PLUMBING SYSTEM IN BUILDING

PLUMBING-the art and tehnique of installing pipes, fixtures and other apparatuses in buildings for
bringing in the supply and removing them.

PLUMBING SYSTEM -includes all potable water supply and distribution pipes, all plumbing fixtures and
traps; all sanitary and storm drainage systems.

Water Supply System

A system in plumbing which provides and distributes water to the different parts of the building or
structure, for purposes such as drinking, cleaning , washing, culinary use etc. It includes the water
distribution pipes control devices, equipment, and other oppurtenances.

•Fixture- a device that uses water (sink, toilet, dishwasher, etc.)

•Water Heater- large insulated tanks that heat cold water to be distributed in the hot water supply lines

•Trunk Lines- Hot or cold water pipes that serve many fixtures.

•Branch Lines- Hot or cold water pipes that serve only one or two fixtures.

•Water Main- supply pipe installed and maintained by a public entity and on public property.

•Water Service- Pipe from the water main to the building supply pipes

•Meter- Measures the amount of water transported through water service

•Valve- a fitting used to control water flow (located next to the meter)

Drainage System

All the piping within a public or private premises which conveys sewage, rainwater or other liquid to a
point of disposal. A drainage system does not include the mains of public sewer systems or a private or
public sewage treatment or disposal plant.

Sanitary Drainage and Vent Piping System

Installed by the plumber to remove wastewater and water-borne wastes from the plumbing fixtures and
appliances, and to provide circulation of air within the drainage piping.

Sanitary drainage Pipes

Pipes installed to remove the wastewater and water-borne wastes from plumbing fixtures and convey
these to the sanitary sewer and other point of disposal.

Sanitary Drainage System

Part of the drainage system that extend from the end of the building drain and conveys its discharge to
the public sewer, private sewer, or other appropriate point of disposal.

Part of a Sanitary Drainage System

Special Devices:

1.) Interceptors
Device design and installed to separate and retain deleterious, hazardous, or undesirable matter
from normal waste and permit normal sewage or liquid waste to discharge into the disposal terminal
gravity.
2.)Sumps and Ejectors
•A sump is a tank or a pit which receives sewage or liquid waste, located below the normal grade of
the gravity system, and must be emptied by a mechanical means
• Sewage ejectors may be motor-driven centrifugal pumps, or they may ve operated by compressed
air.
3.) Backwater Valves
• A backwater valve closes to prevent reverse flow from a sewer to low facilities when there is a
heavy drainage load for short periods that can caused building up and overflow of wastes.
4.) Roof and Floor Drains
•Roof Drain is a receptacle design to collect surface or rainwater from an open area and discharge to
catch basin
• Floor Drain is any pipe which carries water or waterborne waste in a building drainage system.

Essential Components

1.)House Sewer
It extends from the public sewer to the private sewage-disposal tank to the wall of the building
structure and is entirely outside the building
2.)House Drain
The horizontal main inti which the vertical soul and waste stacks discharge. It connects directly to the
house sewer
 3.) House Trap
House traps are an outdated plumbing feature that were originally intended to keep sewer gasses
out of your living area. To do this, a house trap collects water to block odors from escaping through
the drains.
4.)Fresh Air Inlet
It is intended to admit fresh air to drainage system so that there will be a free circulation without
compression throughout the house drain and stacks discharging above the roof.
5.)Soil and Waste Stacks
The soil and waste stack collects the sewage from the fixtures through their branches.
6.) Fixture Branches
Connects the fixtures with the stack. Waste or soil branches are connected to the trap of each
fixtures
7.) Traps
Traps catches water after each discharge from a fixture to not to allow unpleasant and obnoxious
gases in a sanitary drainage system to escape through the fixture
8.) Vents
Are the extension of soil and waste stack through the roof and a system of pipes largely paralleling
the drainage system for the admission of air and discharging of gases.

Ventilation System

A system of pipes, fittings and their devices installed for the purpose of providing circulation of air and
creating balanced atmospheric condition within the system thereby preventing siphonage and
backpressure.

Difference Between Soil Pipe and Waste Pipe

Soil Pipe

A pipe that conveys the discharge of water closets or similar fixtures containing fecal matter, with or
without the discharge of other. Fixtures to the building drain or building sewer.

Waste Pipe

A pipe that coveys only liquid waste free of fecal matter. Also, a waste pipe is generally smaller that a
soil pipe because of the nature of matter being discharge into the system. A waste pipe may be
connected directly or indirectly depending on the type of fixture.

Energy Conservation
•Locate hot water heater in conditional space

•Insulate hot water heater

• Insulate exposed hot water pipes

• Insulate cold water pipes with freezing potential

•Place water pipe in interior walls, if possible

3 basic types of plumbing systems: supply lines, fixtures, and drains.

1. The Supply Line System

The first type of plumbing system is the water

supply line. The supply line system is made up of
pipes, fittings, and valves that carry potable (or
drinking) water throughout the house. Water
enters your property from a reservoir, municipal
water system, or, in rural areas, from a private
well.

How Does Water Get to You?

Typically, the water passes through a curb valve

near the street. This portion of the supply system is
owned by the city. It then enters into a water
meter and main shutoff valve usually located on
the street-side of your house in a basement or
crawl space.

If your house is built on a slab (no basement or

crawl space), the water meter and shutoff valve should be found in a utility room or closet.

Potable Water Travels by Water Pressure

Water pressure is what pushes water to where it needs to go. But the pressure needs to be just right for
it not to cause leaks or burst pipes.
Water pressure in the supply lines ranges in normal conditions ranges from 35-75 pounds per square
inch (PSI). Ideally, it is between 40 and 60 PSI (50 PSI is perfect for most households). Pressure that is
less than ideal can cause insufficient water flow from your fixtures. Higher water pressure can cause
water hammer or burst pipes, leading to severe water damage.

Cold & Hot Water Runs

From the cold water main line one supply pipe branches off to the water heater to begin a second,
parallel run of pipe called the hot water main.

From there, secondary branches of hot and cold water, usually spaced about 6 inches apart, snake
through the walls and ceilings to your fixtures.

In a well-designed system, each branch contains its own shutoff valve near the point where it leaves the
main line. This allows you to turn off the water to a fixture (like your kitchen faucet or toilet) without
cutting off water from the rest of the house.

2. The Plumbing Fixtures System

Fixtures are the second of three types of

plumbing systems in your home. It includes
sinks, bathtubs, showers, toilets, sprinkler
systems, and water-using appliances like
dishwashers and clothes washers.

These fixtures connect either temporarily or

permanently to the supply line and drainage
systems. Not all fixtures need both. For
example, a toilet tank has a cold water line only
while a dishwasher uses only the hot water
line.]

What are Air Chambers?

Behind the wall at most fixtures are air chambers. These are capped vertical pipes that trap a column of
air to cushion onrushing water when the faucet is turned off.
Without an air chamber, an abrupt turn-off might create several hundred pounds of pressure within the
water supply system. This could result in water hammer, a problem that can burst open pipes and
fittings.

3. The Drain-Waste-Vent (DWV) System

The drain system is the third basic type of

plumbing system. It is often called the DWV
(drain-waste-vent) system, and it is the least
visible part of the entire home plumbing
system. For good reason, it’s also the most
strictly regulated by housing and plumbing
codes.

Wastewater Travels by Gravity

Unlike the water supply system, the drain

system is not under pressure. It relies on
gravity to carry wastewater out of the house.

P-Traps Are Your Friend

Each fixture is connected to a drainpipe by a P-

or S-trap (while you can still find S-traps in
older homes, they are now considered illegal according to the U.S. Uniform Plumbing Code).

Each trap is filled with water to prevent sewer gas from entering your home. Wastewater can go out,
but due to the “water trap,” small animals and sewer gas can’t get in. Every time a toilet is flushed, or a
sink is emptied, the water in the trap is replaced.

Stacks & Venting

Branch drains lead to a larger vertical pipe
called a stack. This is possibly the most
important piece of plumbing in your home.

The bottom of the vertical stack is at the

same level as the outgoing sewer line. The
stack goes all the way up, through the roof, to
vent sewer gas and maintain atmospheric
pressure in the system. A larger home might
have multiple stacks.

At ground level, or below if there is a basement, the stack makes a near-45-degree turn to become the
horizontal main sewer drain. It slopes away from the house (this downward slope takes advantage of
gravity to move the wastewater) and enters a public sewer line or private septic system.

Within the foundation of buildings, plumbing systems refer to the collection of carefully constructed
piping networks that firstly, distribute drinking water (also called potable water) to basins, baths,
showers & washing machines throughout the structure and secondly, safely dispose of wastewater into
both the civil stormwater & sewerage systems.

It is important to note here that when it comes to plumbing, there is no “one-size-fits-all” solution and
therefore, there are various potentially suitable systems that a plumber can use depending on the type
of structure and the budget that is available to them.

Plumbing systems can be categorized into 4 main types: Two-pipe, one-pipe, single stack, and single
stack with partial ventilation. When a pipe is positioned vertically, it’s called a “stack” and when it’s
positioned horizontally it’s called a “branch.”

Vent pipes (also called plumbing air vents or vent stacks) are a very important element of any plumbing
system and have two major functions. The first is to work alongside the plumbing system to regulate the
air pressure in the pipe preventing a pressure build up and ensuring that wastewater flows safely and
seamlessly out of the building. This pressure can be problematic in that it can cause the flow of water to
slow down or even stop.

Vent pipes are also known as anti-siphonic pipes because they prevent the water seal from being
siphoned out which can happen in a multi-storied building with multiple toilets constantly being flushed.
This brings me to my next point: The second function of a vent pipe is to filter out foul-smelling, harmful
gases from the pipe and safely release them outside of the building. For this reason, pipe vents run
upwards and out of the roof away from any windows or air conditioning systems so that the dangerous
gases do not enter the building.

Two-pipe System:

Two-pipe plumbing systems are safe and have been around for many years. They are a particularly good
option when you are wanting to recycle wastewater to use in your garden. In this plumbing scenario,
two vertical pipes are installed. One is connected to toilets and urinals in the building (soil pipe) and the
other to basins, showers, washing machine etc (waste pipe). Each pipe has its own pipe vent leading
waste gases up to the roof. The soil pipe is connected
directly to the sewerage system and the waste pipe is
connected via a trapped gully either to the stormwater
system or recycled for use in the garden. Since this
system requires 4 pipes in total, it can be expensive.
Seaqual’s WetFloor Drain (trap depth of 75mm) and
LoLo Drain (trap depth of 52mm) are both certified and
are therefore deemed fit for purpose for this type of
plumbing system.
One-Pipe System:

This is where waste pipes and soil pipes are

connected to a common pipe that leads out into
the sewerage system. In the case of a building with
multiple floors, lavatories must be installed directly
above one another with a vent connected to every
trap to prevent them from being siphoned out. This
system is more expensive than a single stack
system. Seaqual’s WetFloor Drain is suitable for this
type of system.

Single Stack System:

This system is the simplest and the most

economical of the four because only one pipe is
installed. In a single stack system, all soil pipes
and waste pipes lead into a single vertical pipe
which in turn connects to the sewerage system.
This system does not have a pipe vent and so the
success of it depends entirely on the depth of the
water seal which according to SANS regulation
can be no less than 75mm. In accordance with
this, Seaqual’s WetFloor Drain with a trap depth
of 75mm is fit for purpose for single stack
plumbing systems.
Single Stack Partially Ventilated System:

This is a modified version of the single stack system. The pipe configuration is similar in that all soil and
waste pipes lead into one single vertical pipe, however, to
combat the negative effects of siphonage, a relief vent pipe
is installed at each of the toilets providing ventilation to their
water traps. The pipes from basins, showers and sinks do not
have their own vent pipes. Once again, our WetFloor Drain is
more that adequate for this type of plumbing system.