PLUMBING SYSTEMS Flashcards
(103 cards)
0
Q
pH levels: anything above 7 is ___ and anything below 7 is ____.
A
Above 7: alkaline.
Below 7: acidic
1
Q
What is an aquifer?
A
Large region of subsurface water
2
Q
What causes hardness? How do you soften it?
A
Calcium and magnesium. Treat it with an ion exchange process with a water softener like zeolite where cal and mag ions are exchanged for sodium ions in the zeolite
3
Q
What causes acid rain?
A
Increased sulphur and nitrogen compounds in the atmosphere
4
Q
What causes turbidity in water?
A
Suspended material like silt, clay, organic material.
5
Q
How do you correct odor problems in water?
A
Run it through activated carbon filter
6
Q
How do you correct biological contamination in water?
A
Chlorination
7
Q
Name three examples of private water supplies
A
Well, spring, collected rainwater
8
Q
What are the two considerations when drilling a well?
A
Depth and yield
9
Q
How shallow is a shallow well?
A
Less than 25 feet
10
Q
What is the yield of a well measured it and what is the minimum for a private residence?
A
Gallons per minute. A private residence would need at least 5-10 gpm… If there isn’t enough you can include a storage tank
11
Q
Name 3 types of pumps for wells and what they are suitable for.
A
Suction pumps. For water tables less than 25 ft deep.
Deep-well jets. For depths of 25-100 ft.
Turbine pumps. High capacity and deep.
Submersible pump. Used a lot for medium to deep residences b/c it has a waterproof motor and pump below the water line and pump to a pressure tank.
12
Q
What is the pressure of water pumped through mains (average and full range)?
A
50psi, 40-80psi
13
Q
Water-wise what are the first things you have to determine in a building project? What makes it super expensive?
A
Determine the location of the water main, it’s size, it’s pressure, and the cost to tap it, all available from the local water company. When you have to pipe a long way to meet the main it becomes expensive.
14
Q
What is static head? What is the static head of water?
A
The pressure required to push water vertically (or the pressure causes at te bottom of a column of water). You need .443 psi to lift water 1ft…. Or 1psi to lift water 2.3ft.
15
Q
What is an upfeed system?
A
Uses pressure in the main directly to supply water fixtures.
16
Q
Why use a downfeed system and how does it work?
A
Use or because a building is too tall for upfeed. You pump water from the main to a storage tank on the top of the building or top of a zone… then use the pressure of gravity to supply to fixtures.
17
Q
What is the max. pressure on a fixture and what limits does this place on downfeed systems?
A
Max. 45-60psi. This means that zones can’t be more than 138ft high.
18
Q
What can you do if your downfeed zones are so high they feed too much pressure to fixtures?
A
Use pressure-reducing valves
19
Q
What is (and what is another name for) a direct upfeed pumping system?
A
Tankless system. Several pumps used together with a pressure sensor. When demand is light you only use one pump and then next ones kick in automatically.
20
Q
What is the most common steel for piping?
A
Schedule 40
21
Q
What is the only type of plastic piping you can use with hot water?
A
PVDC
22
Q
In piping, what is a union?
A
Connects 2 sections of rigid pipe
23
Q
What do you need to connect small kitchen and bathroom pipes to supply lines?
A
Compression fittings
24
What do you use to control water flow?
Valves
25
Name three common valve types and describe their purposes.
Globe valve. Used for water that is frequently and variable controlled (like faucets and hose bibs). A lot of friction loss to (2) 90° turns.
Gate valve. Seats metal wedge against 2 metal parts. Turns on and off completely.
Check valve. Works automatically allowing water flow from only one direction (no back flow)
26
What is water hammer?
Noise caused by abrupt valve closure forcing water to move in the system and rattle the pipes.
27
Name two things you can do to avoid water hammer.
Air chamber. Length of pipe installed above the connection to the faucet to cushion surges.
Shock absorber. Expansion device that performs the same service.
28
Too much pressure on fixtures can lead to_____. Use what?
Wear and tear. Use pressure reducers, also called pressure regulators.
29
Name the (4) values that must add up or be less than the total street water main pressure.
1. Pressure at most remote fixture
2. pressure loss from static head
3. pressure loss by friction in piping and fittings
4. pressure loss through water meter
30
Calculate the pressure loss by static head by multiplying ____ by ____?
Multiply the total height by 0.434.
31
Above ___ ft/sec water in pipes is too noisy.
10
32
PVC expands how many times more than copper piping?
3.5
33
How do you solve the problem of having to wait for all the cold water in the piping to run through the fixture until hot water is pumped from water heaters or boilers?
Use a two-pipe circulating system, which keeps water slowly circulating, then cooling and falling down to the water heater to be reheated and continuing to circulate.
34
What does the recovery rate mean in reference to a water heater?
This is the number of gallons per hour of cold water that they heater can raise to the desired temperature.
35
What are the three basic types of water heaters?
Storage tank, tankless, and circulating.
36
When does indirect hot water heating not work very well?
When it's heated indirectly by boiler or furnace that only works when space heating as needed.
37
In solar water heating what is the difference between a direct and indirect system? Or "open–loop system" versus "closed–loop system"? What is the one advantage of each?
An open–loop / direct system (efficiency but subject to freezing) uses the same water that is heated in the solar collectors while the indirect /closed-loop system (uses antifreeze) uses a separate fluid for collecting heat.
38
Passive circulation systems rely on what to operate and are therefore less expensive? But active circulation systems use what to operate under therefore more reliable but my expensive?
gravity versus pumps
39
How does the batch system solar heating system work? What are the disadvantages?
Also known as a breadbox heater, it heats water directly in a black – painted tank inside a glazed box. Subject to freezing and night time he lost.
40
How does a thermosiphon solar heating system work? What can you do to keep it from freezing?
It uses the natural movement of heated water to circulate in a passive, open – loop system. But to avoid freezing you can also use a closed – system with anti-freeze.
41
How does a closed – Loop active solar heating system work?
Anti-freeze is pumped into a heat exchanger where domestic hot water is heated.
42
What is a drain – down solar heating water system?
This is a direct, open – loop system that automatically drains water from the collectors when the outside temperature is near freezing.
43
What is a drain – back solar water heating system?
In the system it is a closed – loop, but the fluid used his water, which drains back into a storage tank when the temperature is low.
44
What is a phase – change solar water heating system?
This just takes advantage of the large amounts of latent heat in a phase change.
45
What is the basic difference between sanitary and storm drainage?
Sanitary drainage may contain human ways, including graywater Which doesn't contain human waste and Blackwater which does.
46
What is the basics thing that a trap does in a drainage system?
Prevents sewage gases from entering the building
47
What are the two purposes of vents in a drainage system?
First they allow built-up sewage gases to escape. Second they let pressure in the system equalize so that waste doesn't form a siphon draining water out of traps
48
Which part of the vent is called the stack vent? And what the hell is the difference between a stack vent a vent stack?
This is the part of the vent above the highest fixture in the system, which extends through the roof. A vent stack is used in a multi story building separately from the piping, and it also connects to the stack vent.
49
What is the general slope of house drains and sewers? And what is the slope for larger pipes?
The quarter inch per foot, for pipes larger than 3 inches it is an eighth of an inch per foot.
50
What does DWV stand for?
Drainage, waste, and vent
51
What is the backflow preventer or backwater valve?
It prevents sewage from upper stories or from the building sewer from reversing flow and backing up into fixtures set at a lower elevation.
52
What do you need a sump pit for?
That's when plumbing fixtures must be below the level of the house drain and has sewer. It pumps the sewage up to a higher level.
53
Drainage pipes and water supply piping are both sized based on what?
The idea of fixture units
54
How does a septic tank work?
It collects sewage and allows solid matter to settle to the bottom while the effluent drains into the distribution system, seeping into the ground.
55
What's the minimum feet between a leaching field and a well?
Hundred feet (50 ft bt septic tank and well, 10 ft bt leaching field and building)
56
Manholes are located every _____ feet and at every ____.
150 feet, change in direction
57
What does the retention pond do?
It contains maximum expected run off then slowly releases the water to the storm sewer system
58
What is the range of slopes for gutters?
Ranging from 1/16 inch per foot to 1/2 inch per foot
59
What does compartmentation have to do with?
Containing a fire
60
What is the difference between a passive smoke control system and an active smoke control system?
The passive system has smoke barriers arranged to limit the migration of smoke. The active system uses mechanical fan to produce pressure differential across smoke barriers or to establish air flows to limit and direct smoke movement.
61
What is a curtain board?
This is a piece of construction hanging at least 6 feet down from the ceiling, restricting the passage of smoke and flame during a fire's initial stages.
62
With regards to fire protection what is a high-rise building?
Any building with a floor area more than 75 feet above the lowest level of fire department vehicle access.
63
Why is there higher pressure in a safe zone then a contaminated zone in compartmentalized fire safety?
You turn exhaust on and supply off in the contaminated area and you turn supply on an exhaust off in the safe area.
64
What are the four sprinkler pipe systems and which one is the most common?
The wet-pipe system is the most common. There is also dry–pipe, pre-action, and deluge.
65
Why use a dry pipe system?
Because the area is subject to freezing.
66
Why use a pre-action system?
Use a pre-action system where damage from water is likely/expensive. An early alarm allows the fire to be put out before any sprinkler head opens.
67
Why use a deluge sprinkler system.
You use it in high hazard areas because it turns on water not only in the fire area but in all areas of the building.
68
What are standpipes?
Pipes running the height of the building, providing water outlets at each floor where firefighters can connect.
69
What are the three classifications that the IBC has for standpipes?
Class I is a dry standpipe system for use by fire department personnel. 2 1/2 inch outlets
Class II is a wet standpipe system for use by building occupants. 1 1/2 inch outlets
Class III is a combination system.
70
What are the two ways you can supply water to standpipes?
Either from storage tanks or through Siamese connections at the ground level for use by fire dept.
71
Where and why to use halogenated agents or halon, and why not to use them.
Use Helen where water might damage the contents of a room. But it is a CFC gas.
72
How do intumescent materials work?
They responded to fire by expanding rapidly, insulating the surface they protect or filling gaps to prevent the passage of fire, heat, and smoke. Strips, caulk, paint, and putty.
73
Remember to create another study set for the flow of water thru pipes in buildings...
!!!
74
Acidity in water ___ and hardness and water ___ pipes.
Corrodes and clogs, respectively
75
What is an anode?
A piece of metal inserted into a water tank to divert deposits that cause hard water
76
What do you use to soften water? What is the process called?
Zeolite ... Ion exchange process
77
How many feet can one psi left a column of water?
2.3 feet
78
If pressure on a fixture exceeds 80 psi what do you need?
A pressure regulator
79
What's the disadvantage of the pneumatic tank system?
Takes up some space in the basement, and causes some air to be dissolved in the water
80
What is the main disadvantage of a down feed system?
It adds a lot of weight to the roof, and this can be dangerous in an earthquake too.
81
What is the main disadvantage of the tankless system?
It tends to wear out the pumps more rapidly, but requires hardly any floor space and no additional roof space or structure
82
The continuous loop system trades the waste of what to save more what?
There is a steady loss of heat, but no wasted water
83
What is another name for the instantaneous heater? And what does it do?
In–flow heater. It heats water right when the hot water faucet is turned on, no wasted heat and no wasted water.
84
What is the formula for the thermal expansion of pipes?
Delta L = Lk(T_2 - T_1)
Where:
```
Delta L = change in length
L = length
k = coefficient of expansion
T_1 = original temperature
T_2 = original temperature
```
85
What is the minimum diameter for event?
1 1/4 inch or half the diameter of the drain it serves, whichever is larger
86
What is loop venting?
When the branch vent returns to the stack vent instead of to the vent stack
87
What is continuous venting?
When each fixture vents separately
88
What is circuit venting?
When you have one fixture and then another fixture and then another fixture… And then you vent them altogether
89
Name the three required locations for cleanouts
1. Where the building drain joins the sewer system.
2. Every 50 feet in pipes under 4 inches in diameter, and every 100 ft in larger pipes
3. At every corner where the pipe changes direction more than 45°
90
Where do you need a manhole (2 places)?
Everyone 150 feet, and where a new lines joins an existing
91
What is sludge?
This is the solid waste that is taken out of water in a public sewage treatment system. It is dried and either put in a landfill or occasionally used as fertilizer, but not usually because it's usually contaminated these days.
92
What is the cheapest sewage treatment and also usually not allowed?
A cesspool!... A chamber underground with a porous bottom and porous walls. So it soaks into the surrounding ground until everything gets clogged up. This means eventually a new cesspool must be dug of the sewage lines rerouted to it.
93
Septic tanks are sized based on an expected flow of how many gallons per day per person?
100
94
A leach field is also called a what?
Tile drain field ... because it is simply a grid of ceramic pipe laid underground, not quite together and to end so that the liquid leaks out, over a bed of gravel, which filters the liquid waste before it seeps into the soil.
95
What is the catch basin?
Kind of like a manhole, except that the top is a great instead of a cover. Placed at the lowest point in a swale or depression to collect run off and pass it to the storm drainage system which empties into a local stream or lake.
96
Why should plastic pipe never be used in exposed locations above ground or outside walls?
Because the plastic to grade in direct sunlight (when exposed to ultraviolet light).
97
What is the difference between reworking a plastic pipe connection and a copper pipe connection?
Plastic: no way to pull the pieces apart in a plastic connection. You just cut it with a saw and put a new piece in.
Copper: with copper you just reheat it, the sold or melts, the pipes flight apart.
98
What is the purpose of a gate valve and what negative quality does it create/have?
It is intended to be entirely on or entirely off. It has a minimum restriction when fully open, but it causes a great deal of turbulence when partially open.
99
What is the purpose of a globe valve?
It turns water on and off but also meters or throttles the flow at intermediate rates.
100
What is the purpose of a check valve?
A sensually a backflow preventer, it's purpose is to prevent water from moving backwards in the system.
101
What is another word for an angle valve? And what does it simply do?
Also called a seat valve or a screw valve or a seat or washer valve. It screws the washer against a seat, modulating the flow.
102
Siphoning in a plumbing system could happen when there is a… what can you use to prevent it?
Loss of pressure in the supply line. Use a vacuum breaker.
