# Question about running water pipes and insulation



## silkcreekfarm (Jul 28, 2015)

I was just reading the thread on "Running New Frost Free Hydrants" and that is something I am planning on doing to our back pasture.

Let me explain. Our property is 5 acres and long and narrow. We have pastures around our barn and then one large pasture in the back. We have water at the barn, and I want to run water to our back pasture. Here is the issue. Between our front pastures and the back pasture is a small ditch that has running water year round. It is about 6 feet deep and probably about 15' across (it's big enough our neighbor can get his tractor in there every few years to clean it up for us). On one end of the ditch we have a culvert and dirt and gravel over it so we can drive to the back pasture. It is probably 20' wide. Here is a screenshot of our property (red lines are the property line)










I live in the Willamette Valley of Oregon. We do get below freezing and at times get snow, but not that often. 

My question is what would be the best way to run a water pipe to the back pasture and keep it insulated? 

Thanks!
Bil


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## Harry Chickpea (Dec 19, 2008)

Off the top of my head...

I wouldn't overthink it. If the crossing of the ditch is the concern, I'd bury as best possible, but also have a frostproof hydrant on either side, connected with a dry line. If there was a serious freezup in the ditch and I urgently needed water out back, I'd open up the hydrants and run water through the dry line. Or, running a wire beside the pipe could allow use of a welder to thaw it.


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## silkcreekfarm (Jul 28, 2015)

Thanks, that makes sense. That would be easy.

Bil


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## Fishindude (May 19, 2015)

Water lines need to be buried deeper than the frost depth. Around here, frost depth can be 36", so by code building foundations, etc. extend to 36" below surface of the ground. Water lines are typically buried a foot deeper or 48" for an extra measure of precaution.

Somebody around you should be able to tell you the frost depth. Bury the lines a foot deeper than that and you should never have a problem. When crossing a ditch, just bury it under the bottom of the stream bed, unless it's bedrock, in which case you would want to run a "dry line" to cross the ditch as suggested by Harry.


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## Nimrod (Jun 8, 2010)

Oregon doesn't get that cold. I visited my brother in Cottage Grove and it snowed, accumulating about a half inch of slush. Totally freaked out the natives.

The water can freeze in Pex and it won't burst. I have a run of black poly? pipe that has frozen and not burst. You could just run one of these and bury it far enough so you won't damage it when you run the mower or pickup over it. You won't have water to the pasture on the few occasions when the pipe freezes but it should thaw out quickly.

You can plumb in a quick connect in the barn so you can hook up the compressor and blow the line out if there is a danger of it freezing. During freezing weather you can run the water in the pasture, shut it off, and blow out the line before it can freeze. Even though you blow out the line some water will remain in it and settle in a low spot. If there is not enough ice to completely block the line it will melt the next time you run water. If it does completely block the line you will have to wait for it to thaw.


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## Fishindude (May 19, 2015)

If no worry of freezing, just bury it deep enough that traffic over top won't crush and damage it, I'd recommend 24". Good idea to "bed" pipe in some clean sand so a rock doesn't rub against it and rub a hole over time.


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## chuckhole (Mar 2, 2006)

This is probably a different application but I ran water across my creek bed. First, I put a bridge across the creek bed. It is welded 6" pipe with 2" pipe for hand rails. The total dimensions are 24 feet by 4 feet wide and it is decked over with 3/4" marine grade treated plywood.

Then I ran the water line inside the 6" pipe to protect it. The creek bed (or gulley) is about 10 feet down from the bridge and the 24 feet barely makes it across.

To insulate the 1" water line, I wrapped insulation around it, tied it tight with a continuous slip knot and then ran this into a 2" PVC pipe in 10' sections. Once it was in the section, I pulled the continuous slip knots out and the insulation expanded back out to firmly fill the inside of the 2" pipe. I completed this process for a 40 foot long section of pipe and buried it on either end of the bridge and connected it to the uninsulated buried pipe.

It has been like this for 9 years without issue..........but then again, our frost line is only about 9-10 INCHES. To my knowledge, it has never been exposed to temperatures lower than 8 degrees.


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## uncledoug (May 10, 2015)

silkcreekfarm said:


> I was just reading the thread on "Running New Frost Free Hydrants" and that is something I am planning on doing to our back pasture.
> 
> Let me explain. Our property is 5 acres and long and narrow. We have pastures around our barn and then one large pasture in the back. We have water at the barn, and I want to run water to our back pasture. Here is the issue. Between our front pastures and the back pasture is a small ditch that has running water year round. It is about 6 feet deep and probably about 15' across (it's big enough our neighbor can get his tractor in there every few years to clean it up for us). On one end of the ditch we have a culvert and dirt and gravel over it so we can drive to the back pasture. It is probably 20' wide. Here is a screenshot of our property (red lines are the property line)
> 
> ...


I ran 3/4 s of a mile of pipe up a hill 180 feet higher than the well head, It is full of water every day because the solar pump works every sun day. I ran an One and a quarter inch pipe, inside a three inch pipe and have not had one bit of trouble with it in 40 years. I ran the pipe in 1975. if that helps. 
If your in flat ground its kinda no big deal. just get a ditch witch and run the pipe. Id use schedule 80 cause it is thicker. In the changing seans the earth and the pipe expand and contract , eventually wear thru the thin stuff.
I am on solar and wind energy and have lived off the grid for a very long time. worse problem is the batteries and the maintenance of them Kinda looking forward to these new Toyota batteries they are hawking.
time will tell. Hope this helps


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