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| One thing you may be unhappy about in your home, and feel like you're powerless to change, is the water pressure.When we've spoken to our water company, they've told us that 40 lbs. is the best they can do. |
You can determine your own water pressure by screwing a water gauge onto a hose bib anywhere along your plumbing. If you're not happy with the result, this project will show you how to take your water pressure into your own hands! |
We went to the pump people at GrundFos for a solution, and chose the
EZ boost™ system. |
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| Once you have the EZ boost system, the first step is to turn off the water supply to the house... |
...then open a faucet on your top floor to break any vacuum. |
Then open a faucet in the basement to drain any remaining water from the pipe. Now you're ready for the installation. |
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| Let's take a look at our water supply. In the image above, the water comes through the area marked by the yellow circle (where we'll install a shutoff valve) and proceeds up the blue line to the house. |
The plan is to divert the water to the pump, where the pressure will be boosted. The high-pressure water will then be returned to the main supply, looking something like the image above. |
The first step in that plan: begin cutting the riser with a pipe-cutter so you can place the diversion pipes. A good technique is, as you twist the tightening knob on the cutter, to reverse your cutting direction momentarily from clockwise to counter-clockwise. This allows the cutter to be advanced more easily and reduces pipe distortion. |
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| Once the section of riser is removed, install a shutoff valve at the beginning of the pump loop. |
As you build the new riser, remember to use your pipe-cutter's de-burring tool to mark the pipe before you start cutting. |
Most of our pipes are joined without soder; instead, the Ridgid ProPress tool was used. Since a tool like this has a cost of over $1,000, though, you might end up sticking with solder. |
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| Both the pipes and pump will have to stand off the wall by several inches. To make that happen, use a drill and masonry bit to bore holes into the concrete wall, then insert a plastic anchor. |
Next, drive in a hanger base. |
The hanger
and post are attached to the base and the pipe is secured into the mounting bracket. Continue to the next page to see how to attach the heart of the system: the pump! |
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