(A) Handling.
(1) Pipe and accessories shall be handled with care to avoid damage. Material shall not be dropped or bumped against pipe or accessories already on the ground or against any other object. Damaged pipe which cannot be repaired to the town’s satisfaction shall be replaced at the contractor’s expense.
(2) The interior of all pipe and accessories shall be kept free from dirt and other foreign matter.
(B) Dimensions. The pipe shall be furnished in the longest manufactured lengths unless otherwise shown or specified. Shorter or cut lengths shall be used only where necessary to make closure. Branches, bends or other specials, where so shown or required, shall be made to standard dimensions unless otherwise shown. All pipes shall be straight, true in form, or full diameter throughout, and shall have deep and wide socket joints.
(C) Pipe laying.
(1) Deflection from a straight line or grade, as required by horizontal or vertical alignments or offsets shall be in accordance with the manufacturer’s specifications.
(2) If the alignment requires deflections in excess of the allowable deflection per joint, special bends or a sufficient number of shorter lengths of pipe shall be furnished to provide angular deflections within the limit set forth.
(3) All pipe shall be laid and maintained to the required lines and grades as indicated on the plans. Fittings shall be installed at the locations shown on the plans.
(4) At times when work is not in progress, open ends of pipe and fittings shall be securely closed so that no trench water, earth or other substance will enter the pipe or fittings.
(5) No pipe shall be laid in water or when the trench or weather conditions are unsuitable for proper installation.
(6) When the proposed elevation of the force main conflicts with the elevation of an existing gravity sewer, water main, gas main or other structure, the force main shall be deepened as to avoid said conflict.
(7) Pipe shall be laid with bell ends facing in the direction of laying. Pipe ends shall be clear of dirt and debris before the connection is made.
(8) The cutting of pipe for installing valves or fittings shall be done in a neat, workmanlike manner without damage to the pipe or lining. Flame cutting of pipe shall not be allowed.
(D) Thrust restraint.
(1) Thrust blocking or restraints shall be provided at all line deflection greater than 22 degrees and as otherwise required to protect the pipe joints from separation.
(2) Thrust blocks shall be sized and dimensioned as shown in these standards.
(E) Hydrostatic testing. The testing method described in this division (E) is for water pressure testing. The test, which must be successfully performed on all new force mains, shall be performed in accordance with the following provisions.
(1) (a) Said test shall include all force main from the point of beginning or the wastewater lift station to the point of termination.
(b) The contractor shall make arrangements with the town for scheduling the test after the piping has been accepted as being ready for testing.
(c) Any concrete thrust blocks shall have been in place for a period of at least ten days prior to test.
(d) The test shall be performed in the presence of the town.
(2) Water for testing must be furnished by the contractor. The contractor shall furnish all necessary equipment, piping, pumps, fittings, gauges and operating personnel to properly conduct the test.
(3) The system shall be subjected to a hydrostatic test pressure at 100 psi.
(4) The test procedure shall be as follows.
(a) The system shall be slowly filled with water. Air shall be expelled from the pipe through air relief valves. If additional air vents are needed to assure that all air is expelled, the contractor shall temporarily install corporation cocks at the appropriate points. All air shall be expelled from the force main prior to applying the test pressure.
(b) After the test pressure is first applied, a visual inspection of the force main shall be made for leaks. All visible leaks shall be stopped by repairing or replacing defective or damaged pipe, fittings or valves prior to starting the official pressure test.
(c) After all visible leaks are stopped, the official test shall be conducted for a period of at least two hours. During the test, the specified test pressure shall not vary more than five psi.
(d) Pumps shall be equipped with a receiving water receptacle, and the water entering the pipeline to make up leakage shall be carefully measured and recorded. Pumping equipment shall include suitably calibrated pressure gauges. LEAKAGE is defined as the volume of water which must be added to the pipeline to maintain a pressure within five psi of the specified test pressure.
1. If the amount of makeup water entering the pipeline (during the two-hour test while the pressure is maintained within five psi of the specified test pressure) is less than or equal to the allowable leakage as calculated by the following formula, the pipeline shall be accepted as having passed the leakage test satisfactorily:
L = SD (P)1/2
133,200
* Formula from AWWA Standard C600
where: L = allowable leakage, gallons per hour
S = length of pipeline tested, feet
D = nominal diameter of pipe, inches
P = average test pressure during test, pounds per square inch gauge
2. All visible leaks, however, shall be stopped by appropriate repairs or replacement of defective or damaged materials regardless of the outcome of the test.
(5) Should the line fail this official test, the pressure shall be maintained while a thorough search is made of all possible locations of leakage or other cause of pressure drop. When all such conditions are corrected, the pipe line shall be given another official test and this procedure repeated until satisfactory results are obtained.
(6) All leaks developing after the line has been tested and made evident by a showing of water on the ground surface shall be repaired to the satisfaction of the town regardless of the results of the official test.
(F) Identification/location tape.
(1) Furnish and install identification/location tape over the centerline of all PVC force mains.
(2) Identification tape shall be manufactured of polyethylene with a minimum thickness of four mils and shall have a one mil thick metallic foil core. The tape shall be highly resistant to alkalis, acid and other destructive agents found in soil. Tape width shall be a minimum of three inches and a maximum of six inches and shall have background color specified below, imprinted with black letters. Imprints shall be as specified below and shall repeat itself a minimum of once every two feet for entire length of tape.
(3) Tape background colors and imprints shall be as follows:
Background Imprint | Color |
“Caution - Force Main Buried Below” | Green |
(4) Identification tape shall be “Terra Tape” as manufactured by Reef Industries, Inc., Houston, TX or equal.
(a) Identification tape shall be installed over all buried force mains in accordance with the manufacturer’s installation instructions and as specified herein.
(b) Identification tape shall be installed two feet below final grade over centerline of pipe.
(c) In all PVC pipe installation, the identification/location tape shall be looped into the manholes for connection to a locating device.
(d) The tape shall be spliced together to provide a continuous strip from manhole to manhole.
(2004 Code, Art. II, § B, part 3)