Bert Rapp
City of Fillmore, Public Works Director

Answer: There are two typical reasons you cannot get adequate flow to your home. One of the most common is because the pipe from the water main in the street to your water meter is a galvanized iron pipe and it is badly corroded inside, restricting the flow. The other reason is a corroded iron pipe serving your neighborhood. The corrosion slows down the water flow and when everyone is using water at once the water just can’t get through the pipe fast enough.

There are many water services in the City that consist of ¾-inch galvanized iron pipes that connect from the water main in the street to the water meter in your front yard. Because these pipe corrode, restrict flow and eventually leak they need to be replaced.

For the last 15-years the City has had a water service replacement program to replace these old galvanized iron water service pipes. But that program is currently on hold due to lack of water funds. If the water rate increases are approved on September 14th the water service replacement work could begin again in 2014. Once refunded, it will take another 10 years of sustained effort to replace all the old galvanized services.

When the City replaces a galvanized water service it uses PVC pipe with brass fittings so there will no longer be any corrosion of the pipe. It costs about $2,300 to replace each galvanized water service. The pipes after the meter and in the home are the responsibility of the home owner.

The other cause of inadequate water flow is often the 4-inch diameter unlined iron pipes that were installed between 1920 and 1950. The exposed iron in these pipes corrodes causing a very rough surface inside the pipe slows down the water flow. The corrosion eventually eats through the wall of the pipe causing leaks and necessitating the replacement of the pipe.

When the City replaces these pipes 8-inch PVC pipes are used which last much longer than unlined iron pipes and provide excellent water flow, especially for fire fighting purposes. The City needs to replace 12 miles of these unlined iron pipes at a cost $17.7 Million. The plan is to fund these replacements over 35 years and spend about $506,000 per year.

With the scheduled water rate increases this pipe replacement work could begin again in about 2015. Water replacement projects have been put on hold due to lack of water funds.

This is the forth in a series of articles about the City water system. If you have any questions about City of Fillmore Public Works or the water system you may call Bert Rapp at (805) 524-1500 ext. 231 or e-mail at brapp@ci.fillmore.ca.us