Knightsbridge Living
Water Supply
Water carrying
When Queen Victoria came to the throne the vast majority of houses were still supplied with water carried by servants from public pumps. That was the way it had been throughout the Georgian and Regency period.
Mains supply
In Regency times, some richer houses did have mains water, but it was supplied in wooden pipes. The Industrial Revolution introduced steam pumps which increased the water pressure so it could reach upper floors, but the pressure tended to blow out the wooden joints, so the supply frequently failed.
Water pressure
In 1817 the Metropolitan Paving Act required water companies to lay cast iron pipes. Companies could provide a low service where the water was only pumped to the ground floor. A high service where water was pumped to upper floors was more expensive. So, for the most part, servants on the upper floors still had to carry their water up the stairs.
