Plumbing is plumbing, right? Well, not exactly. The plumbing in your home runs very differently from what you’d see in a big commercial building. Both systems move water in and waste out, but the way they do it and the scale they handle couldn’t be more different. Let’s go over how these two types of plumbing work so you can see the real differences.
What Is Residential Plumbing?
Residential plumbing is everything that brings water into your home and moves waste out of it. It starts when the house is first built, with rough-in underground pipes and pipes that go inside the walls. Then, when it’s time to finish things up, the plumber installs all the fixtures you use daily.
The whole system covers more than you might think. Water comes into the home through a meter, runs through your yard, and connects to every faucet, toilet, shower, and bathtub. Appliances rely on this system too. Your washing machine, refrigerator, ice maker, dishwasher, and even a dehumidifier can be connected to your plumbing.
Once the water has done its job, it goes through your sewer lines and back out to the city system. The entire process starts at the city tap and ends back at the city’s treatment plant. As a homeowner, you’re responsible for keeping this system running. A plumber comes in when something needs to be installed, fixed, or upgraded.
What Is Commercial Plumbing?
Commercial plumbing works the same way, but the scale is much bigger. Instead of serving a single family, the plumbing in a commercial building handles water and waste for dozens, hundreds, or even thousands of people. A large water main comes into the building, branches off into risers, and serves different sections of the building or several buildings.
While the basics are the same, the size of everything changes. The pipes are bigger, the systems are more complex, and a lot more planning goes into it. Just like in a home, water flows in and waste goes out. In some cases, natural gas also runs through the plumbing system.
Commercial Plumbing and Domestic Plumbing Differences?
There are a lot of similarities in residential and commercial plumbing, but if you think about it, you’ll see some differences. Here are some:
Water Supply Lines
Most residential homes rely on a three-quarter-inch water supply line. You may also see a few others who use a one-inch line if the home needs more capacity. That’s usually enough to cover everything from showers and toilets to dishwashers and laundry.
In a commercial building, it’s a different story. You could see a six-inch water line entering the building, especially if it serves kitchens, restrooms, and equipment all at once. These large pipes make sure that every part of the building gets the water it needs.
Sewer Lines
The sewer lines in a home usually measure about three or four inches, which is enough for typical household waste.
Commercial buildings need much larger sewer lines. It’s common to see ten- or twelve-inch sewer pipes running out of a large building. These systems handle a lot more waste and need to be built to handle that flow.
Water Pressure and Booster Pumps
Both residential and commercial plumbing systems bring in water at the same pressure from the city supply. But in a tall commercial building, water pressure can drop as it moves to higher floors. That’s why booster pumps often come into play. They keep water pressure strong at every level so that fixtures on the top floors do exactly the same as those on the ground floor.
Project Size and Scope
One of the most common differences between residential and commercial plumbing is the size of the job. A house is about 2,000 to 2,500 square feet, give or take a few hundred square feet, but that’s a good range.
Commercial jobs can be massive. A building could cover 50,000 square feet, 100,000 square feet, or more. Some projects go over two million square feet. For example, a large hospital or a Walmart store could easily reach that size.
Job Location and Access
Residential plumbing jobs usually take place in neighborhoods. Parking is available for the plumbers, and access to most areas where the issues are arising is pretty easy.
Commercial jobs often happen in busier areas, like downtown. One major challenge for plumbers is to park their vehicles, and it takes more time to get equipment in and out. That can affect how long it takes to fix the plumbing and how it gets scheduled.
Residential and Commercial Plumbing Services
In both residential and commercial plumbing, there are two main types of work. One is new construction, where the plumber installs systems in a building that’s just going up. The other is service work, where the plumber repairs or updates existing systems.
There’s another thing. When you want to schedule domestic plumbing, the plumber mostly visits your property during the daytime, which is an eight-hour shift, except in an emergency. In this case, many plumbers, like the California Coast Plumbers, offer 24/7 emergency services as well.
On the flip side, commercial plumbing problems can be dealt with at any time of the day or night, during the holidays or weekends. The service contracts, sometimes but not always, come into play, where all of the service terms are already mentioned in the legal documents for a set period of time. The hassle is less, the payments are good, but the workload can be exhausting, especially if a problem is too hard to diagnose.
Specialty Systems
Commercial projects sometimes involve specialty systems that go beyond standard water and waste lines. Chilled water, heating water, and medical gas systems often appear on larger jobs, which bring in other trades—pipefitters, welders, HVAC techs, and electricians, who all work together to get everything running right.
Conversely, residential plumbing is less complex and only requires a small team to handle most of the problems.
Equipment and Tools
Tools also differ between residential and commercial jobs. In a home, a plumber might carry a few basic tools and a standard camera reel or drain snake.
For commercial projects, bigger and advanced equipment is often needed. For example, a camera reel must cover much longer runs, and sewer machines need to handle larger plumbing pipes.
Storage and staging become part of the planning process, too. On big commercial sites, plumbers often work with gang boxes and plan ahead for how to manage materials over time.
Certifications
In the U.S., there are differences in the rules and regulations when it comes to plumbing licenses and certifications. For instance, in some states, there is just one license that allows them to handle both residential and commercial plumbing under one certification. In some other states, however, they require separate licenses for each type of plumbing.
This is because plumbing codes and licensing boards are set by each state, not by a single federal rule. It really depends on how each state views plumbing as part of their local building codes.
Conclusion
In the end, plumbing in a home stays simple enough to meet the needs of one family. In large buildings, everything expands in plumbing to meet the needs of more people, which requires bigger plumbing systems. Once you see these differences clearly, you can easily understand why residential and commercial plumbing are handled in very different ways. Either way, California Coast Plumbers are always there to help you out.