How long would it take for electricity and water (or general utilities) to stop being functional in an apocalyptic setting?

Question

I have this idea for a story were the surrounding infrastructure is intact. Now barring regular maintenance, how long would it take for existing infrastructure to not function? How long could a house run on existing utilities?

Thanks for the help!

In: Engineering

Answer 1

In addition to having the utilities fail, a major concern would be how those utilities and industrial complexes fail. Without people to shut down petroleum refineries, or route new feedstock into the crackers, those refineries would end in catastrophic failure. Houston would end in a spectacular pyre. Nuclear reactors should all shutdown on their own, but every one has a potential for failure. Most of our livestock would die and start a plague of flies. Unmaintained storm sewer drains would quickly plug up turning cities and suburbs into a swamp and highways into rivers. Without people to keep Mother nature in check, she’ll quickly take back what is hers, but it’ll be a hell of a mess for years.