Published December 9th, 2020
What is a Plumbing Inspection?
A plumbing inspection is a systematic process of assessing the critical areas of the plumbing system of a property. It is performed by certified plumbers to avoid the risk of pipe corrosion, clogs, leaks, and burst tubes that can cause flooding and property damage.
This article will briefly discuss the following:
- importance of plumbing inspection;
- the vital points in performing plumbing inspection;
- 15 effective plumbing maintenance tips;
- technology used to streamline plumbing inspection processes; and
- free plumbing checklists you can customize and use.
Importance of Plumbing Inspection
Conducting regular plumbing inspection keeps the system running smoothly which helps businesses or households prevent costly and unexpected repairs. However, plumbing inspections should be properly executed to be able to achieve the following objectives:
- Detect early problems to mitigate the risk of damaged pipelines and plumbing systems;
- Eliminate the hassle of delayed work due to clogs and water leaks;
- Avoid bigger water damage; and
- Prevent a drastic increase in water consumption bill
Vital Points in Performing Plumbing Inspection
A plumbing inspection should cover all the critical components of the plumbing system. This should include pipes, valves, water heaters, and drains. These components are assessed for leaks, corrosion, clogs, and drainage problems. The following are the vital points in performing plumbing inspection:
Shut the main water supply
Visually inspect the shut-off valve of the main water supply for defects and damages. Check if the water meter is continuously reading even if the valve is shut off. This would help verify if water leaks are present on the property.
Ensure the plumbing system is watertight
Fill the entire drainage systems with water to the middle of a trip waste overflow of every tub installed to validate if plumbing systems are closely sealed.
Conduct water piping pressure test
Turn on the building water service from 75 psi to 100 psi to test the normal working pressure passing through the water pipelines. Check the water supply if it runs smoothly even with the minimum water pressure requirement.
Check the sewer and drainage lines
Assess the sewer lines from property to curb connection, septic tank, and drainage systems to thoroughly check if pipe damage, corrosion, or major clogs are present.
Examine fixtures, supply lines, and drains
All fixtures must have separate valves to control the water supply. Validate any signs of water damage on the internal and external parts of the property. Check the gutter, flexible hoses, and drains for any blockages that may affect the plumbing systems.
15 Effective Plumbing Maintenance Tips
Maintaining good plumbing systems is necessary to avoid emergency plumbing issues such as water burst, gas leaks, or broken water lines. Here are some plumbing maintenance tips you can implement to help you avoid massive problems:
- Check your faucets regularly for leaks and damages.
- Ensure there are no water drips when the spigot is turned off.
- Check underneath the sinks for water stains or drips when the water is running.
- Immediately unclog slow drains.
- Never dispose of rubbish, greasy oil, and unused medicines to prevent a clogged drain.
- Visually inspect visible signs of water stains on walls and ceilings.
- Ensure water pressure is at a safe level.
- Drain the water heater to remove formed sediments.
- Check the toilet for loose fittings including flapper.
- Replace the hoses if there are visible signs of cracks, brittleness, or leaking.
- Avoid using chemical clog removal products that can cause corrosion on pipes.
- Shut off the water valves for outdoor spigots.
- Clean the gutter to avoid water blockage.
- Inspect septic tanks regularly.
- Be aware of the property structure and perform regular drainage maintenance.
Technology Used to Streamline Plumbing Reports
Organizing and managing paper-based plumbing reports are burdensome as it consumes too much energy and time. The hassle of using traditional pen and paper can cause delays due to paper loss, unable to capture photo evidence or water damages. These hassles can be avoided by using iAuditor by SafetyCulture, a digital inspection app. iAuditor is used for more than 50 million inspections in over 80 countries and has been revolutionizing safety and quality with its versatile features for a variety of industries. With iAuditor, it is easy to perform plumbing inspection as you can do the following:
- Download ready-to-use plumbing inspection checklists or easily create and customize your own via Smart Forms.
- Perform plumbing inspections on your handheld device anytime, anywhere, even if you’re offline. All inspections will automatically sync to the cloud once you get connected to the internet.
- Take unlimited photo evidence, annotate the defects found, and attach detailed notes to clarify the plumbing system damage.
- Assign corrective actions to immediately mitigate the detected issues. You can set the time, date, and priority level to triage tasks.
- Generate plumbing reports after completing your inspection with a click of a button. Share and access data within your organization that is securely saved in a cloud.
- Upgrade to premium accounts to track inspection frequency and performance via data analytics and gain actionable insights to improve operations.
Featured Plumbing Checklists
Plumbing Checklist
A plumbing checklist is used by a certified plumber to evaluate and assess the condition of the plumbing system of a property. It is used to record any issues spotted during the inspection. This plumbing checklist was created to guide inspectors to perform the following:
- Inspect pipes, valves, water heater, and drains for leaks and damages;
- Capture and annotate unlimited photo evidence and attach detailed notes;
- Assign corrective actions for immediate rectification;
- Provide overall recommendations; and
- Sign-off with a digital signature to validate the inspection.
Plumbing Commissioning Checklist
A plumbing commissioning checklist is used to examine the piping system in the facility to assess its compliance with design and functionality standards. This checklist helps ensure the installation meets standards and follows the code compliance requirements, and documentation such as operation manuals, red line drawings, and LOTO procedures.
Plumbing Inspection - Final Checklist
This plumbing inspection – final checklist was created by AlburyCity Planning and Environment using iAuditor by SafetyCulture. AlburyCity is the facilitator of a thriving, resilient and liveable city full of opportunities, and the custodians of an environment like no other. They ensure Albury is a great place to live, work and invest. This checklist has been built to inspect the overall plumbing systems of Albury whether it passed or failed.
Rooftop Plumbing Inspection Checklist
This rooftop plumbing inspection checklist was created to assess roofs, gutters, and downpipe traps if clear and unobstructed.
