Plumbing Books

Whether you are interested in simply doing your own home plumbing or learning the plumbing trade you wont get very far without the humble book. I hate to admit it but plumbing books are better than websites when it comes to learning, even these new kindle devices don’t float my boat and I am a big gadget lover. Nothing will ever compare to picking up a hunk of paper and flicking to the page you need.

Books For Plumbing Apprentices and Tradesmen

Plumbing is one of those careers that requires a lot of hands on practice, you will also need to read and remember study materials. A lot of the time you will may be learning from college books, if you really want to give yourself the bast chance of success it is recommended that you invest in your own reading materials. There are a lot of books out there, and i will be honest… a lot of them are crap. I have decided to compile a list of all the best plumbing books in one place, this is based on books i have read myself, books other plumbers and teachers have recommended and books with the best online reviews.

Guide to Home Plumbing Books

If you are attempting home plumbing you would also do well to have a handy guide to home plumbing in the form of a book or two. Again there are a lot of outdated books floating around so I have picked out the best.

Where to Get these Essential Plumbing Books

I have made the plumbing book store at Amazon UK because Amazon are cheap, reliable and are great with returns. I personally buy 99% of my books from them and have never had 1 problem. When you go to my Amazon store you will be sent to my page on the Amazon UK site, all payments and shipping is handled by them. Feel free to contact me to recommend any books and I may add them to the list.

Click To Visit The Amazon UK Plumbing Books Store

I’m just starting my second year on the 6129 level 2 Technical Certificate in Plumbing Studies and I will also be doing the NVQ level 2 at the same time. I’m 28 years old, so you really do still have time on your side.

The Technical Certificate is for anyone who has not been a plumber for approx 5+ years, they simply won’t just let you do an NVQ straight off. The tech cert gives you your core training as a Plumber, there is stuff in there that will take ages to digest if you truly want to be a good Plumber. I recommend the day release, it will be cheaper to take a day off a week that spend £6,000 on one of these courses.

Alot of employers will not take on plumbers who have done a crash course, they don’t recognise it and give it no respect. I certainly wouldn’t take a crash courser on.

The tech cert is done in college and takes about 72 days over two years. The NVQ is solely an onsite evaluation and I plan to complete mine within a 3 month period.

It is possible to work wherever you like whilst doing the tech cert but obviously helps your progression if you are in the plumbing industry as you will pick things up quicker.

I work for Watkins Plumbing in London, and although I still have a few exams to take, I have pretty much been on Plumbers wages since 6 months into the course because I take it seriously, work hard and take pride in my work. I would not have achieved that on a crash course.

My NVQ 2 and Tech cert tuition fees each year were £806 (total £1616) at Bexley College in kent. Thats for both Tech Cert and NVQ. There is a C&G registration fee of £145 also.

My advice, do a day release off your own back, find a big company to take you on at low pay until you prove yourself. Keep your head down and work hard to keep your place.

If you can get a taster of the work before you commit, then do it. I’m not fussed about being covered in crap but some people are.

Good luck with whatever you decide to do, just know it’s not easy at this time and you will have to work very hard.

But, I feel the work is as rewarding as the money; and I wouldn’t want to do anything else.

If you live in London, contact Watkins Plumbing, they seem to be gaining loads of work at this time and they took me on when I’d never held a spanner before. But then i have been extremely fortunate.

Welcome to the maze that is ‘Plumbing Related Qualifications’ lets dive straight in and look at some of the most popular recognised courses in plumbing. They are in the order that they need to be completed in. Most are available from local colleges or through fast track or privately funded organisations. Some can be done full time, on the job or as evening plumbing courses. I will also be bringing you some free plumbing courses in a later blog, so call back soon or check the Courses page.

First: Plumbing Technical Certificates (C&G 6126)

Starting from the beginning with no experience or training you will need to do test certificates. There are no formal qualifications required.

City & Guilds (6129) Technical Certificates Level 2 Basic Plumbing Studies and Level 3 Plumbing Studies.

If you have experience as a plumber you can skip this.

This qualification has the following structure:

• 6129-22 Level 2 Certificate in Basic Plumbing Studies (13 mandatory units, 1 optional)
• 6129-33 Level 3 Certificate in Plumbing Studies (9 mandatory units, 1 optional)
• 6129-44 Level 3 Modern Apprenticeship in Plumbing Studies – Direct Access (23 mandatory units)
• 6129-55 Level 3 Certificate in Plumbing Studies (9 mandatory units, 1 optional).

This is taught in a classroom setting. You are assessed with multiple choice tests and practical activities. Doing at weekends may take 40 weeks. Intensive courses will get you through it in around 7 weeks. Costs for intensive courses range from £3500 – £4500. The level 3 is around £2000. This will enable you to continue to other courses in plumbing.

Second: Plumbing NVQ 2 & 3 (C&G 6089)

If you have previous experience this will be your first course. If you have no skills or experience in plumbing you will have to successfully complete C&G 6126 as above. The qualifications are offered at levels 2 and 3. Level 2 has one option level 3 has three options.

• Level 2 NVQ in Mechanical Engineering Services – Plumbing (Domestic) – 6 mandatory units

[You can Stop after level 2 and ‘work as a wet only plumber’ this work involves fitting bathrooms, fixing radiators, basically anything that does not involve gas.] Now lets look as some further courses in plumbing.

• Level 3 NVQ in Mechanical Engineering Services – Plumbing (Domestic) – Gas option
• Level 3 NVQ in Mechanical Engineering Services – Plumbing (Domestic) – 7 mandatory units
• Level 3 NVQ in Mechanical Engineering Services – Plumbing (Domestic) – Oil option – 4 mandatory units.

Learners will need to be in a role related to plumbing before registration. Learning is done on the job. You are assessed by compiling a portfolio of evidence that will demonstrate you are competent enough to meet the requirements. When you have successfully completed level 2 you can then move onto one of the options in level 3. Level 2 can be achieved in approx 6 months and can cost around £2500.

At the time of writing I can find no organisations offering NVQ level 3 other than local colleges, if any readers know why this is please drop me a line. The costs I found for the Level 3 from colleges were around £500. If you do go on to take the level 3 NVQ you will need to be working with a gas safe plumber. There are a also couple of other less common NVQ/SVQ’s about and I will cover them in a later blog.

Third: Sort Courses

• Unvented Domestic Hot Water Storage Systems
• Water Regulations Certification
• PART L Energy Efficiency (City & Guilds 6084)
• PART P Electrical competence Scheme
• Disinfection of Water Systems
• Solar Domestic Hot Water Heating

Prices for the short courses are around £150 at the time of writing and most last a day. You don’t have to do them all, only the ones you need/want.

Part L building regulations means that any plumber installing boilers has to have a City and Guilds 6048 – Energy Efficiency for Domestic Heating.

Part P says particular  types of household electrical work has to be approved by a previously certified contractor or building inspector. If you want the ability ti certify your own work you must do Part P – Electrical competence Scheme.

YOU ARE NEARLY THERE! (but not quite) …In my next blog post we will look at the last major part and the last courses in plumbing you will need, the Nationally Accredited Certification Scheme for Gas Fitting Operatives (or ACE Certification), what it involves and how to attain it.