Type 1 Pressure Tests

Designed for testing pipework made from ductile iron, stainless steel and glass-reinforced plastic (GRP), type 1 hydrostatic pressure tests involve the measurement of volumes of water added (type 1a) to maintain the test pressure over a test period, or volumes of water drawn off (type 1b) and measured after the system test pressure has been replaced at the end of a test.

Pipelines are deemed to pass or fail based on the rate of water loss versus the allowed loss as part of the pipeline’s specifications.

Ant Hire Solutions’ type 1 pressure tests use an in-house Water Added Machine (WAM), which can add very small amounts of water to pipelines while logging the amounts added via a data recorder. As well as helping boost accuracy, this data can also be uploaded to the PIPE data management to be viewed or analysed remotely in real-time by contractors or utilities.

Our Method

Other Pressure Tests

Our Method

The unique Water Volume Added method has been designed by Ant Hire Solutions as an alternative to the conventional Water Volume Loss method.

Water is added at 10 minutes intervals throughout the test to maintain System Test Pressure (STP). This eliminates problems caused by air in the pipeline, where more water is added and syphoned off than has been lost in the test period, which can lead to inconclusive results with further testing required.

This is made possible through the use of our Water Added Machine (WAM), invented in-house, which can add as little as 5ml of water at a time. The machine connects to a specially designed data logger which records the volume of water added, allowing the data to be downloaded remotely and the results externally verified

At the end of the test, the overall rate of water loss is compared to the allowed loss for the pipe specifications to determine whether the pipeline has passed or failed. Any over or under-pressurisation is adjusted for in the results to give an accurate assessment.

All test data is loaded into our PIPE data management system allowing contractors to fully analyse pressure test performance by team, site and operatives.

Alternative Methods

If required, Ant Hire Solutions also offers the traditional Water Volume Loss method. The pipe is filled with water until the STP is reached, and then left for a minimum period of an hour. After the end of the test period, water is added to the pipeline until the STP is reached again. The added water is then syphoned off and measured to determine the amount of water lost over the test period.