What Plumbers do – Job Description

What’s plumbing got to do with plumbs?

The word Plumber comes from as far back as Roman times; back in the day, a lot of roofs where made of lead which translates to plumbum in Latin. This lead was later used to make pipe work for Roman baths and those who had the most experience working with lead where the roofers of the day. Someone skilled in the field of lead work was called a Plumbarius, eventually it was shortened to plumber (presumably because it was less of a mouthful). That’s enough of the history lesson; now let’s look at what it means to be a plumber.

The Plumbers Job Description and Prerequisites

It is what work a Plumber does that makes him a Plumber and what work he/she does varies slightly from country to country in order to meet the demands of a particular society. As the UK has the most stringent requirements in place and its where I live, I will focus this blog on the world of British plumbing.

In the UK the term Plumber encompasses a wide variety of different roles, skill levels and levels of formal qualification; essentially they are skilled tradesmen and tradeswomen who maintains and install pipe based systems that provide people and businesses with drinking water, sewage facilities, drainage and gas for gas-fired heating and. You don’t have to be a gas fitter to be a plumber and if you are a gas fitter you may not fit bathrooms or fix leaks, most people will focus on one particular area and then gain the necessary qualifications. The plumbers I know do tend to do a little bit of everything but a lot of one type of work. Unlike some other countries British plumbers do not normally work with Air conditioning systems. You only need to go outside and look up at the British sky to find out why this is. That doesn’t have to stop you getting an NVQ in air conditioning tho!

Whist no formal qualifications are required for you to work in most areas of plumbing; you will definitely need a lot of skill and knowledge. Some plumbers do everything but gas; these are called ‘wet only plumbers’ and make up the majority. The best way to get this knowledge is by gaining a qualification and working with an experienced plumber. Central heating engineers are required by law to have a certain standard of education and competence they must also be on ‘The Gas Safe Register’ weather they are self employed or an employee. You are also very unlikely to get work in any area of plumbing as an employee unless you have, or are undertaking formal training. You will need to be fairly fit and willing to work in dark, cramped and dirty conditions.

Let’s look at some of the main roles of the mighty Plumbarius! – Common Jobs.

• Gas Fitting and Maintenance (Requires qualification and registration)
• Pipe fitting
• Bathroom Fitting
• Installing domestic appliances like washing machines
• Fixing Leaks
• Clearing Blockages
• Fitting of weather proof materials, joints and flashings to roofs, chimneys and walls etc.