D.I.Y. plumbing risks lives

Press, 13 March 1986, Page 23

D.I.Y. plumbing risks lives

The good old do-it-your-selfer who decides to have a go at a bit of plumbing around the house could be posing a serious health hazard as well as breaking the law. According to the law, it is generally illegal for anyone other than a registered plumber to do plumbing work in New Zealand except in a few specific localities.

This is because of the potential health hazards that may result from faulty or illegal plumbing. These are so great that both the Government and local authorities in New Zealand have stringent regulations covering plumbing work. The Drainage and Plumbing Regulations prohibit anyone from establishing, installing, extending, repairing or removing any drain, sewage tank, disposal system or fitting or doing any sanitary plumbing without first obtaining a permit from the local authrity in the area.

Sanitary plumbing includes the fixing or unfixing of any bath, shower, lavatory, sink, basin, vanity unit, tub or washing machine. It also includes any work done to a trap, pipe or ventilation pipe connected to or intended to be connected to any sanitary fitting, appliance, drain or sewer.

Compared with other countries, New Zealand has a good public health record attributed mainly to the high standard of service provided by the plumbing industry, according to the N.Z. Society of Master Plumbers.

Permits for sanitary plumbing will be issued only to registered plumbers, or in special cases to the person who is legally permitted to do the work. Only in a few areas, specifically gazetted by the Minister of Health, are owner-occu-piers allowed to do sanitary plumbing to their homes. This has to be done under the super-

vision of the plumbing inspector and a permit must be obtained first. The permit holder is responsible for satisfying the local authority that the work has been done in accordance with the Drainage and Plumbing Regulations. After inspection, the local authority will issue a certificate of completion which assures that an adequate and legal job has been done.

One of the main reasons why unqualified people are prevented by law from doing their own plumbing and drainlaying work is the danger of faulty connections, which could lead to the pollution of water supplies. Dangerous and common faults made by amateurs are cross-connections through which it is possible to contaminate pure water. Although the probability of contaminating drinking water through a crossconnection may seem remote, it is actually very high considering the number of existing systems.

Look at some of these recent New Zealand examples: blood-like contamination fouled the drinking water of a South Island freezing works; zoo staff were affected by pesticide - contaminated water; a pressure-testing liquid was released instead of water in showers in a timber mill; beer from a major brewery entered the mains and appeared in the water supply to neighbouring premises; and nasty smells emanated from decomposing residue in a shower waste-pipe. Other plumbing hazards are threats to life from explosions, electrical faults and scaldings and general problems such as leakages, infiltration, and wastage. Further local examples of these hazards were the death from electric shock of a person moving a hot water cylinder and the destruction of a caravan when its hot water cylinder exploded. There is also the cost of tearing out wall linings to get to a leaking joint which has caused extensive hidden deterioration.

People not having plumbing work done by a registeered plumber are plcing themselves at risk, both legally and healthwise. Inadequate plumbing can pose a very serious health risk