by Gary Mays | Mar 18, 2013 | Bathrooms, City of Gold Coast, Consumer Issues, DIY Plumbing, Gold Coast Plumbing, Health Issues, Insurance, Plumber Brisbane, Plumbers, Plumbers Gold Coast, Plumbing Emergencies, Plumbing Legislation, Plumbing Maintenance, Plumbing Renovation, Queensland Government, Sustainable Plumbing, Whywait Plumbing
Cheap plumbing fixtures on-line and the desire for a bargain has created an on-line love affair to compare prices of supposedly comparable products and services.
It is a guarantee no matter how much you pay for any product or service you will always find it cheaper on-line. This has given rise to an increasing belief by many consumers that they have paid over the odds and have been ripped off because they found allegedly the same product or service on-line “cheaper”.
It is worth remembering that “cheap” has two meanings. Where plumbing products and services are concerned “cheap” is responsible for some colossally expensive problems. In fact a large amount of work undertaken by Whywait Plumbing is because of consumers who took the “cheap” option. The old adage that you get what you pay for is certainly truer today than at any other time in our history.
Plumbing products that are sold in Australia are subject to stringent testing, designed to ensure that they meet Australian Standards. Once plumbing products meet the required Australian standards they are granted a WaterMark. The product whether its a tap or a toilet or a hot water service or a urinal must display the WaterMark logo as pictured to the right on the product by law.
If you are buying plumbing products on-line from overseas or if your builder or plumber is doing this to cut costs then it is a sure bet that it will end up costing you much more than the money saved in repairs and replacement.
Always make sure you understand what you are paying for and ensure that it has a compliant Australian WaterMark approval. Using a non compliant non WaterMark approved product will null and void your insurance policy if the product is defective and causes property damage.
When you are upgrading or replacing or renovating you will comes across a lot of great looking plumbing products to select from and ones that make great claims in terms of durability and long-life. Usually they are much “cheaper” and are tempting to purchase for the price being offered. Generally where mixer taps and toilet suites are concerned the cheaper the price means corners have been cut in their production. If you cannot see the WaterMark on the product then do not purchase it.
Unfortunately in Australia it is not illegal for non compliant products to be imported and sold. It is however illegal for plumbers to install them. Listening to unqualified salesman who tell you how wonderful the cheap plumbing product is have lead many people to have expensive repairs undertaken. It is always best especially if renovating to stipulate any product supplied for your job meets or exceeds the relevant Australian Standard and or WaterMark for plumbing products.
By Gary Mays
by Gary Mays | Apr 17, 2012 | City of Gold Coast, Consumer Issues, Gold Coast Plumbing, Insurance, Marketing, Plumber Brisbane, Plumbers, Plumbers Gold Coast, Plumbing Emergencies, Plumbing Maintenance, Whywait Plumbing
Credit card payments to pay accounts is now the most common method of payment our clients use to pay for the plumbing services we provide at Whywait Plumbing. Yes we accept the following credit cards:
- American Express
- MasterCard
- Visa
And NO we don’t charge you any form of surcharge.
Unlike many companies Whywait Plumbing do not charge you a surcharge on credit card payments
From our perspective the fees the bank charges us to accept a credit card are negligible, with the benefits of same day payment far outweighing the bank fees.
This policy is unlikely to change as we continually see other companies charging excessively their own clients to make payment via a credit card. It is increasingly the norm with businesses that charge a surcharge for using a credit card to charge double what the bank charges them. This is disguised as administrative fees that would be incurred whether you pay by credit card, cash or cheque. Far too many companies are making additional profit from their own clients using a credit card.
At Whywait Plumbing we bank with Bendigo Bank and the fees they charge us for processing Visa and MasterCard is 0.72%. Unlike other banks Bendigo Bank deposit credit card payments into our bank account same day. With American Express it is slightly different as we have to pay 1.8% and it can take up to 48 hours for the money to be deposited into our bank account.
Put simply the installation of a toilet suite for a service partner costs $758.02 and if they pay by Visa or MasterCard the cost to us is $5.46. Even if they pay by American Express the cost is still $13.64. Either way you look at it those fees are much less than the administrative cost of sending out an invoice, then waiting for payment to arrive.
At Whywait Plumbing we guarantee we will never charge clients for the convenience of using a credit card to pay. We urge you to challenge the validity of businesses that frequently charge you 3-5% for using a credit card when it is highly unlikely they are paying anything like that to their bank.
by Gary Mays | Feb 19, 2012 | Plumbers Gold Coast, Water, Water Filtration
“Choose Reverse Osmosis…”
For the Purest Water You Can Drink at Home!
Your Body Absorbs Harmful Chemicals. But It’s not Designed to Filter Them Out. Reason Enough to Consider a Reverse Osmosis Water Filtration System for You Home.
What Your Body Absorbs, And What It Can’t Filter Out.
More and more, organic foods are being made available to you in restaurants, food stores and vitamin shops. The more you consume organic foods and beverages, the fewer toxic chemicals you’re ingesting…and that promotes a healthier lifestyle.
Unfortunately, there are still far too many inorganic substances we consume on a daily basis, and increasingly this comes to us through our potable drinking water supplies.
Fluoride, for example, remains a hot topic throughout the world. Specifically, the so-called dental benefits of this chemical compound are not universally accepted as a given. But now fluoride has been added to Queensland’s water supply, and that’s a reality that must be faced.
Whether you are pro or con on the fluoride as a water additive, fluoride is one more toxin added to your body…and one more toxin that your body cannot filter out. So here’s the question: if your body can’t filter out harmful toxins, shouldn’t you be looking for ways to have your them filtered out for you before you drink the water?
The only proven method to remove fluoride in the long term is through Reverse Osmosis Water Filtration (RO). Simply put, Reverse Osmosis filtration is the total removal of introduced chemicals, dissolved salts, and metallic ions. Water that has undergone Reverse Osmosis water filtration can be up to 98% pure.
Advantages of Drinking Reverse Osmosis Filtered Water
- RO filtration eliminates almost all salts & minerals from your drinking water.
- Drinking RO purified water prevents incompatible toxins from entering our bodies.
- Best of all it removes & flushes out inorganic mineral deposits already present…the kind that create arthritis in the joints, deposits in the gallstones & kidney stones & deposits on artery walls.
- RO also filters out sulfates, arsenic, aluminum radioactivity and all other harmful parasites and viruses.
- It eliminates the spots and discolouration (dental fluorosis) on your teeth.
Disadvantages of Drinking Reverse Osmosis Filtered Water
- RO filtered water is stripped of its chemistry and is demineralised
- RO water is free of components that balance or stabilise the pH of water, so water with a low pH is known to be aggressive (corrosive).
- RO water always leaves some mineral component that takes the edge off the aggression, however if a simple pH test indicated the water is below 6.8 pH it may also have the ability to leach precious minerals from our body.
But let’s not forget that RO water is healthier, tastes better, is odour-free, and the systems are easy to maintain.
The purpose of an RO membrane is to remove 95-98 % of all contaminants and it does this extremely well. Once we have this near pure water we can begin to develop it to suit our needs.
At Whywait Plumbing Services, we’re Reverse Osmosis and Water Filtration Experts
Lots of plumbers can install Reverse Osmosis systems.But there’s only one Whywait Plumbing Services…the company that’s highly proficient in all aspects of water quality and filtration.
One conversation or in-home visit with us, and you’ll discover the Whywait difference for yourself.
For a no-obligation proposal and quote, or simply to learn more about how Reverse Osmosis water filtration can benefit you and your family, contact the water filtration pros at Whywait Plumbing Services. There’s so much we can do to help.
by Gary Mays
Gold Coast & Tweed: Call us now
by Gary Mays | Jan 23, 2012 | Bathrooms, City of Gold Coast, Consumer Issues, DIY Plumbing, Emergency Plumber, Form 4 notifiable work, handyman, Health Issues, Insurance, licensed plumber, Plumbers Gold Coast, Plumbing Legislation, Queensland Government
Cleaners are not plumbers.
A phone call I received last week from a cleaner asking me are cleaners able to legally undertake plumbing work alerted me to the pressures many cleaning contractors face from unscrupulous building owners and property managers. Increasingly there is a tendency by commercial building owners and their property managers to require their cleaning contractors to undertake work tasks that are legally plumbing. Cleaners undertaking plumbing tasks are quite merely breaking several laws as are their employers and supervisors.
The most common plumbing tasks that cleaners who are untrained, unskilled and unlicensed appear to be being required to undertake as part of their cleaning duties are:
- unblocking of drains
- unblocking of toilets
- disconnecting and clearing of traps
- servicing of urinals
What plumbing work can a cleaner perform
The only plumbing-related tasks a cleaner or any other person can legally undertake are:
- cleaning or maintaining ground level grates to traps on sanitary drains
- replacing caps to ground level inspection openings on sanitary drains
- maintaining an above or below ground irrigation system for the disposal of effluent from an on-site sewerage facility
- installing or maintaining an irrigation or lawn watering system downstream from an isolating valve, tap or backflow prevention device on the supply pipe for the irrigation or lawn watering system
- replacing a jumper valve or washer in a tap
- changing a showerhead
- replacing, in a water closet (WC) cistern, a drop valve washer, float valve washer or suction cup rubber.
All other work must be undertaken by a licensed plumber and drainer – no ifs, no buts, no exceptions.
Laws that apply to who can do plumbing
Cleaners who are required and frequently forced by their supervisors and employers to undertake plumbing tasks usually at the behest of building owners and property managers are all breaking the following laws and regulations:
- Building Services Authority Act 1991
- Work Health and Safety Act 2011
- Queensland Plumbing and Wastewater Code
- Plumbing and Drainage Act 2002
- Plumbing and Drainage Regulation 2003
- Standard Plumbing and Drainage Regulation 2003
Plumbers and drainers, unlike cleaners, are trained to undertake tasks such as clearing of drains or working on toilets or urinals. All of these tasks require specialised training, diagnostic skills and an awareness of health and safety issues. Above all plumbers are licensed to undertake the work by the Queensland Government plumbing regulator, the Plumbing Industry Council. The latter are legally required to protect public health and safety through Queensland’s plumbing and drainage licensing system.
Standard Plumbing & Drainage Regulation 2003 requirements
Tasks such as unblocking of drains, unblocking of toilets, disconnecting and clearing of traps or servicing of urinals are covered explicitly by schedule 2 of Standard Plumbing & Drainage Regulation 2003 as detailed below:
- work necessary for maintaining, repairing or replacing a fitting or fixture
- work necessary for maintaining or repairing an apparatus other than a backflow prevention device or thermostatic mixing valve
- work necessary for replacing apparatus other than a backflow prevention device, thermostatic mixing valve, tempering valve, water heater, cistern, pump or water meter
- work necessary for maintaining, repairing or replacing fire hydrants or fire hose reels
- unblocking a pipe that is sanitary plumbing or sanitary drainage
- work necessary for maintaining or repairing a solar or heat pump hot water system in a building classified under BCA as a class 1, 2, 3 or 4 building
Work undertaken under schedule 2 does not require the lodgement of form 4 with the local government plumbing & drainage inspectors. Still, all work must be conducted by a licensed plumber or drainer.
A cleaner despite what they are told cannot undertake any of the above tasks. They and those that instruct them to do the work are breaking the law, and all are liable for fines plus leave themselves exposed to common law claims under the due diligence provisions of the new WHS Act 2011.
It is straightforward if there is general cleaning of a plumbing fixture then there is no issue its a cleaning task. Where a component part is replaced or disconnected from the plumbing or drainage system, fixture or fitting for maintenance or servicing it can only be legally undertaken by a licensed plumber.
I reiterate the answer to the question are cleaners able to legally undertake plumbing work is a resounding NO and if you are unsure call Whywait Plumbing any time of (07) 5580 4311 to get assistance.
by Gary Mays | Nov 15, 2011 | banging pipes, Consumer Issues, erosion and corrosion in plumbing pipes, Gold Coast Plumber, Gold Coast plumbers, Gold Coast Plumbing, Health Issues, Insurance coverage of water leaks, Leaking Pipes, PEX pipes, Plumbers, Plumbers Gold Coast, Plumbing Maintenance, water damage insurance claims, Water Filtration, Water Hammer, Water Leaks, water pipe pressure
Traditionally most homes used copper pipes to circulate hot and cold water. Since the 1970’s plastic pipes have increasingly replaced traditional copper or galvanised steel pipes.
Over the last ten years, pipe-in-pipe systems have been commonly installed to circulate water in most newly constructed homes. The inner pipe for drinking water is made of a plastic called cross-linked polyethylene (PEX).
Since the advent of plastic plumbing systems, there have always been questions regarding the effects on health and do they affect the taste and odour of drinking water. International studies have shown that plastic pipes can release substances that give drinking water an unwanted taste and odour. It has also been suggested that some of these substances may be carcinogenic.
Several investigations worldwide on health issues have been conducted, and most are inconclusive or positive. The Norwegian Institute of Public Health has just released a new study on whether leaching or leakage products from these pipes harm health and if they affect the taste and odour of drinking water. The potential leakage products consist of residues of additives used during manufacture to give plastic pipes their desired properties and any subsequent breakdown products.
The Norwegian study results indicated:
- There are no health risks associated with drinking water from PEX pipes
- A few types of PEX-pipe may cause prolonged undesirable taste and odour if the water remains in pipes over time
- Although the taste and odour usually dissipate with use, water from two PEX types still had an unpleasant smell and taste after a year.
- The volatile organic compounds that leaked from new PEX pipes were generally low.
- The level was further reduced with the use.
- No correlation was found between manufacturing methods and leaking products.
This study was undertaken far more scientifically than many tests or studies in Australia. It is common in Australia for international products that have undergone extensive testing to fail AS4020 based on a highly subjective taste test from a panel of 5 – 7 people. The Norwegian study tested ten different PEX pipe types for leaching products in a standardised laboratory test. The water was in contact with the tubes for 72 hours.
Three different manufacturing methods produce pipes known as PEX-a, PEX-b or PEX-c. These methods use slightly different additives, but this study found no correlation between production methods and leakage products. Two of the most commonly occurring substances detected in the experiment’s water were 2.4-di-tert-butyl-phenol and methyl-tert-butyl ether (MTBE). For three new pipe types, MTBE was detected in higher concentrations than the US government’s recommended limits for the taste and odour of drinking water (USEPA). Still, the values were reduced to below this limit after the tubes were used for a while.
This study confirms what the plumbing technicians at Whywait Plumbing frequently observe: no matter what type of pipe, there can be a taste or odour in new piping systems or where a house has been unoccupied. The taste and odour soon disappear once the water is in use in the house and is in constant circulation.
by Gary Mays | Sep 30, 2011 | Bathrooms, DIY Plumbing, Plumber Brisbane, Plumbers, Plumbers Gold Coast, Plumbing Renovation
How hard is it to renovate my bathroom? Well if you ask the nice man at Bunnings he will tell you it is really easy and sell you everything you need and tell you how easy it is to do it yourself. The truth is renovating a bathroom is one of the hardest renovation projects to undertake.
If you like many other Australians have just finished watching “The Block” on channel 9 or are currently watching “The Renovators” on channel 10 you will receive the message that it is easy to renovate your bathroom.
Having renovated both our bathrooms at home let me assure it is not easy. It is time consuming, messy and can easily become extremely overwhelming with all of the product choices that exist from tiles to taps to showers to vanities to baths to mirrors to bidets to accessories and so it goes on.
As recently as 20 years ago every product that went into your bathroom was made in Australia so the choice was limited. But at least it was all easy to repair and locate spare parts when anything broke. You knew every product was tested and approved for use in Australia. Now we have product from all over the world. Much of it is just throwaway product as parts are unobtainable for repairs. Most frightening much of it has never been tested or certified for use in Australia leading to frightening consequences should you ever have a flood from these products and need to claim on your insurance policy.
For all of the above reasons and many more is why Whywait Plumbing Services installed a PlumberDirect showroom last year. This has ensured that we sell quality product from an Australian company that has 10 year warranties on most product along with ample spare parts if needed and is all approved for use in Australia.
Plumbing products like so many other products have become part of the worldwide fashion industry. Sadly a bathroom from 3 years ago is terribly out of date today. Luckily it can be easy to update with accessories that are available now. Our PlumberDirect showroom has a great display of affordable, quality taps, vanities and accessories.
For those who want true designer bathroom product we now have access to the Faroe Collection. Faroe is an Australian owned brand of bathroom furniture, baths and accessories that is revolutionising the Australian market. Inspired by some of the finest designs and craftsmanship that exist in bathrooms in Milan, Stockholm, Vienna and Paris, the Faroe selection has finally arrived in Queensland.
So if you are serious about doing a quality bathroom renovation come and visit the PlumberDirect showroom and let us put together a design and construct proposal that is practical and will ensure as little disruption as possible to your family routine.
