Chandigarh College of

Architecture

Astha

[BUILDING SERVICES IN HIGH

MA-08/18
M.Arch Sem III

RISE BUILDINGS]
What Is a High-Rise Building?
A High-Rise building is a multi-story structure in which most occupants depend on elevators to
reach their destinations. Generally, a high-rise structure is considered to be one that extends
higher than the maximum reach of available fire-fighting equipment. In absolute numbers, this
has been set variously between 75 feet (23 meters) and 100 feet (30 meters) or about seven to ten
stories (depending on the slab-to-slab distance between floors).

Type of High-Rise Structure

1. Braced Frame
2. Rigid Frame Structure
3. Infilled Frame Structure
4. Flat Plate and Flat Slab Structure
5. Shear wall structure
6. Coupled wall structure
7. Wall-frame structure
8. Framed tube structure
9. The trussed tube
10. Tube in tube or Hull core structure
11. Bundled tube structure
12. Core and Outriggers system
13. Hybrid structure

Building Services in High-Rise Buildings

1. Plumbing or water supply
2. Public health
3. HVAC
4. Electrical systems
5. Waste Management
6. Vertical circulation systems
7. Fire safety
8. Security systems
9. Automation and energy management
10. Sewage treatment plant
11. Water management
12. Solar PV systems
13. Ducts and Shafts

Water supply in High-Rise Buildings

CHALLENGE
 Designing skyscrapers is an extremely complicated art that integrates several different
logistic operations and utilities.
 Plumbing is one of the more challenging problems to solve due to the loss in pressure as
water travels up a vertical pipe.
 As the building get taller, another problem arises as the water pressure at the bottom of a
vertical pipe becomes too great for safe operation and building codes.

POSSIBLE SOLUTION
 The early solution to this problem was a water tank mounted on the top of a building with
fill pumps at the bottom of the building, a simple gravity down feed arrangement.
 Today, a system of pressure-reducing valves and sub-risers are used to manage the
inconsistent water pressure throughout a skyscraper.
 Pressure-reducing valves reduce the pressure at the bottom of the building, while sub-
risers increase the pressure for the skyscrapers upper floors.

Historically the water supply into Multi-Story Buildings has been supplied via lift pumps and
Roof Mounted storage tanks with gravity flow to the floors below.
This type of system creates two main problems:
 The structure needs to be built to withstand extra DEAD LOADS on the roof area which is
the most expensive area for Load Vs Capital Cost
 There is the requirement for two sets of reticulation piping:
 Roof top tank fill line
  Reticulation line

WATER SUPPLY SYSTEM

 A gravity tank system was selected after a complete and thorough analysis of all the factors.
 A 10,000-gallon tank was located at the top of the building, and a 15,000-gallon tank was
located on the 40th floor.
 Two pumps located in the lowest level pump up to the 40th-floor tank. This tank serves as
the water supply for the 34th floor down to the lowest level and at the same time acts as a
suction tank to supply two pumps on the same 40th floor to pump water to the top tank.
 This tank supplies water from the 80th floor down to the 35th floor, inclusive. The capacity
of the two basement pumps is sized for the total building demand, and the two 40th-floor
pumps are sized only for the upper section of the building.
 Each pump is sized for two-thirds of the load, so if one pump fails in the duplex set-up the
other pump is capable of keeping the system in operation.
 By placing gravity tanks at the top and middle of the building, we have essentially divided a
building of extreme height into two buildings of approximately 500 ft each in height.

TYPICAL SECTION
SHOWING WATER
SUPPLY IN HIGH RISE
BUILDING-OVER HEAD
STORAGE
 TYPICAL SECTION
SHOWING WATER
SUPPLY IN HIGH RISE
BUILDING- UNDER
GROUND STORAGE

BUILDING WATER SUPPLY

 Water can be supplied either through municipal supply or independently in the buildings.
 Water reaches to the consumers through water mains, sub mains, distributaries etc.

LAYOUT OF WATER SUPPLY ARRANGEMENT FOR A BUILDING

The following points should be kept in mind while laying water supply arrangement for a
building:
 The layout should be simple and direct to reduce cost of length of pipe.
 To avoid the losses at the bends the pipes should be laid in straight lines as far as
possible.
 The pipes should not be buried in floors or walls of the building.
 The service pipe should follow the shortest route as far as possible.
 The pipe line layout should be free from the occurrence of air pockets.
 By the pipeline layout, cleanings of the floor should not be obstructed. There should be
clearance of 2.5 cm between the floors and the pipe lines.
 The direction of the pipe of the pipe line layout should not be changed suddenly.
 There should be no risk of water contamination by the pipe line layout. The sewer pipe
and water pipe should not be laid side by side.
 The layout should be such that sufficient pressure is available at the point from where the
consumer gets the water supply.

WATER SUPPLY FIXTURES AND FITTINGS AND THEIR INSTALLATION

The various devices used in a building for supplying water to the consumer are known as
fixtures and fittings.
The water supply fixtures are as follows:
– Ferrule
– Service pipe
– Stop cock
– Water meter
– Goose neck
– Bib cock
– Stop cock
– Storage tanks
Ferrule – a right angled sleeve made of brass/bronze and joined to an opening drilled in the
water main is called a ferrule.
Service pipe – a pipe of size varying from 2 to 4 cm in diameter is known as service pipe. It is a
pipe which leads from the distribution water main to the plumbing system in a building.
Stop cock – a valve fixed in a street on the service pipe close to the wall of building in an
accessible position to control the water supply from the water main is known as stop cock.
Water meter – an appliance used to measure the quantity of water flowing through the service
pipe is known as water meter.
Goose neck – a curved flexible pipe which forms a connection between the distributing main
and the service pipe is known as goose neck.
Bib cock – bib cock is most commonly used for discharging water from the pipe to the
consumer. It controls the flow of water.
Pipe fittings – the various types of the pipe fittings required in building water supply are as
follows:
 Unions
 Elbows
 Sockets
 Tees
 Caps
 Flanges
 Plugs
 Nipples
 Crosses
 Bends

VARIOUS PIPES AND THEIR SPECIFICATIONS

The water from public water supply system to individual buildings is supplied through pipes.
The following factors should be considered in selection of water pipes:
 Strength of pipes
 Water carrying pipes
 Life and durability of pipes
 Expenditure on transportation
 Jointing process, maintenance and repairs.
The pipes generally used for domestic water supply pipes are as follows:
 PVC (poly vinyl chloride) pipes
 UPVC (unplasticised poly vinyl chloride) pipes
 Composite pipes
 PPR (propylene random copolymer)
 Galvanized iron (GI) pipes
SEWERAGE SYSTEM IN HIGH RISE BUILDINGS
• Drainage is another common issue in skyscrapers, and is often just as difficult to solve as
water pressure problems.
• When water falls vertically down a pipe, the water will adhere to the pipe's walls until the
pipe's cross sectional area is about one-fourth full.
• Once the gravity propelled water hits a horizontal bend in the pipe, the flow velocity
drops dramatically, and fills the pipe considerably more due to the lost speed.
• It is common practice to use relief or yoke vents to slow the water before it encounters a
horizontal flow change.
• The piping at the base of a vertical drainage column must be secured, as to reduce the risk
of breaking joints.
VENTING:
• For water to travel down a vertical pipe, air is necessary.
• Air ventilation must be controlled so that low pressure zones can be created, and the flow
of water can continue.
• The low pressure zones should not be placed near a fixture, or else poor drainage could
occur (often recognized by a gulping sound and poor flow performance).
• It is however okay to place air vents in the fixtures to increase water flow.
MATERIAL
Most high-rise plumbing systems use Type-L copper. On some very tall buildings, stainless steel
must be used because of the extra pressure.

BUILDING DRAINAGE
The arrangement provided in a building for collecting and conveying the waste water by gravity
through drain pipes to join a sewer line is known as building drainage.
Requirements of good building drainage-
• The drainage pipes must be made of non – absolent materials.
• The branch drains should be as short as possible.
• The drains should never pass near or under the trees due to risk of damage by the roots.
• The drains should be laid in such a way so that future expansion can be done easily.
• An intercepting trap should be provided in house drain for disconnecting it from the
public sewer, so that entry of foul gases can be prevented into the building.
• All drainage system should be properly ventilated. The ventilation pipe should be higher
length than the buildings. All inspection chambers should be provided with fresh air inlets.
For preventing the construction of drain pipes under the walls of the walls of the building, the
lavatory blocks should have its one of the walls as outside wall of the building. This will
facilitate in fixing of vent and soil pipes
The slope of the drains should be such that sufficient self cleaning velocity is developed.
1 in 40 for 10 cm pipe
1 in 90 for 22 cm pipe
1 in 60 for 15 cm pipe

LAYOUT OF BUILDING DRAINAGE

TRAPS
A depression or bend provided in a drainage system which is always full of water to prevent the
entry of foul gases in the atmosphere is known as a trap.
Types of traps
On the basis of shape, traps are of the following types:
• P – trap
• Q – trap
• S – trap Q trap
P trap
On the basis of use, traps are of the following types:
• Floor traps
• Gully traps
Interception trap
• Intercepting traps
• Grease traps Floor trap Gully trap

P-Trap- it is the addition of a 90 degree fitting on the outlet side of a u-

bend, thereby creating a p-like shape. It can also be referred to as a sink trap due to the fact it is
installed under most house sinks.
Q-Trap- the trap having the shape of letter ‘q’ is known as ‘q’ trap. The legs of the trap meet at
an angle more or less 90 degrees.
Floor Traps- the traps which are used for admitting surface wash or waste water from the floors
of baths or kitchens are called floor traps
Gully Traps- the traps which are used to receive waste water from baths, wash basins, sinks and
rain water are called gully traps.
Intercepting Trap- The trap provided at the junction of a house drain and to convey sewage
from the building to the public sewer is called an intercepting trap. Its main function is to prevent
the entry of foul gases from the sewer into the building.
VENT PIPES
Sometimes trap seal breaks, letting foul gases and air enter the building. To prevent this from
happening, a ventilating pipe should be provided for each fixture so that back pressure cannot
develop.
Materials Used In Vent Piping
All types of pipe, including wrought, cast, and galvanized iron, lead, brass, plastic, and copper,
have been used for vents

Size of the Vent Pipe

Vent piping should never be less than half the diameter of the fixture drain

VARIOUS SAFETY MEASURES TAKEN

• In the drainage system for a multi-storey building, the drains from the plumbing fixtures
are connected to vertical drain stacks that convey the waste and sewage to below the lowest
floor of the building. The fixture drain traps must be vented to prevent their water trap seal
from being siphoned by negative pressure
• Where buildings are over 10 storeys high, the drainage stacks require relief vent
connections at specified intervals from the top, and connected to a vent stack that terminates
above the roof. This relieves and equalizes the pressure in the drainage stack to maintain the
water seal in traps serving plumbing fixtures.
• All plumbing fixtures located below ground level should be pumped into the public
sewer or the drainage system leading to the sewer. The pump line should be as short as
 possible and looped up to a point not less than 0.6 metres (24 inches) above ground level to
prevent backsiphonage of sewage
• High-velocity discharge rates may also cause the flooding of adjoining plumbing fixtures
or overloading of the sewer itself.