Alterations to sanitary plumbing
This is a new exemption, introduced in October 2008.
Exemption (ad) of Schedule 1
A building consent is not required for the following building work:
(ad) the alteration to existing sanitary plumbing (as defined in section 3 of the Plumbers, Gasfitters, and Drainlayers Act 1976) in a dwelling (for example, replacing a bath with a shower or moving a toilet) carried out in accordance with the Plumbers, Gasfitters, and Drainlayers Act 1976.
Guidance
This exemption enables a licensed registered craftsman plumber to carry out alterations to sanitary plumbing in existing bathrooms, kitchens, laundries and toilets, without increasing the number of sanitary fixtures within the dwelling. Section 3 of the Plumbers, Gasfitters, and Drainlayers Act 1976 defines sanitary plumbing for the purposes of this exemption.
| Examples where this exemption could apply |
Examples where building consent is required |
- Repositioning sanitary fixtures (bath, basin, shower and toilet) within an existing bathroom.
- Moving a toilet pan from a WC compartment into an adjacent existing bathroom.
- An existing kitchen is being remodelled within the same space and the kitchen sink is to be moved to an adjacent wall.
- An existing laundry washtub is to be moved to a new space within the adjacent existing kitchen area.
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- Installing a wet area shower requires a building consent. This is because the construction of the wet area shower includes critical building work, such as waterproof membranes. This building work is not sanitary plumbing.
- Moving a toilet pan, bath or vanity in an existing upper level bathroom from the outside wall to an interior wall where the pipe work will affect any structural elements such as floor joists or wall framing.
- An ensuite is proposed and this includes the addition of a shower, hand basin and toilet. These sanitary fixtures are additional to those that already exist in the dwelling, so a building consent is required.
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