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BEAM P
LUS FOR
N
EW
B
UILDINGS
W
ATER
U
SE
(W
U
)
V
ERSION
1.2
W
U
2 M
ONITORING AND
C
ONTROL
Copyright © 2012 BEAM Society Limited. All rights reserved.
Page 129
5
W
ATER
U
SE
5.1
W
ATER
C
ONSERVATION
W
U
2 M
ONITORING AND
C
ONTROL
E
XCLUSIONS
None.
O
BJECTIVE
Reduce wastage of fresh water and allow for auditing of water use.
C
REDITS ATTAINABLE
1
P
REREQUISITES
Compliance with Waterworks Regulation Chapter 102A Regulation 32.
C
REDIT REQUIREMENT
1 credit for installation of devices to monitor water leakage from the fresh
water distribution systems without embedded plumbing pipework.
A
SSESSMENT
The Client should demonstrate if means are in place that can effectively
limit the wastage of water by early detection of water leakage from the
plumbing system within the building.
The applicant is required to state explicitly in the submitted plumbing
drawings that no water pipe will be embedded in load bearing structural
elements such as columns, beams and slabs in longitudinal directions
[1]. And that plumbing installation does not have any embedded pipe
work in non-structural elements of the construction. Pipe work protected
by a sleeve and embedded in a non-structural element is accepted, and
water leakage detectors such as infrared or moisture detector shall be
provided.
Various approaches are available and BEAM is not intended to be
prescriptive as to which should be used.
The Client shall submit a detail report on the system(s) for monitoring
water leakage from internal plumbing installations. Where it can be
demonstrated that the provisions of equipment meet the intent, the credit
shall be awarded.
B
ACKGROUND
Water seepage has been a cause for concern to a number of
Government departments including the Buildings Department
[ 2 ].Detection of water leaks in service pipework also presents an
opportunity to save water, and perhaps more importantly, reduce the
potential for structural damage as well as the creation of unhygienic
conditions.
Causes of water seepage vary but one of the common sources of
seepage is water-borne piping embedded in the structural members of a
building. Water seepage arising from embedded piping causes not only
nuisance but also deterioration to the structural member of a building if
unattended for a prolonged period. Designers are strongly advised to
design the routing of all water-borne piping off structural elements to
meet the indispensable need for repair and replacement of such piping
during the design life of the building, which would normally outlast the
design life of the piping. The huge benefit to the consumers and the
public that this will bring about in terms of easy maintenance of the
building for its entire design life will certainly outweigh the efforts at the
design stage of a building project.
1
WSD circular letter No 1/2000 dated 7 June 2000.
2
Buildings Department. Practice Note for Authorized Persons, Registered Structural Engineers and Registered
Geotechnical Engineers. PNAP No. APP-105 Water Seepage.
http://www.bd.gov.hk/english/documents/pnap/APP/APP105.pdf