COLD WATER SUPPLY SYSTEM

Introduction
Building water supply system is a
system in plumbing which provides and
distributes water to the different parts of
the building or structure, for purposes such
as drinking, cleaning, washing, culinary
use, etc.; it includes the water distributing
pipes, control devices, equipment, and
other appurtenances.

Introduction
Cold water system provides water for the
following purposes;
1. Drinking purpose.
2. Cooking purpose.
3. Sanitary purpose.
4. Washing purpose.
5. Gardening

Definitions
1. Cistern a container for water having a free
water surface at atmospheric pressure
2. Feed cistern any storage cistern used for
supplying cold water to a hot water apparatus
3. Storage cistern any cistern other than a
flushing cistern, having a free water surface
under atmospheric pressure, but not including
a drinking trough or drinking bowl for animals.

Definitions cont..
3. Capacity of a cistern - the capacity up to
the water line
4. Water line a line marked inside the
cistern to indicate the water level at which
the ball valve should be adjusted to shut off.
5. Overflowing level the lowest level at
which water can flow into that pipe from a
cistern.

Definitions cont
6. Warning pipe an overflow pipe so fixed that its
outlet end is in an exposed and conspicuous
position and where the discharge of any water from
the pipe may be readily seen and, where
practicable, outside the building.
7. Communication pipe any service pipe from the
water main to the stop valve fitted on the pipe.
8. Service pipe any pipe for supplying water from
a main to any premises as is subject to water
pressure from that main, or would be so subject
but for the closing of some stop valve.

Definitions cont.
9 Distributing pipe any pipe for conveying
water from a cistern, and under pressure
from that cistern.
10Supply pipe so much of any service pipe
which is not a communicating pipe.
11Main a pipe for general conveyance of
water as distinct from the conveyance to
individual premises.

Definitions cont..
12Hot water cylinder or tank a closed
container for hot water under more than
atmospheric pressure. Note: a cylinder is
deemed to include a tank.
13Potable water suitable for drinking.
14Fitting anything fitted or fixed in
connection with the supply, measurement,
control, distribution, utilization or disposal
of water.

Fig1.1 Connection to water

main
Installed and maintained by
water authority

Installed and maintained by

building owner

Stop valve
chamber

Communication pipe

760mm
(minimum)

service pipe
water main

Water authorities
stop valve

Distribution systems
There are two types of water supply
systems;
1. non storage or direct and
2. storage or indirect systems

Non storage or Direct Systems

It is a system whereby all the
sanitary fittings are supplied with
cold water direct from the main. In
this system, a cold water feed cistern
is usually required to feed the hot
water supply system

Fig 1.2 Direct cold water supply

system

Storage or Indirect Systems

It is a system whereby all the drinking
water used in the building is supplied
from the main and water used for all
other purposes is supplied indirectly
from a cold water storage cistern.
The cistern also supplies water to the
hot water cylinder therefore its capacity
will almost double the capacity required
for the direct system

Fig 1.3 Indirect cold water supply

system

Table 1.1 Advantages of Direct and Indirect

cold water systems
S/No Direct or non storage
1 Less pipework and smaller
or no cistern, making it
easier and cheaper to
install.
2 Drinking water is available
at all draw-off points.

S/No
1

Smaller cisterns which may

be sited below the ceiling.

In systems without cistern

there is no risk of polluting
the water from this source

Indirect or storage
Large capacity cistern provides a
reserve of water during
interruption of supply.
Water pressure on the taps
supplied from the cistern is
reduced, which minimizes wear
on taps and noise.
Fittings supplied with water from
the cistern are prevented from
causing pollution of the drinking
water by back siphon age
Lower demand on the water main

Prevention of Back Siphonage

Back siphonage is the back flow of water,
which may be contaminated, into the
drinking water supply.
The condition for back siphonage to
happen is the creation of negative
pressure or partial vacuum in the pipe
connected to an appliance having its
outlet submersed in water, which may be
contaminated.

Prevention of Back Siphonage

cont
Back pressure is the result of water pressure
in the system being greater than that in the
supply. Higher system pressures can be
caused by the expansion of water in unvented
domestic hot water supplies, or in systems
where a pump is used.

Negative pressures in the supply main may

be caused by a major leak in the main or the
fire services drawing off vast amounts of
water.

The points which must be

observed for prevention of risk
of back siphonage
1. The ball valves in the cisterns must be
above the overflow pipe and if the
silencer pipe is fitted must discharge
water above the ball valve through a
spray.
2. The outlets of taps connected to
sanitary appliances must be well above
the flooding level of the appliance.

The points which must be

observed for prevention of risk of
back siphonage cont..
3. Flushing valves for WCs must be
supplied from a cold water storage
cistern.
4. Appliances having low-level water
inlets, for example bidets and
certain types of hospital appliance,
must be supplied from a cold water
storage cistern and never direct
from the main

Water Storage
Purposes of water storage
Provide for an interruption of supply
Accommodate peak demand
Provide a pressure (head) for gravity
supplies
Design factors
Type and number of fittings
Frequency and pattern of use
Likelihood
and
frequency
of
breakdown of supply (often design for

According to regulations, the

installed cistern must be;
1. Watertight, adequate strength, and
manufactured from plastic, galvanized
steel, asbestos cement or copper.
2. Sited at a height that will provide sufficient
head and discharge of water to the fittings
supplied.
3. placed in a position where it can be readily
inspected and cleansed

According to regulations, the

installed cistern must be;
4. Provided with dust proof but not air
tight cover and protected from
damage by frost.
5. Fitted with an efficient overflow pipe
which should have a fall as great as
practicable not less than 1 in 10.

Fig 1.4 Method of installing cold water

storage or feed cistern
Inlet silencer
Vent pipe from
hot-water cylinder
40mm
40mm
25mm
50mm
Warning or
overflow pipe

Stop valve

Full-way
gate valve

50mm

Ceiling joists

Rising main

Timber bearers

Distributing pipe
to sanitary
appliances

Rising main

Fig 1.6 Method of duplicating cold water

storage cisterns

Cold-water
Feed pipes

Table 1.2 Provision of cold water

storage to cover 24 Hours
interruption of supply
Type of building
Dwelling houses and flats

per resident

Storage (L)
90

Hostels

per resident

90

Hotels

per resident

140

Offices without canteens

per head

40

Offices with canteens

per head

45

Restaurants
meal
Day schools

per head/per

10

per head

30

Boarding schools

per head

90

Nurses homes and medical quarters per resident

115

Table 1.3 Recommended minimum storage of cold

and hot water systems
Minimum cold water
Type of building
storage (litres)
Hostel
90 per bed space
Hotel
200 per bed space
Office premises:
- with canteen facilities
45 per employee
- without canteen facilities
40 per employee
Restaurant
7 per meal
Day school:
- nursery or primary
15 per pupil
- secondary or technical
20 per pupil
Boarding school
90 per pupil
Childrens home or
residential nursery
135 per bed space
Nurses home
120 per bed space
Nursing or convalescent
(Source: Garrett, R. H., 2008. Hot and Cold
home
135 per bed space
Water Supply)

Minimum hot water

storage (litres)
32 per bed space
45 per bed space
4.5 per employee
4.0 per employee
3.5 per meal
4.5 per pupil
5.0 per pupil
23 per pupil
25 per bed space
45 per bed space
45 per bed space

Note: Minimum cold water storage shown includes that used to supply

Table 1.4 Estimation of cold water

storage per occupant
Storage per
Type of building
occupant
(litres)
Hospitals, per staff on
45
duty
Hostels
90
Hotels
135
Houses and flats
135
Offices with canteens
45
Offices without canteens
35
Restaurant (* per meal)
7
Schools, boarding
90
Schools, day
30

Table 1.5 Provision of cold water

storage to cover 24 Hours interruption
of supply. Based on sanitary appliances

Sanitary appliance
Water closet (WC)
Sink
Water basin
Shower
Urinal

Storage (L)
180
135 - 225
90 - 250
135 - 225
135 - 250

Table 1.6 Access to storage

cistern

Table 1.7 Water storage plant

room area

Design principles
I. Cold
system

water

A: Potable water
Drinking
purpose.
Cooking
purpose.

II. Hot water system

(e.g. in hotels &
hospitals

B: Non-potable

water
Flushing
water(fresh

Swimming-pool
filtration
Irrigation(e.g.
for
landscape)
Fountain circulation
Air-conditioning
water, etc.

or

Design principles cont.

Major tasks of water systems design:
1. Assessment & estimation of demands
2. Supply scheme & schematic
3. Water storage requirements
4. Piping layout
5. Pipe sizing
6. Pump system design

Water demand
Water demand depends on:
Type of building & its function
Number of occupants, permanent or
transitional
Requirement for fire protection systems
Landscape & water features
Typical appliances using the cold water
WC cistern, wash basin, bath, shower,
sink
Washing machine, dishwasher
Urinal flushing cistern

Water demand cont

Simultaneous demand
Most fittings are used only at irregular
intervals
It is unlikely that all the appliances will be
used simultaneously . Therefore there is
no need to size pipe work on continuous
maximum
Key factors to consider:
Capacity of appliance (L)
Draw-off flow rate (L/s)
Draw-off period, or time taken to fill

Water demand cont

Loading Unit (L.U) : A factor given to an
appliance relating the flow rate at its terminal
fitting to
Length of time in use
Frequency of use for a particular type
Use of building
NOTE
Evaluate the probable maximum
Relates the flow rate to the probable usage
Consider design & minimum flow rates

Table 1.8 Design flow rates and

loading units

Example of use of
loading units

Figure 1.7 Conversion chart loading

units to flow rate

12 wash basins 1.5 = 18

10 WCs 2
=
20
2 urinal bowls
=

2 cleaners sinks 3
=
How
about urinals?
6
0.004L/s/urinal
Total loading units
=
continuous
44
Required design flow (from
graph) = 0.7 L/s + 0.008L/s

Design flow considerations

A small increase in demand over design
level will cause a slight reduction in
pressure/flow (unlikely to be noticed by
users)
Exceptional cases:
Cleaners

sinks

(depends

on

ones

behavior)
Urinal flushing cisterns (continuous
small flow)
Team changing rooms at sport clubs

Pipe sizing-Introduction
Correct pipe sizes will ensure adequate flow
rates at appliances and avoid problem caused
by over sizing and under sizing;
Over sizing will mean:
additional and unnecessary installation costs;
delays in obtaining hot water at outlets;
increased heat losses from hot water
distributing pipes.
Under sizing may lead to:
inadequate delivery from outlets and possibly
no delivery at some outlets during
simultaneous use;
some variation in temperature and pressure
at outlets, especially showers and other

Fig 1.8 Pipe sizing-Introduction

Sizing procedure for supply pipes

The procedure below is followed by an explanation
of each step with appropriate examples.
(1) Assume a pipe diameter.
(2) Determine the flow rate:
(a) by using loading units;
(b) for continuous flows;
(c) obtain the design flow rate by adding (a) and
(b).

(3) Determine the effective pipe length:

(d) work out the measured pipe length;
(e) work out the equivalent pipe length for
fittings;
(f) work out the equivalent pipe length for draw-

Sizing procedure for supply pipes cont

(4) Calculate the permissible loss of head:

(h) determine the available head:
(i) determine the head loss per metre run
through pipes;
(j) determine the head loss through fittings;
(k) calculate the permissible head loss.

(5) Determine the pipe diameter:

(l) decide whether the assumed pipe size will
give

Equivalent pipe length

Equivalent
pipe length Is the
expression of friction resistances to flow
through valves and fittings in terms of pipe
lengths having the same resistance to flow
as the valve or fitting.
For example, a 20 mm elbow offers the
same resistance to flow as a 20 mm pipe
0.8 m long.
Effective pipe length. The effective pipe
length is the sum of the measured pipe
length and the equivalent pipe lengths for

(see tables 1.9 &

1.10)

Fig 1.9 Equivalent pipe length cont

Table 1.9 Equivalent pipe lengths (copper, stainless

steel and plastics)

(Source: Garrett, R. H., 2008. Hot and Cold Water

Supply)

Equivalent pipe lengths (copper, stainless steel

and plastics) cont
Notes:
1. For tees consider change of direction only. For
gate valves losses are insignificant.
2. For fittings not shown, consult manufacturers if
significant head losses are expected.
3. For galvanized steel pipes in a small installation,
pipe sizing calculations may be based on the
data in this table for equivalent nominal sizes of
smooth bore pipes. For larger installations, data
relating specifically to galvanized steel should be
used. BS 6700 refers to suitable data in the
Plumbing Engineering Services Design Guide
published by the Institute of Plumbing.

Table 1.10 Typical head losses and

equivalent pipe lengths for taps

(Source: Garrett, R. H., 2008. Hot and Cold

Water Supply)

Fig 1.10 Example of measured and

effective pipe length

Measured pipe length =

4.75 m
Equivalent pipe lengths:
elbows 2 x 0.8
= 1.6 m
tee 1 x 1.0
= 1.0 m
Stop valve 1 x 7.0

Note: There is no
need to consider
both branch pipes
to taps.

Pressure at taps 45m head

Figure 1.11 Example of permissible head loss

This formula is used to determine whether the

frictional resistance in a pipe will permit the required
flow rate without too much loss of head or pressure.
Figure 1.10 illustrates the permissible head loss for

Note Gate valves and spherical plug

valves offer little or no resistance to
flow provided they are fully open.

Figure 1:12 Head loss

through stop valves

Figure 1.13 Head loss through floatoperated valves

Notes Figures shown are for cold water at 12C.

Hot water will show slightly more favorable head
loss results.
BS 6700 gives head loss in kPa.
1 m head = 9.81 kPa.

re 1.14 Determination of pipe diamete

Table 1:11 Maximum

recommended flow velocities
Water
temperature
(C )

Flow velocity
Pipes readily
accessible Pipes not readily
(m/s)
accessible (m/s)

10

3.0

2.0

50

3.0

1.5

70

2.5

1.3

90

2.0

1.0

Bib tap at 0.3

l/s in frequent
use.

1-Tee
2-check
valves
3-elbows

Figure 1.15 Pipe sizing

diagram

1-Tee
2-check
valves
3-elbows

1-Tee
2-Check
valves
1-Elbow

Work through the calculation sheet

See figure 1.15, using the data shown in figure 5.10
and Table 1.13.

1-Elbow; 1-DN20, 0.3l/s Tap

Table 1.12 Example of a suitable calculation sheet with

explanatory notes
(4)
(1)
(2)
(3)
Pipe
Pipe Loadi Flow size
refer ng
rate (mm
ence Units (L/s) diam
eter)

Enter
pipe
refer
ence
on
calcu
lation
sheet

Deter
mine
loadi
ng
Units
(Tabl
e 1.8)

Conv
ert
loadi
ng
units
to
flow
rates
(Fig.
1.7)

Make
assu
mpti
on as
to
pipe
size
(Insi
de
diam
eter)

(5)
Loss
of
head
(m/m
run)

Work
out
fricti
onal
resis
tance
per
metr
e
(Fig.
1.14)

(6)
Flow
veloc
ity
(m/s)

Deter
mine
veloc
ity of
flow
(Fig
1.14)

(7)
Meas
ured
pipe
run
(m)

(8)
Equivale
nt pipe
length
(m)

Meas
ure
lengt
h of
pipe
unde
r
consi
derat
ion

Conside
r
frictiona
l
resistan
ces in
fittings
(Table
1.9 and
Figures
1.12 &
1.13)

(9)Eff
ectiv
e
pipe
lengt
h (m)

Add
total
s in
colu
mns
7&8

(10)
Head
cons
ume
d (m)

(12) (13)
(11)
Avail Final
Progres
able Pipe
sive
head size
head (m)
(m) (mm)

(1
4)
R
e
m
ar
k
s

Head
cons
ume
d:
Multi
ply
colu
mn 5
by
colu
mn 9

Add
head
consum
ed in
column
10 to
progres
sive
head in
previous
row of
column
11

N
ot
e
s

Reco
rd
avail
able
head
at
point
of
deliv
ery

Compar
e
progres
sive
head
with
availabl
e head
to
confirm
pipe
diameter
or not

Table 1.13 Calculation sheet

Pipe sizing cont

Pipe sizing for hot water systems is the same as
cold water,
except cold feed pipe must also be considered
Useful formulae for pipes:
1. Thomas Box formula

Where;

d = pipe diameter (mm)

q = flow rate (l/s)
H = head or pressure (m)
L = effective length of pipe (actual
length + allowance for bends, tees,
etc.)

Example:
Determine the pipe size using
Thomas Box formula.
Answer:
Using Thomas Box
formula,

= 27.83
mm

Hence, the nearest commercial size is

32 mm bore steel or 35 mm outside
diameter copper.

2. Relative discharge of pipes

Exampl
e:
(a) Compute the number of 32 mm short branches
that can be served from 150 mm main.

Answ
er:
(b) Determine the size of water main required to
supply 15 nos.
20 mm short branch pipes.

Answ
er:
Hence, the nearest commercial size is 65
mm.

Fig
1.16
Typi
cal
Lay
out
Plan
(Tw
o
floo
rs)

-THE END-