Can I install my own water tap?

No. Work at a public main is restricted to contractors licensed and authorized by the utility with jurisdiction.

Who owns the service line after the tap?

Ownership splits differ by jurisdiction. We confirm the split for your address so you know what you are responsible for maintaining.

How long does a tap take?

The excavation and connection is usually short. The schedule is driven by permit review and inspection availability at the authority, not by the digging.

Can you tell me my tap fee amount over the phone?

We can tell you which fees apply to your project type and who charges them. The dollar amounts come from the authority with jurisdiction, and we confirm them for your specific address rather than quoting from memory.

Water Tap Installation in Denver

An independent, licensed plumbing contractor. Not affiliated with Denver Water or the City and County of Denver.

Denver Sewer and Water is a private, family owned and operated contractor. We are not Denver Water. The water utility owns the main and authorizes the tap. We are the licensed contractor property owners hire to excavate, make the connection, and pass inspection.

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Private contractor, not the water utility.
New and replacement water service taps.
Excavation, connection, and restoration.
Permit coordination on your behalf.
Residential, commercial, and municipal.

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Family Owned and Operated, Not the City Utility

Licensed and Insured

Second-Generation Specialists

Fast Response Across the Denver Metro

What a Water Tap Installation Is

A water tap is the physical connection between a public water main and the service line that feeds a property. It includes the corporation stop at the main, the service line, the curb stop, and the meter setting arrangement required by the utility.

Taps are required for new construction, for properties converting from a well or a shared line, for service upsizing, and for replacement of a failed service line where the existing tap cannot be reused.

The work happens in the public right of way most of the time, which is why it is permitted, inspected, and restricted to licensed contractors.

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When a Water Tap Is Required

New construction with no existing water service.
A property being upsized for added fixtures or fire protection.
A failed or undersized service line that cannot be reused at the main.
Splitting a shared service into separate services.
Reactivating a service that was previously abandoned at the main.

Excavator digging a deep shored trench for a storm drain and fire line at a Denver commercial site — Commercial scale excavation for storm drains, fire lines, and taps.

How We Diagnose It

Who Authorizes the Tap and Who Performs the Tap

Denver Sewer and Water is a private, family owned and operated contractor. We are not Denver Water or the City and County of Denver. We do not issue permits, set fees, own the mains, or approve service. The utility or municipality with jurisdiction does all of that.

The water utility with jurisdiction over your address owns the main, sets the tap size it will allow, charges the tap and system development fees, and inspects the finished connection before it authorizes water service.

Denver Sewer and Water performs the excavation and the connection under that authorization, as the licensed contractor of record for the property owner.

The authority authorizes. The licensed contractor performs. Below is the split for this type of work.

Are You Denver Water? No. Here Is the Difference.

Authority Side and Contractor Side

Authority: Owns the water main and approves the tap size and location.
Authority: Issues the tap permit and sets all fees.
Authority: Schedules and performs the inspection.
Authority: Sets the meter and activates the account.
Denver Sewer and Water: Confirms requirements for your address before the application goes in.
Denver Sewer and Water: Excavates and shores the connection point safely.
Denver Sewer and Water: Installs the service line, corporation stop, and curb stop to utility specification.
Denver Sewer and Water: Coordinates the inspection and stands the work through it.
Denver Sewer and Water: Backfills, compacts, and restores the surface.

How a Water Tap Project Runs

1
Scope and Requirements
We review the property, the intended use, and the service size needed, then confirm the requirements that apply at your address with the authority.
2
Permit Application
The tap application goes to the authority with the required plan detail. We prepare and submit the contractor side of that package.
3
Locates and Scheduling
Utility locates are called, traffic control is arranged where the work is in the right of way, and the excavation is scheduled around the inspection window.
4
Tap, Inspect, Restore
We make the connection, hold the work open for inspection, then backfill, compact, and restore the surface to the required standard.

Contractor reviewing utility permit plans on a work truck tailgate with locate marks on the pavement — Locates, permits, and the right authority get handled before the first cut.

Work With a Contractor Who Handles the Paperwork Side Too

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Fees on a Water Tap Project and Who Pays Them

There are two separate cost sides on every tap project. The authority side covers tap fees, system development or plant investment charges, permit fees, and inspection fees. Those are charged by the utility or municipality and are paid by the property owner.

The contractor side covers excavation, materials, traffic control, restoration, and labor. That is what Denver Sewer and Water quotes.

We do not publish fee amounts. Tap fees, plant investment fees, permit fees, and inspection fees are set by the authority with jurisdiction and change on their schedule, not ours. We confirm the current figures in writing with that authority for your address before work is scheduled.

Frequently Asked Questions

Planning a Water Tap? Start With the Requirements.

We confirm what the authority requires at your address before anyone applies or digs.

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