The Owners Corporation completed an annual inspection of the condition of all hot water tanks, trays and drainage tubing.
Our consultant’s report to the Pines Executive Committee made the following general recommendations:
- Highly recommend that any system over seven to eight (7-8) years of age be replaced to guard against unforeseen catastrophic failure which would impact on the resident and adjacent neighbours.
- Recommend Mildred Valves be installed in every system to shut off water to the tank in the event of a failure, to mitigate water damage.
- Recommend flexi hoses (if rubber lined) be replaced with fixed tubing (copper or otherwise). The usual life of such hoses is often less than the life of the tank.
Inspection Report
- Full replacement was recommended for 12 systems.
- 21 systems require a temperature value.
- 14 systems were missing tray drainage.
- 15 flexi hoses may need to be replaced.
The Owners Corporation shall be writing separately to residents to advise them of their respective issues. Owners have up to eight (8) weeks to resolve the issue(s).
Failure to resolve the issue could result in the voiding of insurance coverage.
Water Heaters & Drainage Tray
Pines ByLaw 36 (1)
The owner or occupier of the unit is responsible for the costs associated with the repair, maintenance or replacement of the hot water heater and associated trays.
An owner of a lot replacing a hot water heater must install a pressure reduction valve and a metal drainage tray under the heater not less than 75mm deep to hold leaked water and be fitted with a continuous drainage line not less than 20mm diameter routed to discharge into a bath room, shower enclosure, laundry floor waste or other suitable location. Any lot not fitted with a drainage tray and continuous drainage line must comply next time a water heater is replaced.
The Owners Corporation plumbing representative shall undertake an annual inspection of all units on a nominated day to inspect the condition of the hot water heaters and trays. The owner or occupier shall allow access on the nominated day to enable the inspections to be completed.
Where the Owners Corporation plumbing representative determines that the hot water heater or tray is defective or requires maintenance, then the Owners Corporation shall provide written notice to the affected unit owner instructing the owner to resolve the nominated issue at the owner’s expense.
The owner is required to have the issue resolved within a period of 8 calendar weeks from the date of the letter.
Plumbing Terms Glossary
Mildred Valve
Mildred Valve is an approved, water leak-sensing automated shut-off valve for internally installed hot water systems. It is an alarm device that stops all water flow into the hot water system when a leak is detected.
Flexi Hose
The main issue relates to variable qualities of braided stainless steel connectors and the differing means of the connection point between the flexible connector and the hot water threaded connection i.e. meaning the internal sealing washer/cone of the connector and the metal thread of the hot water heater.
The overwhelming consensus by professional trade plumbers is that a hot water connector should always be either rigid copper or stainless steel pipe. Best practice is to use a fully rigid pipe due to too many variances with the flexible connector route.