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Know your copper regulations

 

“…the responsibility for the use of compliant products rests with the licensed plumber…”
The Plumbers Handbook is available in print or online at: https://copper.com.au/resources/plumbing
The Hydraulic Services Design Guide is now available in printed form as well as digitally.

As the CEO of the International Copper Association Australia (ICAA), I regularly get asked questions by plumbers, builders and even DIY consumers about all sorts of plumbing issues. We’re able to help on most topics, but there are also many resources out there that can help plumbers and those associated with the plumbing industry.

Much of this information is available in the various standards and regulations of course, and they should always be your first port of call. There are also lots of other helpful sources of technical information based on the information in the standards that also provide useful and practical methods of installing copper plumbing and solving problems.

PRIMARY DOCUMENT

The primary document governing plumbing regulations is the Plumbing Code of Australia, which is Volume 3 of the National Construction Code (NCC). This is available free electronically from: http://www.abcb.gov.au/Resources/NCC.

The NCC prescribes many requirements but also references Australian Standards that are regularly being revised and updated and must be considered. These include, but are not limited to:

  • AS/NZS 3500.1-2021 Plumbing and drainage – Water services
  • AS/NZS 3500.4-2021 Plumbing and drainage – Heated Water services

One important Standard for copper plumbing is AS 4809-2017 Copper pipe and fittings – Installation and commissioning. This Standard is a concise extract of all the relevant information pertaining specifically to the installation of copper plumbing.

Standards can be purchased from the SAI-Global Bookshop at: https://infostore.saiglobal.com/store/

WATERMARK

One of the most important things that is needed from the start is good-quality, appropriate products, and this is generally assured if the product has a valid WaterMark approval.

With the introduction of ‘Lead-Free’ copper alloys, there most likely will be a modification of the WaterMark logo to include validation of Lead-Free conformance. At the time of writing, the ABCB was seeking approval for registration of the new trademark. Product marking cannot be finalised until this approval has been granted. Refer to Notice of Direction 2022/2.0 Marking requirements for Lead-Free plumbing products, to be published by the ABCB, for final marking requirements for Lead-Free plumbing products.

It is important for every installer of plumbing products to understand that the responsibility for the use of compliant products rests with the licensed plumber at the point of installation. Enforcement of the requirements will be undertaken at the point of installation by the state or territory plumbing administration having jurisdiction. The regulations include repairs and renovations, and even for customer-supplied products the installer must ensure they comply with the regulations.

There have been issues where substandard products, or products not suitable to Australian conditions, have caused major problems. Purchasing from reputable suppliers and having the product installed by properly trained and licensed plumbers will minimise the risk of problems occurring.

GET THE HANDBOOK

The ICAA, in conjunction with MM Kembla, has been at the forefront of providing information on copper plumbing and installation methods. Recently, it released the tenth edition of The Plumbers Handbook, which is available from most major plumbing outlets. It is also available as an electronic, downloadable document from the ICAA website at: https://copper.com.au/resources/plumbing/

HYDRAULIC GUIDE

The ICAA has also released an update of the Hydraulic Services Design Guide (HSDG), which is available electronically at the same site stated above, but is now also available as a printed version. If you would like a copy, please email your request to plumbing@copper.com.au

In due course, we hope this Design Guide will be given to every plumbing apprentice at all the TAFE colleges.

GREEN COPPER

Environmental aspects of plumbing play an important part in every building and are becoming more important. Copper is getting a reputation as a ‘green’ metal, but a new study is suggesting it can also help reduce carbon emissions in the construction industry. 

That’s big news. The building and construction sector globally accounts for roughly 40% of energy and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions a year, while manufacturing building materials and construction are responsible for an additional 11%.

The study by the International Copper Association and Sphera looked at the environmental impacts of three water installation tube systems: copper, plastic multilayer pipes (PEX-Al), and plastic cross-linked polyethylene (PEX).

The summary of the study is comprehensive, and we recommend reading it, but a quick summary of some findings suggest:

  • Compared to systems made from plastic (PEX-Al and PEX), copper tube systems used to transport fluids in buildings (e.g., drinking water, heating, air conditioning, gases) are better for decarbonisation. 
  • Compared to the plastic systems, only the copper system has guaranteed material circularity. Copper’s circularity greatly reduces the environmental impact of buildings, particularly if the future product lifecycles consider the use of recycled copper.

The summary of the study is available at: https://copperalliance.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/ICA-ExecSummary-ReduceCarbonEmissions-202210-R3.pdf

Obviously, there’s a ton of official information out there and it’s easy to get confused, but being familiar with some of the simple guides can save you time and money, and, more importantly, protect you when things go wrong.

John Fennell is the CEO of the International Copper Association Australia Ltd, which is the pre-eminent marketing and technology development body for the copper industry in Oceania.

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