[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council
of the Town of South Bethany 2-12-1999 by Ord. No. 84-98. Amendments noted where
applicable.]
This chapter is authorized by § C-4B
of the Town Charter.
This chapter is established to prescribe minimum
installation requirements and standards for water service connection
to Artesian Water Company's main distribution line; to ensure compliance
with appropriate federal, state and county statutes and ordinances;
and to ensure a minimum degradation of citizens property, peace and
tranquility, facilities and the environment.
Insofar as practicable and applicable, the International
Plumbing Code, as amended, provides the minimum acceptable standards
for materials and construction specifications as it relates to the
installation of water service connection. The International Plumbing
Code, as amended, is hereby adopted as the plumbing code of the Town
of South Bethany and is on file and available for review and photocopy
at the South Bethany office.
The provisions of this chapter shall be administered
by the South Bethany Building Official and enforced by him/her and
other officials, including the police. The Building Official may
be provided with the assistance of such other persons as the Town
Council and/or Town Manager may direct. His/her duties shall include
entrance on the property for the purposes of inspection, observation,
measurement, sampling and testing, in only the areas where work was
performed, in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.
A.
Any person or persons engaging in the business of installation, alteration or maintenance of any plumbing within the scope of this chapter shall obtain a mercantile license from the Town of South Bethany in accordance with Chapter 84, Licenses and Permits.
B.
Any duly licensed plumber who desires to install and
connect any work covered under the scope of this chapter shall first
make application to the Town of South Bethany and shall obtain the
required permit.
C.
Application for a permit shall be made in person and
on application forms provided by the . Such information as required
shall be provided to complete the application. The application shall
be signed by the licensed plumber and/or the owner of the building
to be connected and shall be retained by the Building Official as
a permanent record.
D.
The permit fee for each water service connection to
Artesian's main distribution line shall be as set by resolution of
the Town Council and available in the Town office. Each single-family
dwelling shall be equipped with its own separate water meter and service
connection. All new construction and substantial improvements shall
not require a separate permit fee for water service connection to
Artesian's main.
[Amended 12-12-2008 by Ord. No. 145-08]
E.
Nothing in this chapter shall prevent any property
owner or occupant from installing or maintaining a water service connection
within his/her own property boundaries, provided that such water service
connection is installed and inspected in accordance with the requirements
of this chapter, and provided also that he/she shall obtain a proper
permit from the Town.
A.
The waterline from Artesian's main distribution line
to the private property shall be the water service connection
B.
Materials:
(1)
Water service connections shall be polyethylene service
pipe per ASTM D-2239 (SDR-7) meeting the requirements of Type III,
Class C, category P34 polyethylene as defined in ASTM D-1248 and rated
at 200 pounds per square inch at 73.4° F. and approved by the
National Sanitation Foundation for use as a carrier of potable water.
(2)
The polyethylene pipe joint system shall be the Ford
Meter Box Company "Pack Joint." The connection shall be brass and
assembled with a stainless steel pipe insert as specified and furnished
by the connector manufacturer.
(3)
The water service connection shall be 3/4 inch, one
inch or two inch as required for the service and not less than the
water meter outlet connection.
C.
Construction methods.
(1)
MISS-UTILITY shall be notified, to locate existing
utilities, two business days (excluding weekends and holidays) prior
to start of construction.
(2)
Water service connections shall be installed from
the curb stop at a minimum depth of 24 inches below final grade.
(3)
The curb box, as installed by Artesian, shall be kept
visible on the surface at final grade.
(4)
Water service connections shall not be less than five
feet horizontal apart from the building sewer and shall be separated
by undisturbed or compacted earth unless all of the following conditions
are met:
(a)
The bottom of the water service connection,
at all points, shall be at least 12 inches above the top of the sewer
line at its highest point.
(b)
The water service connection shall be placed
on a shelf excavated at one side of the common trench.
(c)
The number of joints in the water service connection
shall be kept to a minimum.
(d)
If the water service connection must cross the
sewer line, the bottom of the water service connection, within five
feet of the point of crossing, shall be at least 18 inches above the
top of the sewer line. Joints shall not be used with five feet of
the sewer line.
(5)
When mud or water are encountered in the trench, such
as may be found by excavation below groundwater, additional precautions
shall be taken appropriate to the trenching conditions encountered
to ensure the pipe has uniform and continuous support from a firm
base. Where excessive groundwater conditions exist, the Building Official
may require trench pumping, well pointing or other trench stabilizing
methods.
(6)
The pipe shall be uniformly supported throughout the
trench by tamped fill. Plastic pipe shall be snaked into the trench
to allow for expansion and contraction.
(7)
Backfill with pipe at a temperature approximating
normal operating temperature of 40° F. to 60° F.; run cool
water through pipe as necessary. Backfill with clean fill free of
sharp stone, objects or heavy material.
(8)
Metal detector tape must be installed within eight
inches of finished grade. This applies to new service connections
only (not existing well pipes).
D.
Sterilization of water line. The Building Official
may require the water service connection to be disinfected before
it is placed in service if, in his/her judgment, such action is necessary.
One of the following disinfecting methods shall be used:
(1)
The water service connection shall be filled with
a solution of 50 parts per million available chlorine and allowed
to stand six hours before flushing and placing in service; or
(2)
The water service connection shall be filled with
a solution of 100 parts per million available chlorine and allowed
to stand two hours before flushing and placing in service.
E.
Maintaining potable water requirements.
(1)
The potable water shall be protected from a supply
which may be contaminated; of questionable or own quality; or over
which the water purveyor has little or no control.
(2)
There shall be no physical connection between Artesian's
distribution system and any other water source or supply (e.g., private
well used for outside watering).
(3)
Any building supplied with water by Artesian Water
Company shall have no other source outlet for domestic water located
within the building.
F.
A backflow prevention device shall be installed by
Artesian in the water service connection to every building served
by Artesian. The device shall be located immediately as the water
service connection exits the meter and shall be accessible for service
by the property owner. As a minimum requirement, a manual shut-off
valve shall be installed in the building.
G.
Permanently abandoned wells shall be filled and sealed
in accordance with the regulations of the State of Delaware, Division
of Natural Resources and Environmental Control. A copy of the state
permit shall be retained by the Building Official as a permanent record.
H.
Permanently detached wells shall be reclassified in
accordance with the regulations of the State of Delaware, Division
of Natural Resources and Environmental Control. A copy of the state
permit shall be retained by the Building Official as a permanent record.
I.
The water service connection shall be tested and proved
tight under a pressure not less than the working pressure under which
it is to be used. The water used for the test shall be potable water
from the house water service connection and shall be supplied to the
water service connection only in the presence of and at the direction
of the Building Official. If the water service connection is approved,
the pipe shall be covered pursuant to specifications established by
the Town.
A.
All plumbing work installed under the scope of this
chapter shall be inspected to ensure compliance with the chapter and
to assure that the installation is in accordance with the approved
plans and the permit. It shall be the duty of the installing plumber
to give reasonable advance notice to the when plumbing work is ready
for inspection and testing, at least 24 hours in advance of the inspection
and before 3:00 p.m. in the afternoon the day before the inspection
is requested. The plumbing shall be deemed ready for inspection and
testing when the pipe is laid on proper fill and bedded 1/4 to 1/3
of its diameter, with joints properly made and connected to the building.
Prior to inspection and testing, the water service connection shall
not be connected to the water meter house connection. The equipment,
material and labor necessary for the inspection and the test shall
be furnished by the installing plumber. The plumbing shall not be
covered until it has been inspected, tested and approved, and it shall
be uncovered upon direction.
B.
Upon the satisfactory completion and final test of
the plumbing, a certificate of compliance will be issued to the owner
by the Building Official.
[Amended 10-14-2022 by Ord. No. 209-22]
Violation of the provisions of this chapter
or failure to comply with any of its requirements shall be subject
to a civil penalty of $100 for each violation. Whenever a person shall
have been notified, in writing, certified mail, return receipt requested,
by the Building Official or other official or by service of a summons
that he/she is violating a specific provision of this chapter, each
day that he/she shall continue the violation shall constitute a separate
offense subject to an additional penalty. The owner or tenant of any
building, structure, premises or part thereof and any architect, builder,
contractor, agent or other person who commits, participates in, assists
in or maintains such violations may each be subject to the civil penalties
herein provided.