Location of irrigation Tee and Manifold

[dgeist]

Greetings, I'm a DIYer looking at replacing my aging cast-iron (post-meter) residential supply line. Currently, there's a PVC tee inline between the meter and start of the iron pipe feeding an adjacent irrigation manifold cluster.

I'm planning on re-plumbing the house supply with 1" soft copper and would like to put in a copper Tee at the house side and re-locate the irrigation manifold up there (and then patch-in runners down to the the branches leaving the current location of the manifold.

I think I'm okay with respect to flow/resistance, etc. I want the manifold up near the house for cosmetic, access, and future expansion purposes. Any major issues that you folks see with this plan?

Thanks
Dan

[Fireguy97]

Other that not knowing the distance between the new manifold location and the existing manifold location, there shouldn't be any problems. Just remember that the manifold is always better as close to the zone as possible. Also make sure that you allow for and have your backflow assembly tested after you make this plumbing change.

Mick

[Jerome2877]

Soldering underground is not allowed in some area's, something you may want to check before soldering the T.

[dgeist]

- Checking with local codes, now.
- The current manifold is right against the trunk for one zone, and half way across the yard from the other. The new location will simply flip-flop the relative distances. There will be about a 50 foot addition between the manifold and first PVC Tee in the farthest zone. (They're all large-throw slow moving rotary lawn heads, BTW). They have fairly large diameter PVC feeds and I've yet to see any issues with flow.

If soldering isn't permitted underground, how does one connect from the brass nipple on the meter side to the copper? Compression fitting? Or is it simply that ADDITIONAL solder joints are not allowed?

Thanks.
Dan

[Jerome2877]

They can be compression, braised or flared. Sharkbite's could also be used there as well.

[dgeist]

Brazing is (correct me if I'm off here) the same basic process as soldering but with a different filler material and at a higher heat? I don't think I'd want a sharkbite connector buried (seen too many leak from improper use) and I don't see how a compression would be better than a solder....but I guess I don't write the codes.

Dan

[hj]

quoe; Soldering underground is not allowed in some area's

That ONLY applies to joints inside a building under a concrete slab. The irrigation connection can be any where you want it to be and once you install the "proper" backflow preventer, (not the $9.95 Home Depot special), you can do anything you wish to with the piping.

[Jerome2877]

That ONLY applies to joints inside a building under a concrete slab.

Ok very possible he is in an area where soldering underground is allowed and thats why I stated some area's, but some area's like my entire country, you cannot.

7.2.9.2

4) Except as provided in Sentence (5), joints in copper tubes installed underground shall be made with either flared or compression fittings, or be brazed using a brazing alloy within the American Welding Society's AWS-BCuP range.

5) Compression fittings shall not be used underground under a building.

There's my code, how about showing yours HJ!