March4Water Demonstrates Plumbing’s Vital Impact |
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March4Water is a new annual observance month launching in March 2023 by The IAPMO Group. More than 2.3 billion people globally do not have access to safely managed drinking water, and more than 2.2 million people in the United States live without running water or basic plumbing in their homes. The IAPMO Group recognizes the importance of safe and effective plumbing systems in keeping families and communities healthy and resilient. |
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IAPMO R&T’s Product Certification Committee: Giving Clients an Additional Level of Assurance |
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Manufacturers have many options when it comes to having their products certified. However, only IAPMO offers a committee of knowledgeable industry experts who take a final look to ensure compliance with applicable codes and standards.
Unlike other product certifiers, where product certification decisions are made solely by technical staff, IAPMO R&T uses a unique process in which they are confirmed by a committee in addition to the evaluation work done by R&T staff.
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WaterSense-Certified Flushometer-Valve Toilets Save Water, Money |
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Flushometer-valve toilets containing two primary components, a flushometer valve and a toilet bowl, are commonly found in restrooms at such heavily trafficked commercial, institutional or industrial locations as airports, schools, movie theatres, public buildings and sports arenas.
The federal standard for these toilets is a flush volume not to exceed 1.6 gpf. However, of the approximately 26 million flushometer-valve toilets estimated to exist in the United States, nearly seven million are of an older variety with flush volumes ranging from 3-7 gpf.
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2021 Uniform Plumbing Code Seminar Review |
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Presented by Des Moines, Iowa, plumbing inspector and IAPMO Board of Directors member Brian Hamner, the Uniform Plumbing Code® (UPC) seminar at IAPMO’s 93rd annual Education and Business Conference discussed provisions of the UPC pertaining to circuit-venting.
An Iowa native, Hamner has 25 years of experience in the plumbing trade. He began his career as a sprinkler fitter with a small company for several years before switching to plumbing. Following stints with Cook Plumbing Corp. and Golden Rule Plumbing and Heating, he moved into his current position with the city of Des Moines in 2007.
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Program Continues at ISH 2023 |
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The International Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Foundation (IWSH) will partner with the World Plumbing Council (WPC) to host a Plumbing Champions training workshop during ISH 2023, the world’s leading trade fair for the HVAC and water industries, March 13-17 at Messe Frankfurt in Frankfurt, Germany.
A team of international plumbers representing various member organizations from across the WPC network will build a series of pre-wall frame systems and internal plumbing for installation in men’s and ladies bathroom renovations at the Niddahalle sports complex. Additional tasks will include joining and bending hot- and cold-water piping systems, installing cisterns and brackets for water closets and basins, and joining of HDPE waste pipe. The new plumbing systems will be built using materials and products from Geberit, the generous supporter of our Plumbing Champions project at ISH 2023.
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Getting Efficient with Heat Pump Water Heaters |
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If you have a customer who needs a new electric water heater and would like to reduce their electric bill and carbon footprint, they might be interested in switching to a heat pump water heater (HPWH). While a heat pump water heater will save significant energy on a year-round basis, customers need to be aware that in a cold climate the net performance will drop in the winter. A HPWH will need at least 750 cubic feet of open space that stays above 40 degrees Fahrenheit year-round. HPWHs located in cold basements or without sufficient air circulation will reduce efficiency and energy savings. |
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IAPMO Publishes Children’s Coloring Book |
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“My Mom is a Plumbing Superhero” is the first children’s book focused exclusively on women plumbers, lifting up their contributions to public health.
IAPMO partnered with real-life superhero plumber Judaline Cassidy, a proud member of Plumbers Local Union No. 1 NYC, founder of Tools & Tiaras, and one of CNN’s “Champions for Change.”
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Digital Plumbing Design in Health Care Facilities: Pay Now or Pay Later |
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Recently, I was reading a blog post authored by my friend and colleague Christoph Lohr; his piece titled “Water in Health Care Facilities – The Public Health and Economic Nexus” inspired me to provide further insight into some of the problems that exist in our health care facilities. As Christoph stated, there has been a monumental increase of 450% in U.S. cases of Legionella, the water-borne bacteria that causes Legionnaires’ disease, since 2000. It’s no wonder facilities can’t find it within their budgets to get ahead of the crumbling infrastructure that plagues so many hospitals in the United States. Unfortunately, many facilities with critical environments are indebted to their own aging assets. Health care facilities, specifically, must reimagine their approach to maintenance by introducing digital data logging and fail mitigation components, or risk increasing threats to health and safety. |
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Backwater Valves: How They Work and Why They’re Important |
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Have you ever experienced an unexpected downpour of rain, which threatened your home with sewer water backup problems or water problems in general? Fixing clean rainwater backups wherever they may occur is already bad enough — imagine if it was sewage water, which ruins anything it contacts or touches. Needless to say, necessary repairs could be costly. On the bright side, there are systems or products to help prevent those types of disasters, and one of them is the installation of a certified listed backwater valve. It is too late to prevent damages when they have already occurred, so it is important to verify your system is properly protected. |
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IAPMO Publishes Manual of Recommended Practice for Toilet Room Design: All Gender, Health, Safety, Privacy and Security |
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The International Association of Plumbing and Mechanical Officials (IAPMO®) has published the Manual of Recommended Practice for Toilet Room Design: All Gender, Health, Safety, Privacy and Security. On Sept. 15, 2021, IAPMO initiated the Bathroom Design Task Group to create a manual to provide code enhanced and adoptable language for all-gender restrooms.
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IAPMO Seeks Technical Correlating Committee Members |
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The International Association of Plumbing and Mechanical Officials (IAPMO®) is seeking volunteers to participate on the Technical Correlating Committee (TCC) to work toward the correlation of the 2027 editions of the Uniform Plumbing Code (UPC®) and Uniform Mechanical Code (UMC®). The deadline to submit an application is May 1.
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IAPMO Government Relations Corner |
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New Global Commitment Announced to Eliminated Lead from All Drinking Water Supply Systems by 2040 |
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A consortium of governments, manufacturers and civil society partners at the United Nations (UN) 2023 Water Conference today launched a global commitment to achieve lead-free drinking water.
There is an urgent need to reduce human exposure to lead in the environment, including lead in drinking water – a source of exposure that is wholly preventable. An invisible, odorless and tasteless chemical contaminant present in water supply systems worldwide, lead is a toxin that irreversibly impacts neurological and cognitive development. Exposure in childhood or during pregnancy can cause lifelong harm, yet globally, 800 million — or roughly 1 in 3 — children have elevated levels of lead in their blood.
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St. Louis Updates Plumbing Code to 2021 Uniform Plumbing Code |
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City of St. Louis Mayor Tishaura Jones has signed legislation adopting the 2021 Uniform Plumbing Code (UPC), updating the city’s code from the 2009 edition of the UPC. The adoption was recommended by the city’s Committee of Plumbing Code Review and has the enthusiastic support of St. Louis’ plumbing industry. |
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Biden-Haris Administration Proposes First-Ever National Standard to Protect Communities from PFAS in Drinking Water |
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The Biden-Harris Administration announced it is proposing the first-ever national drinking water standard for six per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in the latest action under President Biden’s plan to combat PFAS pollution and Administrator Regan’s PFAS Strategic Roadmap. Through this action, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking a major step to protect public health from PFAS pollution, leveraging the latest science and complementing state efforts to limit PFAS by proposing to establish legally enforceable levels for six PFAS known to occur in drinking water.
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States Perform Poorly in Water Use Efficiency |
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State-by-state advances in water use efficiency and conservation during 2022 were recently evaluated by the Alliance for Water Efficiency (AWE). Based on answers to a brief survey, states were assigned points and ranked according to their progress in implementing laws and policies regulating water use sustainability. Previously issued in 2017, AWE found little improvement in its latest report with states scoring an average of just 23 out of 90 points possible. |
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School Drinking Water Quality Downgraded |
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The California Public Interest Research Group (CALPIRG) has lowered its grade for lead in the state’s school drinking fountains from a “C+” to a “C.” While the difference may not seem significant, the problem is that although many lead service pipes have been replaced, the fittings connecting them to drinking fountains may still contain lead. As a solution, CALPIRG Director Jean Engstrom recommended replacing all drinking fountains in California public schools with filtered hydration systems. |
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Texas School Fail Tap Water Safety Test |
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According to the 2017 “Get the Lead Out” report issued by the Environment Texas Research Center, 71 percent of Texas schools had lead contamination in water coming from at least one of their taps. The report also noted the state had no laws on the books regulating the amount of lead contamination allowed and that testing for lead in water by schools was entirely voluntary. In response, State Rep. Barbara Gervin-Hawkins proposed a bill requiring schools to routinely test for and eliminate lead contamination in their drinking water. |
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IAPMO offers Free COVID-19 Webinar Series Click here for details
IAPMO Standards offers free summary of standard changes. Click here to access.
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Read the 2021 codes online for FREE! |
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Did you know that you can ask a Code question for free at IAPMO? Click here for details.
Did you know that IAPMO social media not only post announcement and events, but also Uniform Codes’ Answer Analysis? Follow @IAPMO social media today to stay updated on what’s going in plumbing industry
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Learn more about other services that The IAPMO Group offers: |
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Management Systems Certification |
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Building Materials Evaluation |
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Indonesia Product Testing and Certification, Middle East Product Testing |
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India Product Testing and Certification |
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