Last Week's Top Five Queries (Week Ending 08.10.2017)

Irish Water: Siobhan

Q1.
How can I move a shared manhole and sewer in my back yard?

In order to carry out works on the private sewer infrastructure, you will have need to apply for planning permission from your Local Authority.

As these works may necessitate the creation of a new connection to the public sewers, you may also need to apply for a New Sewer Connection through Irish Water. Your planning permission will have to be submitted as part of the New Connection Application.

As we cannot guarantee these works will be feasible, we advise submitting Pre-Connection Enquiry Form prior to commencing works. This will allow Irish Water to carry out an initial inspection and determine the feasibility of the works, before you apply for planning permission or a new connection.

You can find the pre-connection enquiry form here:
https://www.water.ie/connections/information/enquiry-form/ 


Q2.
Where can I find network maps for a connection application? 

You access these maps by contacting your Local Authority who maintain them on behalf of Irish Water.
                  

Q3.
If I intend to demolish an existing house and then replace it with a newly built house, is a new connection fee applicable in such an instance?

If the new property is the same size as the one its replacing, there would be a small Works Fee, as the connection would have to be inspected by the Local Water Department.
If the new building is significantly bigger (floor space) than the one it is replacing, depending on the Local Authority, there could be an infrastructure fee involved. The fee is calculated by the mechanisms applied by each Local Authority on 31 December 2013.


Q4.
I have no water in the bathroom and hot water taps following a water outage in my area. What should I do?

It seems that you may be experiencing airlocks within your internal plumbing system which is resulting in disruptions to your shower and your bathroom taps. For tips on how to handle internal airlocks, please see our website here:

https://www.water.ie/support/questions-and-answers/how-to-check-for-and-clea/ 

We also ask customers to note that, as per Building Regulations the cold water supply to the kitchen sink should be taken directly from the service pipe supplying water to the dwelling. The cold water supply to the bath, shower, washbasin and to other appliances in the dwelling should be from a cold water storage cistern. Outages and unplanned events can happen on the network, hence appliances are fed via the storage tank to limit problems should an outage occur, or fluctuations in water pressure.


Q5.
I have been experiencing cloudy and discoloured water following a recent water outage? What can be done about this?

White discolouration in water can be caused by trapped air or dissolved minerals (lime) associated with water hardness.

Air can get into the water supply following repair work on the network or when a pocket of air becomes trapped in the internal domestic pipework. Aerated water has a cloudy/ milky white appearance.

Brown or orange discolouration can occur due to a build-up of mineral sediment such as iron or manganese, and may be present for a short while when water is restored following repair works. You can normally resolve this by running the cold kitchen tap for a few minutes until it clears.

If you wish to report ongoing discolouration in your water supply, you can send us a private mail with the following details, and we will be happy to look into this for you:

- Name;
- Address; and
- Contact number.