# Central primer options



## billy_awesome (Dec 19, 2011)

Always been an Achilles' heel of mine.

Deciding the best way to prime floor drains in a commercial project.

I used to prime them from basins, but became very expensive buying trap seal primers and the time and material used to achieve the final product.

I once even tried building a pyramid of tee's to prime each floor drain, but I figure it my pyramid was off level by a 64th of a degree, half the floor drains would get too much water, and the other half wouldn't get any water rendering the primers useless.

I've started trying these primers










The wholesaler carries these with 4 ports and I've separated them into 3 different groups at times.

Does anyone have any better ideas for doing primers? Keeping in mind time and material as a factor (and obviously functionality)

let me know what you guys use!


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## tarrega (Dec 16, 2011)

those are the only kind of trap primers I've ever seen, don't think there is a more economical way on the commercial side.


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## easttexasplumb (Oct 13, 2010)

I like trap guards, they are much more reliable than trap primers.



http://www.trapguard.com/


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## surfdog (Oct 20, 2011)

trap guards made by pro select makes things real simple


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## Turd Chaser (Dec 1, 2011)

trap guards...


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## leakfree (Apr 3, 2011)

billy_awesome said:


> Always been an Achilles' heel of mine.
> 
> Deciding the best way to prime floor drains in a commercial project.
> 
> ...


That's what we used on the last job,seemed simple.


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## 100 Watt (Aug 11, 2011)

Was told at last continuing ed class that trap guards were not approved for use here. (Ohio) 

Did a pizza joint last year and installed that 4 way primer adapter. Works nicely for now. I hate primers - you know they'll either be wasting water or seized up in less than a year. Always leave plenty of pipe before and after the primer - no need to make it difficult for you to replace it in a year!


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## billy_awesome (Dec 19, 2011)

I don't know the Ontario code for trap guards in Ontario Canada. But we did a job that had 40 floor drains, we ended up priming them from the showers. But I don't like doing that, especially since the shower valves were inside a block wall that isn't accessible.

I just wanted to know what other options or ideas other people had, seems to be a gray area on a direct way on how to do them.


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## bizzybeeplumbin (Jul 19, 2011)

we can put a hose bib off the cold line here under the lav. No trap primer needed. IPC.

I like the trap guards, just not sure they are approved in my area.


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## OldSchool (Jan 30, 2010)

billy_awesome said:


> Always been an Achilles' heel of mine.
> 
> Deciding the best way to prime floor drains in a commercial project.
> 
> ...


Those are the ones we use... and they work great .... ease to hook up and has equal flow to all primers


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## Redwood (Sep 8, 2008)

I put in one like this in the mechanical room at a medical center for a bonding company...

The original contractor left the trap primer out along with a few p-traps...
Poo Stank was coming in through the HVAC system... Whooda Thunk....


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## U666A (Dec 11, 2010)

Yup...

I know Kung Fu!


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## bizzybeeplumbin (Jul 19, 2011)

U666A said:


> Yup...
> 
> I know Kung Fu!






That is an awesome setup!


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## U666A (Dec 11, 2010)

bizzybeeplumbin said:


> That is an awesome setup!


'Tis

I've been on the same project for 3 Christmas' now. I roughed in that battery of primers as per the drawing I was given during the underground and they added that wall a year later. The tubes all come up through
l/r conduit elbows and conduit cut off at the slab, all strapped to an elaborate bracket made of unistrut.

Other than that, im quite pleased with it overall.

I know Kung Fu!


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## Protech (Sep 22, 2008)

Turd Chaser said:


> trap guards...
> 
> ProSetTrapGuard - YouTube



Illegal in Florida.


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## GREENPLUM (Jul 27, 2008)

Protech said:


> Illegal in Florida.


 
*Approvals*

*Trap Guard® Approvals*
ProSet Trap Guard® is approved at national, state and local levels as a replacement for the trap primer. It has undergone rigorous testing by a variety of independent and reputable testing authorities (see below) in order to obtain those approvals.
*Can You Legally Specify and Install the Trap Guard Within a Jurisdiction Where it Has Not Specifically Been Approved?
*
The answer is *YES*.
The Federal Trade Commission makes it mandatory that every code must have a section for alternate materials and methods approval.
If a Professional Engineer can provide sufficient data to prove equivalency in providing protection of the public health, safety and welfare, the inspection department in that area cannot legally turn it down. There is more than sufficient data with listings and approvals to prove Trap Guard®’s equivalency for alternate approval. We have provided a list of this data below, with links to view and download the documentation.
If you feel that it would be of benefit to use Trap Guard® on one or more of your projects and you don’t believe that specific approval has been granted in your area, you still have the option of specifying and installing it based on the above FTC mandate and the documentation proving equivalency.


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## Greenguy (Jan 22, 2011)

On smaller jobs Or in mechanical room use a thermal relief valve, they always leak a bit more pricey but they do the job and when they go bad it just becomes a steady stream of water.


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## mtfallsmikey (Jan 11, 2010)

I've replaced a couple of Zurn Z1022's (POJ) with the Jay R. Smith Prime-Eze traps, work ok, (pricey) but all trap primers are located on the far end left lav's in all of the bathrooms. If no one uses them, they still dry up. The building I used to work in had a modified Sloan valve, with a solenoid located where the handle normally goes, with a timer, simple, effective set-up.


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## Piper34 (Oct 10, 2011)

I haven't done any we usually install hose bib under lav also ,but while in Disney world I noticed what looked like the best method to me was 1/2" pipe from under lav. Drain had some kind of divertor tee that went under floor into drains .Im sure there are some down sides but simple is good in my book and the mechanical trap primers just look expensive and troublesome . But I could certainly be wrong.


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## Tim`s Plumbing (Jan 17, 2012)

*block wall*



billy_awesome said:


> I don't know the Ontario code for trap guards in Ontario Canada. But we did a job that had 40 floor drains, we ended up priming them from the showers. But I don't like doing that, especially since the shower valves were inside a block wall that isn't accessible.
> 
> I just wanted to know what other options or ideas other people had, seems to be a gray area on a direct way on how to do them.


 
Here in Mass they must be in an accessible area or have a access panel.


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## RealCraftsMan (Dec 27, 2011)

GREENPLUM said:


> *Approvals*
> 
> *Trap Guard® Approvals*
> ProSet Trap Guard® is approved at national, state and local levels as a replacement for the trap primer. It has undergone rigorous testing by a variety of independent and reputable testing authorities (see below) in order to obtain those approvals.
> ...


 
Try telling an inspector that haha


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## user7551 (Oct 21, 2011)

RealCraftsMan said:


> Try telling an inspector that haha


You would be suprized what a letter from an engineer can accomplish in the city of houston or dallas.


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## mtfallsmikey (Jan 11, 2010)

Turd Chaser said:


> trap guards...
> 
> ProSetTrapGuard - YouTube


Whilst on the throne reading PHC News the other day, saw an ad for Sure-Seal, similar to this ProSet. I'm looking into installing them in all of the floor drains in my buildings.


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## GREENPLUM (Jul 27, 2008)

RealCraftsMan said:


> Try telling an inspector that haha


 
Been there done that, not a problem. :thumbsup:


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## Airgap (Dec 18, 2008)

U666A said:


> 'Tis
> 
> I've been on the same project for 3 Christmas' now. I roughed in that battery of primers as per the drawing I was given during the underground and they added that wall a year later. The tubes all come up through
> l/r conduit elbows and conduit cut off at the slab, all strapped to an elaborate bracket made of unistrut.
> ...


That was funny....


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## fresnoplummr (Feb 25, 2011)

We use the lavatory tailpiece trap primers all the time. Work good and no waste of water.:thumbup:


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## plumbfire (Feb 2, 2012)

I did a large grocery store many years ago and had a lot of floor drains for the case coolers. Even though they received water constantly from the condensate drains, I had to prime them. I think I had over 40 drains to prime. I ended up making a header out of 2" copper and silver soldered 1/2" copper nipples into it. I connected a urinal tank to the center of the header. When it flushed it flooded the 2" fully and ran out of the 1/2" equally. Used 1/2" poly underground. Worked really well.
That was so long ago, that grocery store has been torn down and replaced with something else. 
Getting old I guess. :blink:


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## nadroj26 (Feb 6, 2012)

I have been on a couple of jobs (boiler rooms) where we retrofit new boilers in schools. All of the floor drains were trap primed by bringing a 1/2 dcw pipe down wall with a ddc control valve. 1/2 air gap to a copper header serving all floor drans. DDC controls a once a week spillage into the floor drains for a certain amount of time. I know this isn't possible for most smaller jobs but I thought it was a really great idea to get rid of all those problematic mechanical trap trimers.


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## U666A (Dec 11, 2010)

Airgap said:


> That was funny....


??? Why for?

The following user wishes to thank U666A for this useful post: Mississippiplum


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## SirAdrian (Dec 14, 2011)

I know at the Edmonton international airport, they use a guy with a cart and a bucket...


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## Miguel (Aug 10, 2009)

SirAdrian said:


> I know at the Edmonton international airport, they use a guy with a cart and a bucket...


:laughing::laughing::laughing:
The funny part is... it's probably true!

I like the PPP style but I hate their DU-U (distribution units). Had a couple clog for no apparent reason, but other than that, they primed when there was a pressure drop and held pressure under no-flow conditions. The Zurn 1022's and other rubber wobbler types are just a PITA other than to show the inspector that they're there. (And too many guys are sweating these things in without disassembling them!!! :no 

Flush tanks, flush valves, electric solenoids all work but it all comes down to the distribution setup or one (or more) drain will always dry out. 

I don't like using trap priming ftgs to steal water from other drains as they tend to foul over time and in a clog situation (of the priming drain) get so clogged up themselves they become almost impossible to clear.


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