Plumbing Electrical Safety

This course focuses on training and assessing for water authority employees, council and private plumbers to carry out their work safely.

Plumbers often under estimate the electrical dangers of carrying out their day to day work. This is especially true when working on metallic pipes, with many receiving tingles and thinking little of it.

Plumbers have been electrocuted even though simple control measures could have saved their lives. These electrocutions include (apologies to the families of these people but hopefully this may prevent other victims):

• Private plumber electrocuted March 09 – Yennora. Electrical and plumbing work was being carried out at the home. The power fuse had been pulled but not the service fuse. No bonding or bridging had been carried out. Source: Department of Fair Trading Foundations Newsletter Sept 09.
• Private plumber was using and angle grinder to cut a galvanised pipe in October 08 at Rutherford. The plumber received an electric shock and the apprentice was electrocuted saving him. Source: The Herald.
• A plumber was electrocuted in 2005 while repairing a water service on private property. Source: Work cover NSW.
• A 35 year old received a fatal shock 15 November 2000 from a water pipe in the ceiling due to the hot water system that developed an earthing fault. Source: NSW Department of Fair Trading.
• Plumber received an electric shock attempting to rejoin two sections of copper pipe in a ceiling space in March 1994. Source: Consumer and Employment Protection.
• An apprentice plumber died while working in the ceiling space of a lunch room. He was attempting to remove a galvanised steel waste water pipe when the accident occurred. Source: National Occupational Health and Safety Commission.

This course explains the issues in simple terms that plumbers can relate to. The analogy of water and electricity is used to explain electricity. At the end of the course the plumbers will be able to work on metallic pipes safely using appropriate control measures. There are five training modules to the course:

1. Electricity Basics
2. “Live’ Water Pipes – details how the risk comes about
3. Plumbing Electrical Safety Controls
4. Plumbing Electrical Test Equipment
5. Other Electrical Hazards that affect plumbing

The online course takes approximately 3 hours to complete with online trainees having 30 days to complete the course but this can be extended if necessary. There is an assessment with each of the modules.

The onsite version of the course has a theory component, and observation and written assessments.