Anybody object to this pass/fail specification for city water delivery?

Based on [more or less] responses from two water utilities,
an adequate city water supply for a single family house can deliver
more than 5 GPM and
between 20 & 80 PSI and
PSI x GPM should be more than 400.

This last line takes about 1/4 hp to accomplish and is my addition to this benchmark.

And WHAT is the relevence of PSI x GPM being 400? That does NOT create ANY useful measurement. IT is like a toilet's 1.6 gpf x 6 lpf equals approximately 10.

Why do you need to write a spec for the city? They will deliver what they feel like. Many places, they will deliver much higher than 80 psi, and rely on you to provide a regulator.

The minimum gpm is based on meter size. A 1/2" or 5/8" meter will deliver 5 gpm. If you want more gpm, you have to PAY for a larger meter. And the city will deliver whatever volume you choose to pay for.

Sorry for the misleading title.
It's a spec for OPs to judge if their city water supply is substandard or if a pipe is partially clogged. That question/complaint comes up a lot.

The static pressure and max flow rate is not hard to get, but the 400 is an approximation to a pump curve between these two endpoints. It corresponds to about a 1/4 to 1/2 hp pump.

If your house can maintain 40 PSI while delivering 16 GPM you're doing well. 5 GPM @ 5 PSI is terrible.

Here's what two WaCos said

Per the Department of Health Waterworks Regulations the
minimum allowable delivery pressure is 20 psi.
. . .our targeted range for delivery pressure is 40 to 80 psi. Flow rates are a function
of demand but a standard size residential meter (5/8") has a maximum
capacity of about 20 gpm.

and

We don't use a benchmark. The pressure range is between 40 and 80lbs. if
below 40 a booster pump is need and above 80 a pressure reducing valve.

The usual calculation is gpm AT a specific psi, NOT gpm TIMES psi, (which does not yield any kind of useful number).

hj said:

The usual calculation is gpm AT a specific psi, NOT gpm TIMES psi, (which does not yield any kind of useful number).

Click to expand...

GPM at a specific PSI or feet of head implies horsepower.
hp = (head x GPM)/3956 for water.

If you wanted to simulate city water and you lived next to a lake and your house was a few inches above the lake's surface, a 1/2 hp pump at any depth would probably work.

I think the WaCos don't use this because almost always just a static pressure and working water meter guarantees a usable water supply. Only when there is a problem do they use instruments and charts.