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Plumbing advice for business owners moving property

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Is your business moving to a new property? If so, it’s important to check that the plumbing, pipes, taps and fittings on the new premises are in proper working order – to avoid time consuming inconvenience and the costs incurred there from.

WaterSafe, the UK national accreditation body for approved plumbers, has created an easy five-step guide to help property owners ensure that their plumbing is in top notch condition. The advice is based on the invaluable experience of the approved Watersafe plumbers who are often the first port of call when there is a problem, and aims to facilitate a smooth transition into a new property. Here’s what you need to do:

  • Find the internal stop tap (usually found where the water supply enters the premises) and make sure it’s working properly and you can turn it on and off easily, in case you need to in an emergency.
  • Check your boiler’s service history – how old it is and how regularly it’s been serviced. If there’s a cold water tank in the attic, make sure it’s clean and that it has a lid fitted.
  • Look out for leaky taps, toilets and radiators. Tell-tale signs to look out for are: loss of pressure, rust, water stains on the walls, floors or carpets, or mould on ceilings and walls.
  • Find out whether the property has lead water pipes – usually a dark matte grey pipe that turns shiny when scraped with a screwdriver. Drinking water that has passed through lead pipes can be harmful so you might want to replace them with copper or plastic ones.
  • Check if there’s a water metre, which could be in the ground outside the front of your house, or inside near the stop tap. If you have a water meter you’ll be charged for the amount of water you use rather than an estimated amount.

If you’d like further information or plumbing advice, feel free to contact the CH Systems team on 0208 302 8149 or info@chsystems.cc.

Sources: Watersafe.org.uk – “Moving home? Our plumbers’ top tips” and “New home? Check your plumbing”.

Why drinking tap water is good for business

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Did you know that two litres of tap water costs less than a third of a penny on average, compared to 45p for a supermarket’s own brand of bottled water or 90p for a named brand, according to Discover Water. So why, then, is your company shelling out cash for bottles of water – especially when the drinking water supplied by water companies in the UK is among the best in the world, according to Julie Spinks, Director of WaterSafe, the UK accreditation scheme for approved plumbers?

In a case for drinking tap water, Spinks argues that the UK’s water undergoes rigorous testing every day to ensure it meets strict guidelines set out by the World Health Organisation; standards that bottled water is not always tested against. Plus, tap water is cheaper. And yet, more than ever, people are drinking bottled water at home and at work.

Around two-thirds (67 per cent) of people now say they drink tap water at home (down from the78 per cent in 2015) with convenience cited as the main reason. Fewer people are also drinking tap water at work (39 per cent, down from 51 per cent in 2015) or in cafés and restaurants (21 per cent, down from 32 per cent) – as per new research published by the Consumer Council for Water.

It makes sense, from a business perspective and even from a health perspective, to promote a ‘tap water culture’ at work but it also means that we have to make sure that our pipes are up to scratch, so to speak. For tap water to be safe to drink in homes, offices and public buildings, it’s not only about the quality of the water but how the water gets to the tap. It’s important to have a great plumber who will only use approved fittings, which will help ensure the water supplied by water companies stays fresh and healthy until it reaches taps.

If you’d like further information, feel free to contact the CH Systems team on 0208 302 8149 or info@chsystems.cc.