes in the intensity of water intake, the pressure may be different. Take readings 4 times a day for a week, only this way the data obtained will show a more or less accurate picture.

Pump classification

Pumps that increase water pressure in a water supply system, intended for use in an apartment, are a small device installed at the entrance of the pipeline to the apartment. Almost all pumps can operate in two modes:

manual;
automatic

Automated pumps to increase pressure turn on independently when you open any of the existing taps in the apartment. The flow sensor provides this function. It is triggered by the movement of water in the water supply. Pumps equipped with such sensors are protected from burnout during dry operation.

Automated Boost Pump

Boost pumps according to the principle of operation of the cooling system are classified as follows:

With a dry rotor: an impeller is mounted on the rotor, which forces air onto the motor housing. The efficiency of such models is high, but their operation is accompanied by noise.
With a wet rotor: water passes through the pump, cooling the motor. The main advantage of such pumps is their silent operation.

Some models of booster centrifugal pumps are designed for hot or cold water only.