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  1. #1
    Join Date
    May 2014
    Location
    TX
    Posts
    16

    Question What is this thing sticking up in my yard?

    What is this thing sticking up in my front yard? It's near a 4-inch PVC sewer cleanout.

    It consists of a 3-inch PVC pipe with a cap on top. Inside the three-inch pipe there is a 3/4-inch pipe that comes out of the ground and has two elbows on top, forming a U. That pipe is oriented to drain into a 1 1/2-inch PVC pipe that also comes out of the ground. The larger of the two small pipes is cut to allow the smaller pipe to fit inside, and a zip tie keeps the smaller pipe in place over the larger one.

    I suppose this is related to the sewer, but maybe it's related to the lawn sprinklers.

    This thing is ugly because it sticks up 9 or 10 inches above grade. I'd like to cut it off to make it shorter. Would that cause any problem?

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  2. #2
    Join Date
    Mar 2007
    Location
    Fletcher, NC
    Posts
    28,032

    Default Re: What is this thing sticking up in my yard?

    Somebody's idea of an air gap?

    Does water come out the smaller pipe and go into the larger pipe when the sprinkler system is operating?

    If it is somebody's idea of an air gap ... it isn't an air gap ... it is ... well ... it is a 'lot of work for nothing' as best I can tell.

    Maybe some others have seen something like that, or maybe even that same thing, before?

    Jerry Peck
    Construction/Litigation/Code Consultant - Retired
    www.AskCodeMan.com

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Mar 2007
    Location
    Plano, Texas
    Posts
    4,245

    Default Re: What is this thing sticking up in my yard?

    Got a picture? Sounds like a water treatment system drain. Yes it could cause problems if you modify it without knowledge.

    Jim Luttrall
    www.MrInspector.net
    Plano, Texas

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Mar 2007
    Location
    Fletcher, NC
    Posts
    28,032

    Default Re: What is this thing sticking up in my yard?

    Quote Originally Posted by Jim Luttrall View Post
    Got a picture? Sounds like a water treatment system drain. Yes it could cause problems if you modify it without knowledge.
    Jim,

    There were two photos at the bottom of his post (photos are easy to miss when people do it that way, I've missed photos before which were posted that way).

    Jerry Peck
    Construction/Litigation/Code Consultant - Retired
    www.AskCodeMan.com

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Jan 2017
    Location
    California
    Posts
    1

    Default Re: What is this thing sticking up in my yard?

    If it is next to a driveway or walkway, somebody may have run a pipe under it for future irrigation low voltage wiring (are there wires inside the pipe?), or malibu lights, or it could be a condensate drain from inside the house and the 1-1/2 inch pipe feeds into a french drain. Can you lift the top 3/4 PVC 90s off the pipe to investigate? The 90s at top could be just to keep dirt out and are not glued. Usually the condensate comes out near the house, if it's out by the street it would need more depth for the length at 1/8 inch per foot. I know sewage is 1/4 inch, I believe condensate is only 1/8 per ft. Anyway, good luck!

    Footnote: I would pour water into the condensate P-Trap at the air handler to find where it comes out.


  6. #6
    Join Date
    May 2019
    Location
    CA
    Posts
    1

    Default Re: What is this thing sticking up in my yard?

    Looks like an irrigation line to me....


  7. #7
    Join Date
    May 2014
    Location
    TX
    Posts
    16

    Default Re: What is this thing sticking up in my yard?

    Quote Originally Posted by Jerry Peck View Post
    Somebody's idea of an air gap?

    Does water come out the smaller pipe and go into the larger pipe when the sprinkler system is operating?

    If it is somebody's idea of an air gap ... it isn't an air gap ... it is ... well ... it is a 'lot of work for nothing' as best I can tell.

    Maybe some others have seen something like that, or maybe even that same thing, before?
    Hi, guys.

    Sorry for the slow response on this. I thought I would get an email notification when someone replied, but I didn't get any email.

    Jerry, to test this I put a small strip of newspaper in the "air gap" and then ran the sprinkler system for one minute on each zone. The newspaper was dry.

    I did notice that there is a little water in the bottom of the larger interior PVC pipe, which I previously described as 1-1/2 inch but now think is 2-inch.


  8. #8
    Join Date
    May 2014
    Location
    TX
    Posts
    16

    Default Re: What is this thing sticking up in my yard?

    Quote Originally Posted by Dan Gutknecht View Post
    If it is next to a driveway or walkway, somebody may have run a pipe under it for future irrigation low voltage wiring (are there wires inside the pipe?), or malibu lights, or it could be a condensate drain from inside the house and the 1-1/2 inch pipe feeds into a french drain. Can you lift the top 3/4 PVC 90s off the pipe to investigate? The 90s at top could be just to keep dirt out and are not glued. Usually the condensate comes out near the house, if it's out by the street it would need more depth for the length at 1/8 inch per foot. I know sewage is 1/4 inch, I believe condensate is only 1/8 per ft. Anyway, good luck!

    Footnote: I would pour water into the condensate P-Trap at the air handler to find where it comes out.
    Dan, this thing and the sewer cleanout are about 3 feet from the sidewalk along the street and maybe 18 to 20 feet from the house. There are no wires inside. The 3/4-inch elbows are glued to the pipe coming out of the ground. I tested the AC idea by putting a small piece of newspaper in the mystery device below the two elbows and then poured water into the AC drain. The paper remained dry. I'm about 95 percent sure the condensate drains into the sewer system.


  9. #9
    Join Date
    Mar 2010
    Location
    conyers, ga
    Posts
    97

    Default Re: What is this thing sticking up in my yard?

    I have done a lot of irrigation and that is beyond me ?
    looks like black plastic Zip ties in the 3/4 going into the larger pipe which it has a recessed cut half way around ? find that very curious.
    thinking was cut to get the ZIP ties on, possible the larger outer PVC may be short just stuck into the ground maybe can remove if so could get better idea what is going on ?


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