§ 13.16.040. Customer connection to sewer main

A. All costs and expenses incident to the installation and connection of the building sewer shall be borne by the owner. The owner shall indemnify the municipality from any loss or damage that may directly or indirectly be occasioned by the installation of the building sewer.

B. A separate and independent building sewer shall be provided for every building; except where one building stands at the rear of another on an interior lot and no private sewer is available or can be constructed to the rear building through an adjoining alley, court, yard, or driveway, the building sewer from the front building may be extended to the rear building and the whole considered as one building sewer. Under exceptional circumstances the superintendent may waive the provisions of this section.

C. Old building sewers may be used in connection with new buildings only when they are found, on examination and test by the superintendent, to meet all requirements of this chapter.

D. The building sewer shall be of a suitable material approved by the superintendent. Joints shall be tight and waterproof. 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 superintendent.

E. The size and slope of the building sewer shall be subject to the approval of the superintendent, but in no event shall the diameter be less than four inches. The slope of such four-inch pipe shall not be less than one-eighth inch per foot. It shall be required that the wye connection and building drain shall be uncovered and the differential elevation be determined before construction is begun. Where practicable, the building connection shall be laid on a uniform grade between these two points.

F. Whenever possible the building sewer shall be brought to the building at an elevation below the basement floor. No building sewer shall be laid parallel to or 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 in so far as possible. Changes in direction shall be made only with properly curved pipe and fittings.

G. In all buildings in which any building drain is too low to permit gravity flow to the municipal sewer, sanitary sewage carried by such drain shall be lifted by approved artificial means and discharged to the building sewer.

H. All excavations required for the installation of a building sewer shall be open trench work unless otherwise approved by the superintendent. Pipe laying and backfill shall be performed in accordance with ASTM specification C12-19 except that no backfill shall be placed until the work has been inspected.

I. All joints and connections shall be made gas-tight and water-tight. Cast iron pipe joints shall be firmly packed with oakum or hemp and filled with molten lead, federal specification QQ-L-156, not less than one inch deep. Lead shall be run in one pouring and caulked tight. No paint, varnish, or other coatings shall be permitted on the jointing material until after the joint has been tested and approved. All joints in vitrified clay pipe and metals shall be made with approved hot-pouring jointing material. Material for hot-poured joints shall not soften sufficiently to destroy the effectiveness of the joint when subjected to a temperature of one hundred sixty (160) degrees Fahrenheit, 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. Other jointing materials and methods may be used only by approval of the superintendent.

J. The connection for the building sewer into the municipal sewer shall be made at the "Y" branch, if such branch is available at a suitable location. If the public sewer is twelve (12) inches in diameter or less, and no properly located "Y" branch is available, the owner shall at his or her expense install a "Y" branch in the municipal sewer at the location specified by the superintendent.

K. The applicant for the building sewer permit shall notify the superintendent when the building sewer is ready for inspection and connection to the municipal sewer. The connection shall be made under the supervision of the superintendent or his or her representative.

L. All excavations for building sewer installations shall be adequately guarded with barricades and lights so as to protect the public from hazard. Streets, sidewalks, parkways and other public property disturbed in the course of the work shall be restored in a manner satisfactory to the municipality.

(Prior code §§ X-88-8—X-88-19)