That’s not for reducing pressure. In fact, one of the the selling points is that it doesn’t have a pressure drop as water passes through it.
I’m under the impression the main comes in and branches is in a slab so it’s impractical to install the PRV in the house. If the OP has a basement and the main comes in there the ‘Plumber’ needs a new line of work. He knows where the meter is. It’s easy enough to put it just after the meter.
Slab/no basement houses are a rarity in my parts so I don’t know much about them, but would they really not have a single main running into the house? That seems like it would be a trainwreck if there was a problem and you needed to shut off the water right now without having to run around trying to figure out which valve shuts off what.
It is a train wreck, some houses are just built badly.
Yes. It is a slab, there is no basement.
Apparently the water line goes straight down several feet from inside the man hole where the meter is and then across to the house.
There is the meter and the shut off valve, and the line going straight down an unknown depth before it runs to the house.
Can the pressure valve go in the man hole with the meter and valve?
I’ll talk to the utility Monday and see what I can find.
If it can withstand freezing temperatures and be mounted vertically, probably.
Are you saying that the water doesn’t enter the house in one spot? The shutoff in the manhole is the only way you have to turn off the water to your entire house at once?
Water enters the house by a 3/4" pipe coming up through the concrete slab near the water heater.
The only way to shut off water to the house is at the meter valve. That is the only way I’ve ever seen it done in Little Rock or North Little Rock, Arkansas.
I have seen every house in the country, but when there’s a public water utility in every case I know of there’s a shut off at the meter, and another one at the street where the individual line originates. It’s a necessity because the meter or it’s shut off may need to be replaced and there has to be a way to shut off the water outside of the house.
The OP is going to contact the utility, he’ll get the straight story, hopefully this won’t cost him to fix. I’d think the utility would be able to explain why he’s suddenly encountering higher water pressure than normal, possibly a mistake the utility made, or a problem within the system. Other houses in the area could be having the same problem. Maybe he’ll just have to add that regulator himself and eat the costs, but at least he’ll know what the requirements are and not have to pay to have it done again also. I have no idea why the plumber didn’t contact the utility immediately, maybe he did.
Yes, there is, but the water company owns everything on the other side of the meter. Their valve is sealed, and they pull the meter if you monkey with it. One of my tenants did that, and I decided to pay his water bill rather than pay to have the meter put back in.
Yes, true. I’m just emphasizing the need to get the utility involved now, which you are doing. I hope the utility takes care of this for you. If not, well that’s why I call it ‘Home Owership’.
So, where the water comes into the house, cut the pipe and install the pressure reducer there. I don’t understand why it has to be outside. And, while you’re at it, put a shut off there too.
I suppose of he’s calling the water co, ask them and see what they say about the whole situation, but if they tell him to deal with it on his own, I’m still sticking with putting in a PRV, inside his house, where the main enters and adding a valve there as well (before the valve).
The water comes into the house in the slab. The ground floor plumbing is all inside the slab. It exits the slab for each fixture. This of course sucks. The hot water has already leaked in the slab, and the hot water on the ground floor replaced with exposed CPVC. I can put a regulator on the water heater feed, and the cold water run to upstairs, but I have to get to the cold water in the slab from outside the house. My Mother’s house was built in 1955 with the same copper pipe buried in the slab.
Nice and quick for contractors then, it sucks for homeowners now. 
I called the Water Works today.
There is supposed to be a pressure regulator on the water line.
They have no record of where or how the pipe connects from the meter to the house.
“I suppose it is my problem, then.”
“Yes, Sir.”
“Well, thank you very much.”
“Yes, Sir. Have a nice day.”
dammit.
If the main line from the meter to your house is copper 10’ down and then comes straight up and splits in the slab, just run new super blue flexible line from the meter into your house and then in the bottom floor’s ceiling space to all the points or appliances that you need to connect the water system to your house.
Are you sure it does not come in to the side or just below the bottom of the slab at a reasonable depth so you could dig and put a cut off valve and regulator at that point with a plastic water meter casing there so you can get to it quick & easy? I have done it that way before.
Need a water witch to find the line into the slab location if it is not 10’ down and comes straight up into the center of the slab from 10’ down. If this indeed the case, win the lotto because you are hosed otherwise.
I have a spare bed & bath upstairs if you just want to walk away…
My PR is in the basement. Quite easy to get to. OTOH, the main branches just before it to feed an outdoor faucet. When the main broke (thanks new meter installers!), it caused a horrendous whacking sound, almost like a jack hammer.
Note that there’s a big difference between static and dynamic pressure. A seemingly safe margin of static pressure is some cases might not be enough when something shuts off quickly and you get a lovely water hammer going.
I specified the number of floor for my home just to make sure no one misunderstood what I was talking about.
What you describe is definitely my situation. I don’t know exactly where water towers or pumping stations are located, but my house is two doors down from the absolute lowest point in my subdivision. We’re probably thirty feet lower than either end of the little street we’re on.
Yep.
Are pressure reducing valves also check valves? More water utilities are requiring check valves too, and if you add one, then you’ll also need an expansion tank at your hot water heater. They’re small, like maybe a foot in diameter and not much longer, but you need to do it if you have a check valve on the main line since the hot water will no longer be able to expand back up the cold water feed line anymore.
I’ve seen pressure reducing valves become almost compulsory here in Cincinnati not only due to the very uneven terrain, but also because increasing mains pressure is about the only way the water works can keep extending its service area to farther flung suburbs. This unfortunately also causes more water main breaks in the city as the pipes are older and also under the most pressure.
Sorry to hear this. It may be cheaper and easier for you to run new line from the closest point the utility does know about if that’s not too far away. This sucks man, you have my sympathies. Does the town have any plans from when the house was built? I know it’s tough going back to the 60s, but maybe you’ll find as-built plans to help you out.