[Amended 7-18-1973]
No person shall uncover, make any connections with or opening
into, use, alter or disturb any public sewer or appurtenance thereof
without first obtaining a written permit from the Building Inspector
of the City of Rensselaer.
There shall be three classes of building sewer permits: for
residential; for commercial service; and for service to establishments
producing industrial wastes. In any case, the owner or his agent shall
make application on a special form furnished by the Building Inspector.
The permit application shall be supplemented by any plans, specifications
or other information considered pertinent in the judgment of the Building
Inspector. A permit or inspection fee of $25 for a residential and
$50 for a commercial building sewer permit and $150 for an industrial
building sewer permit shall be paid to the City of Rensselaer at the
time an application is filed.
A separate and independent building sewer shall be provided
for every building; except that where one building stands at the rear
of another on an interior lot and no sewer is available or can be
constructed to the rear building through an adjoining alley, courtyard
or driveway, the building sewer from the front building may be extended
to the rear building and the whole considered as one building sewer.
In such cases, approval shall be obtained from the Plumbing Inspector
of the City of Rensselaer prior to installation of the building sewer.
Old building sewers may be used in connection with new buildings
only when they are found, on examination and test by the Plumbing
Inspector, to meet all requirements of this chapter.
The building sewer shall be cast-iron soil pipe, ASTM Specification
A74, or equal; or clay pipe, ASTM Specification C278, or equal; asbestos-cement
house-connection pipe; or other suitable material approved by the
Plumbing Inspector. Joints shall be tight and waterproof. Any part
of the building sewer that is located within 10 feet of a water service
pipe shall be constructed of cast-iron soil pipe with leaded joints.
Cast-iron pipe with leaded joints may be required by the Plumbing
Inspector where the building sewer is exposed to damage by tree roots.
If installed in filled or unstable ground, the building sewer shall
be of cast-iron soil pipe, except that nonmetallic material may be
accepted if laid on a suitable concrete bed or cradle as approved
by the Plumbing Inspector. Building sewer pipe shall have a maximum
length of five feet between joints.
The size and slope of the building sewer shall be subject to
the approval of the Plumbing Inspector, but in no event shall the
diameter be less than four inches. The slope of such four-inch pipe
shall be not less than 1/4 inch per foot. The slope of a five-inch
and six-inch pipe shall be not less than 3/16 inch per foot and 1/8
inch per foot, respectively.
Whenever possible, the building sewer shall be brought to the
building at an elevation below the basement floor. Any openings, such
as cleanout hand holes in traps, in house drains, cellar drains, etc.,
shall be not lower than the level of the finished basement floor.
No building sewer shall be laid parallel to and within three feet
of any bearing wall, which might thereby be weakened. The depth shall
be sufficient to afford protection from frost. The building sewer
shall be laid at uniform grade and in straight alignment insofar as
possible. Changes in direction shall be made only with properly curved
pipe and fittings.
In all buildings in which any building drain is too low to permit
gravity flow to the public sewer, sanitary sewage carried by such
drain shall be lifted by approved mechanical means and discharged
to the building sewer.
All excavations required for the installation of a building
sewer shall be open trench work unless otherwise approved by the Plumbing
Inspector. Pipe laying and backfill shall be performed in general
accordance with ASTM Specification C12 and C13, the Manual of Practice
No. 9, Design and Construction of Sanitary and Storm Sewers (ASCE)
and in full accordance with the local Building Code, except that no
backfill shall be placed until the work has been inspected.
A.
All joints and connections shall be made gastight and watertight.
B.
Poured joints for cast-iron pipe shall be firmly packed with oakum
or hemp and filled with molten lead not less than one inch deep. Lead
shall run in one pouring and be caulked tight. The entire joint shall
conform to AWWA Specification C600, Section 9a. No paint, varnish
or other coatings shall be permitted on the jointing material until
after the joint has been tested and approved. The transition joint
between cast-iron pipe and/or other approved pipe material shall be
made with either lead or approved hot-poured jointing material. Such
material for hot-poured joints shall not soften sufficiently to destroy
the effectiveness of the joint when subjected to a temperature of
160° F. nor be soluble in any of the wastes carried by the drainage
system. The joint shall first be caulked tight with jute, hemp or
similar approved material.
C.
Premolded gasket joints for plain and cast-iron pipe may be used
if approved by the Plumbing Inspector and shall be a neoprene compression-type
gasket which provides a positive double seal in the assembled joint.
The gasket shall be a premolded, one-piece unit designed for jointing
the plain end cast-iron hub and spigot soil pipe and fittings. The
assembled joint shall be sealed by compression of the gasket between
the exterior surface of the spigot and the interior spigot of the
hub. The joint shall be assembled following the manufacturer's
recommendations using acceptable lubricant and special pipe-coupling
tools for that purpose. The plain spigot end shall be forced into
the hub end of the pipe for the full depth of the hub itself. Lubricant
shall be a bland, flax-base, nontoxic material and shall not chemically
attack the gasket material. Typical manufacturer of this type gasket
is the Tyler Pipe and Foundry Company, Tyler, Texas, or Buffalo Pipe
and Foundry Corporation, Buffalo, New York.
D.
Joints in clay pipe and asbestos-cement pipe shall follow the manufacturer's
recommendations and be approved by the Plumbing Inspector.
A.
The connection of the building sewer into an existing public sewer
shall be made at the property line. If a building sewer connection
has not previously been provided, the building sewer will be constructed
from the existing public sewer to the property line by the owner,
after obtaining the necessary permit.
B.
The cost of constructing the building sewer from the public sewer
to the property line and the cost of connecting the building sewer
to the public sewer shall be at the owner's expense. All subsequent
costs and expenses incidental to the maintenance of the building sewer
from the public sewer to the property line shall be borne by the City.
C.
The owner shall indemnify the City of Rensselaer from any loss or
damage that may, directly or indirectly, be occasioned by the installation
and maintenance of the building sewer or by connection of the building
sewer to the public sewer.
D.
The method of connection of the building sewer will be dependent
upon the type of sewer material used and in all cases shall be approved
by the Plumbing Inspector.
A.
One day prior to the date of the proposed connection of the building
sewer to the public sewer, the applicant for the building sewer permit
shall notify the Building Inspector that the building sewer is ready
for inspection and connection to the public sewer, and the connection
shall be made only under the direct surveillance of the Plumbing Inspector,
the Superintendent of Public Works, the Building Inspector or the
representative of any of them.
B.
When trenches are opened for the laying of building sewer pipes,
such trenches shall be inspected by the Plumbing Inspector before
the trenches are filled, and the contractor performing such work shall
notify the Plumbing Inspector when the laying of building sewer is
completed. The filling of a trench before inspection is made or approval
given will subject the contractor to whom a permit is issued to a
penalty of not to exceed $250 or imprisonment for not more than 15
days, or both, for each offense, and the trench shall be reopened
for inspection by and at the expense of the contractor.
[Amended 8-15-1990 by L.L. No. 4-1990]
C.
In case of a violation of any of the rules and regulations of the
City of Rensselaer by a contractor or other persons in his employ,
he (the contractor) may be suspended or his recognition may be removed
by the City.
All excavations for building sewer installation shall be adequately
protected with barricades and lights so as to protect the public from
hazard. An indemnity bond, in an amount to be determined by the Building
Inspector, shall be required to be posted before a permit will be
granted to excavate in or under the sidewalks, streets, highways or
public places. Streets, sidewalks, parkways and other public property
disturbed in the course of the work shall be restored in a manner
satisfactory to the City of Rensselaer or other authority having jurisdiction.
In the case of the demolition of a building within the City
of Rensselaer which has a building sewer, the owner is responsible
for properly capping the building sewer at the property line to prevent
entry of dirt, debris or any foreign substances into the public sewer.
This shall be accomplished under the supervision of the Plumbing Inspector.
