Code of Maine Rules
02 - DEPARTMENT OF PROFESSIONAL AND FINANCIAL REGULATION
395 - PLUMBERS' EXAMINING BOARD
Chapter 4 - INSTALLATION STANDARDS
Section 395-4-1 - PLUMBING INSTALLATIONS
Universal Citation: 02 ME Code Rules ยง 395-4-1
Current through 2024-38, September 18, 2024
A. The Plumbers' Examining Board adopts and incorporates herein by reference the International Association of Plumbing and Mechanical Officials 2021 Uniform Plumbing Code, Copyright © 2020, 29th edition, Third Printing, May 2021, as the standard for plumbing installations in the State of Maine, subject to the exclusions and amendments as set forth in this chapter.
The aforementioned 2021 Uniform Plumbing Code, hereinafter referred to as the "UPC," may be purchased from:
International Association of Plumbing and Mechanical Officials
4755 E. Philadelphia Street
Ontario, CA 91761-2816
Telephone: (909) 472-4208 or 1-800-854-2766
Webpage: www.iapmo.org
B. All plumbing installations must comply with the UPC as adopted herein with the exclusions and amendments set forth in this chapter; Title 32, Chapter 49 of the Maine Revised Statutes; and the rules of the board. Plumbing installations must also comply with all applicable statutes or rules of the State and all applicable ordinances, orders, rules and regulations of local municipalities.
C. Exclusions and Amendments
(1)
Chapter 1, Administration
a. The board adopts Chapter 102.8,
Appendices, as amended below:
102.8
Appendices. The board does not adopt the provisions in the
appendices as part of the code.
b. The board adopts Chapter 104.1, Permits
Required, as amended below:
104.1
Permits Required. It shall be unlawful for a person, firm, or
corporation to make an installation, alteration, repair, replacement, or
remodel a plumbing system regulated by this code except as permitted in Section
104.2, or to cause the same to be done without first obtaining a separate
plumbing permit for each separate building or structure.
Notwithstanding any provision to the contrary, and for the purposes of this Chapter, only the following persons may apply for and obtain plumbing permits:
(i) A person with a
valid and current master plumber license issued by the board pursuant to Title
32, Section 3501, subsection 2- A; or
(ii) Pursuant to Title 32, Section 3302,
subsection 1(C), any person in a single-family residence occupied or to be
occupied by that person as that person's bona fide personal abode as long as
the installation conforms with the board laws and rules.
c. The board adopts
Chapter 104.2, Exempt Work as amended below:
104.2
Exempt Work. A permit
shall not be required for the following:
...
(3) Installation
of heating appliances and fuel fired (direct or indirect) water heaters by
master or journeyman oil burner technicians or propane and natural gas
technicians licensed pursuant to Title 32, Chapter 139 of the Maine Revised
Statutes.
(4) The work excluded
from the definition of "plumbing" in Title 30-A, Section 4201, subsection 3.
(5) Plumbing by regular employees
of public utilities as defined in Title 35-A, Section 102, when working as
such.
(6) Plumbing by a pump
installer who is duly licensed pursuant to Title 32, Section 4700- I,
subsection 2, except that this exception is limited to installing piping from
the cold water distribution pipe at the pressure tank's main shut-off valve to
the existing water supply piping as long as the piping is located in the same
room as the tank, the length of the piping is no longer than 15 feet and the
piping does not extend beyond any existing branches. Such plumbing must conform
to the board's laws and rules.
d. The board adopts Chapter 104.3.1,
Construction Documents, as amended below:
104.3.1
Construction Documents.
Construction documents, engineering calculations, diagrams, and other data may
be required to be submitted in two or more sets with each application for a
permit.
e. The board does
not adopt Chapter 104.3.2, Plan Review Fees.
f. The board does not adopt Chapter 104.3.3,
Time Limitation of Application.
g.
The board does not adopt Chapter 104.4.3, Expiration.
h. The board does not adopt Chapter 104.4.4,
Extensions.
i. The board adopts
Chapter 104.5, Fees, as amended below:
104.5
Permit Fees.
104.5.1
General. Permit fees shall be charged for the following permits.
(1) Fixture fee, per fixture.
(2) When only new water distribution and/or
drainage pipes are installed or relocated in a building, but no fixtures
installed.
(3) Testable backflow
prevention assembly.
(4) A hookup
fee shall be charged for the connection of a mobile home, which bears the
Housing and Urban Development (HUD) seal or a modular home which bears the
Manufactured Housing Board seal, to a building sewer.
(5) A hookup fee shall be charged for
connection to a public sewer when piping is installed outside the jurisdiction
of the sanitary district. A hookup is considered a fixture when calculating the
fee.
(6) Relocated mobile homes,
modular homes or any other similar structures shall be considered as new
conventional stick built structures. A plumbing fixture fee shall be charged
based on this section.
104.5.2
Fixtures. For the
purpose of this section, a sanitary plumbing outlet on or to which a plumbing
fixture or appliance may be set or attached shall be construed to be a fixture.
Fees for reconnection and retest of existing plumbing systems in relocated
buildings shall be based on the number of plumbing fixtures that require a
permit to be issued.
104.5.3
Work Commencing Before Permit Issuance. Any person who begins any
work for which a permit is required by this Code without first having obtained
a permit shall, if subsequently eligible to obtain a permit for that work, pay
double the permit fee for such work.
Exception: This provision shall not apply to any emergency work when it can be proved to the satisfaction of the Local Plumbing Inspector ("LPI") that such work was necessary and that it was not practical to obtain a permit before the commencement of the work. In all emergency cases, a permit must be obtained within four (4) working days or a double permit fee shall be charged.
j. The board does not adopt Table 104.5,
Plumbing Permit Fees.
k. The board
adopts Chapter 105.2.6, Reinspections, as amended below:
105.2.6
Reinspections. A
reinspection fee shall be permitted to be assessed for each inspection or
reinspection where such portion of work for which inspection is called is not
complete or where required corrections have not been made.
This provision shall not be interpreted as requiring reinspection fees the first time a job is rejected for failure to be in accordance with the requirements of this code, but as controlling the practice of calling for inspections before the job is ready for inspection or reinspection.
Reinspection fees shall be permitted to be assessed where the approved plans are not readily available to the inspector, for failure to provide access on the date for which the inspection is requested, or for deviating from plans requiring the approval of the Authority Having Jurisdiction.
In instances where reinspection fees have been assessed, no additional inspection of the work will be performed until the required fees have been paid.
l.
The board adopts Chapter 105.3, Testing of Systems, with the following
addition:
105.3.4
Testing of Plastic
Pipe With Air. The board allows the testing of plastic schedule 40 DWV
(drainage waste and vent) piping systems with 5 psi (pounds per square inch)
maximum of air. For safety purposes, when testing with air, a listed 6 psi
relief valve is required.
Co-extruded ABS (Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene) and PVC (Poly Vinyl Chloride) schedule 40 (cellular core) piping systems with referenced standards ASTM F1488 and ASTM F891 shall not be tested with air.
PVC and CPVC (Chlorinated Poly Vinyl Chloride) building supply and water distribution piping systems shall not be tested by air.
m. The board does not
adopt Chapter 105.4, Connection to Service Utilities.
n. The board does not adopt Chapter 106.3,
Penalties.
o. The board does not
adopt Chapter 107.0, Board of Appeals.
p. The board does not adopt Chapter 107.1,
General.
q. The board does not
adopt Chapter 107.2, Limitations of Authority.
(2)
Chapter 2, Definitions
a. The board does not adopt the following
definitions:
(i) Chapter 203.0: Appliance,
Low-Heat; Appliance, Medium-Heat; Appliance Categorized Vent Diameter/Area;
Appliance Fuel Connector.
(ii)
Chapter 204.0: Boiler Blowoff; Bonding Conductor or Jumper.
(iii) Chapter 205.0: Category 1; Category 2;
Category 3; Category 3 Vacuum System; Category 4; Chimney; Chimney,
Factory-Built; Chimney, Masonry; Chimney, Metal; Chimney Classifications;
Chimney, High-Heat Appliance-Type; Chimney, Low-Heat Appliance-Type; Chimney,
Medium-Heat Appliance-Type; Chimney, Residential Appliance-Type; Combustible
Material; Confined Space; Critical Care Area.
(iv) Chapter 206.0: Direct-Vent
Appliances.
(v) Chapter 207.0:
Effective Ground-Fault Current Path; Excess Flow Valve (EFV).
(vi) Chapter 208.0: Flammable Vapor or Fumes;
Flue Collar.
(vii) Chapter 209.0:
Gas Piping; Gas Piping System; General Anesthesia and Levels of
Sedation/Analgesia; Deep Sedation/Analgesia; General Anesthesia; Minimal
Sedation (Anxiolysis); Moderate Sedation/Analgesia (Conscious Sedation);
Grounding Electrode.
(viii) Chapter
214.0: Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LP-Gas) Facilities.
(ix) Chapter 215.0: Medical Air; Medical Gas;
Manifold; Medical Gas System; Medical Support Gas; Medical-Surgical Vacuum;
Medical-Surgical Vacuum System.
(x)
Chapter 216.0: Nitrogen, NF.
(xi)
Chapter 218.0: Patient Care Space; Category 1 Space; Category 2 Space; Category
3 Space; Category 4 Space; Patient Medical Gas; Proportioning System for
Medical Air USP.
(xii) Chapter
219.0: Quick-Disconnect Device (Fuel Gas).
(xiii) Chapter 221.0: Scavenging; Service
Piping; Standard Cubic Feet per Minute (SCFM); Station Inlet; Station
Outlet.
(xiv) Chapter 222.0:
Transition Gas Riser.
(xv) Chapter
223.0: User Outlet.
(xvi) Chapter
224.0: Vacuum System-Level-1; Valve, Service; Vent Connector, Gas; Vent Offset;
Venting System; Vent, Gases; Type B Gas Vent; Type BW Gas Vent; Type L Gas
Vent.
b. The board adopts
Chapter 218.0, Plumbing System, as amended below:
Plumbing System. Includes all potable water, alternate water sources, building supply, and distribution pipes; all plumbing fixtures and traps; all drainage and vent pipes; and all building drains and building sewers, including their respective joints and connections, devices, receptors, and appurtenances within the property lines of the premises and shall include potable water piping, potable water treating or using equipment, and water heaters.
c. The
board adopts Chapter 220.0, Roughing-In, as amended below:
Roughing-In. The installation of all parts of the plumbing system that can be completed prior to the installation of fixtures. This includes drainage, water supply, vent piping, and the necessary fixture supports.
(3)
Chapter 3, General
Regulations
a. The board does not adopt
Chapter 312.12.3, Tub Waste Openings.
b. The board does not adopt Chapter 313.7,
Gas Piping.
c. The board adopts
Chapter 315.1, Unions, as amended below:
315.1
Unions. Approved unions shall be permitted to be used in drainage
piping where accessibly located in the trap seal or between a fixture and its
trap; in the vent system, except underground or in wet vents; and at any point
in the water supply system.
d. The board does not adopt Chapter 319.0,
Medical Gas and Vacuum Systems.
e.
The board does not adopt Chapter 319.1, General.
(4)
Chapter 4, Plumbing Fixtures and
Fixture Fittings
a. The board adopts
Chapter 422.2, Separate Facilities, as amended below:
422.2
Separate Facilities.
Separate toilet facilities shall be provided for each sex.
Exceptions:
(1) Residential installations.
(2) In occupancies with a total occupant load
of 10 or less, including customers and employees, one toilet facility, designed
for use by no more than one person at a time, shall be permitted for use by
both sexes.
(3) In business and
mercantile occupancies with a total occupant load of 50 or less, including
customers and employees, one toilet facility, designed for use by no more than
one person at a time, shall be permitted for use by both sexes.
(4) In an eating establishment as provided in
Title 22, Section 1686, one toilet facility, designed for use by no more than
one person at a time, shall be permitted for use by both sexes.
(5)
Chapter 5, Water Heaters
a. The
board does not adopt Chapter 5, Water Heaters, except for the following
sections:
(i) Chapter 501.0,
General.
(ii) Chapter 501.1,
Applicability, as amended below:
501.1
Applicability. The regulations of this chapter shall govern the
construction, location, and installation of fuel-burning and other types of
water heaters heating potable water. The minimum capacity for storage water
heaters shall be in accordance with the first-hour rating listed in Table
501.1(2). No water heater shall be hereinafter installed that does not comply
with the manufacturer's installation instructions and the type and model of
each size thereof approved by the Authority Having Jurisdiction. Listed
appliances shall be installed in accordance with the manufacturer's
installation instructions.
(iii) Table 501.1(2), First Hour
Rating.
(iv) Chapter 505.4,
Indirect-Fired Water Heaters.
(v)
Chapter 505.4.1, Single-Wall Heat Exchanger.
(vi) Chapter 507.1, Dielectric
Insulator.
(vii) Chapter 507.4,
Ground Support.
(viii) Chapter
507.5, Drainage Pan.
(ix) Chapter
507.24, Installation Instructions.
(6)
Chapter 6, Water Supply and
Distribution
a. The board adopts
Chapter 605.12.2, Solvent Cement Joints, as amended below:
605.12.2 Solvent Cement Joints. Solvent
cement joints for PVC pipe and fittings shall be clean from dirt and moisture.
Pipe shall be cut square and pipe shall be deburred. Where surfaces to be
joined are cleaned and free of dirt, moisture, oil, and other foreign material,
apply primer that complies with ASTM F656
b. The board does not adopt Chapter 609.12,
Pipe Insulation, including 609.12.1 and 609.12.2.
c. The board does not adopt Chapter 612.0,
Residential Fire Sprinkler Systems, which includes Chapter 612.1, Where
Required, through Chapter 612.7.2, Final Inspection and does not adopt any
tables referenced therein.
(7)
Chapter 7, Sanitary Drainage
a. The board adopts Chapter 705.6.2, Solvent
Cement Joints, as amended:
705.6.2
Solvent Cement Joints. Solvent cement joints for PVC pipe and
fittings shall be clean from dirt and moisture. Pipe shall be cut square and
pipe shall be deburred. Where surfaces to be joined are cleaned and free of
dirt, moisture, oil and other foreign material, apply primer that complies with
ASTM F656.
b. The board
does not adopt Chapter 713.5, Permit.
c. The board does not adopt Chapter 721.0,
Location.
d. The board does not
adopt Chapter 721.1, Building Sewer.
e. The board does not adopt Table 721.1,
Minimum Horizontal Distance Required From Building Sewer (feet).
f. The board does not adopt Chapter 721.2,
Abutting Lot.
g. The board does not
adopt Chapter 722.0, Abandoned Sewers and Sewage Disposal Facilities, which
includes Chapter 722.1 Building (House) Sewer through Chapter 722.5, Disposal
Facilities.
h. The board does not
adopt Chapter 723.0, Building Sewer Test.
i. The board does not adopt Chapter 723.1,
General.
(8)
Chapter 8, Indirect Wastes
a.
The board adopts Chapter 807.3, Domestic Dishwashing Machine, as amended below:
807.3
Domestic Dishwashing
Machine. Domestic dishwashing machines shall discharge indirectly
through an air-gap into a waste receptor or standpipe installed in accordance
to this code, or discharge into a wye branch fitting on the tailpiece of the
kitchen sink or the dishwasher connection of a food waste disposal unit. The
waste line from a domestic dishwashing machine that discharges into a kitchen
sink tailpiece wye or food waste disposal unit shall connect though a deck
mounted dishwasher air gap fitting, or the waste line shall rise to the
underneath of the sink counter and be securely fastened.
(9)
Chapter 9, Vents
a. The board
adopts Chapter 901.0, General, as amended below by adding the following:
...
901.4
Future Vents. In the basement of every new building there shall be
an accessible future vent connection. Buildings that require a main vent stack
shall have a future vent connection full size of the vent stack. In all other
buildings (including residential) there shall be a minimum of a two inch future
vent connection. All future vent connections shall be drip connected,
identified, and labeled "Future Vent".
b. The board adopts Chapter 906.0, Vent
Termination, as amended below:
906.1
Roof Termination. Each vent pipe or stack shall extend through its
flashing and shall terminate vertically not less than two (2) feet (610 mm)
above the roof nor less than one (1) foot (305 mm) from any vertical surface.
...
906.3
Use of Roof. Vent pipes shall be extended separately or combined,
of full required size, not less than two (2) feet above the roof or firewall.
Flagpoling of vents shall be prohibited except where the roof is used for
purposes other than weather protection. Vents within ten (10) feet (3,048 mm)
of any part of the roof that is used for such other purposes shall extend not
less than seven (7) feet (2134 mm) above such roof and shall securely stay.
...
906.7
Frost or Snow Closure. Where frost or snow closure is likely to
occur in locations having minimum design temperature below 0°F
(-17.8°C), vent terminals shall be not less than two (2) inches (50 mm) in
diameter, but in no event smaller than the required vent pipe. The change in
diameter shall be made inside the building not less than one (1) foot (305 mm)
below the roof in an insulated space and terminate not less than two (2) feet
(610 mm) above the roof, or in accordance with the Authority Having
Jurisdiction.
(10)
Chapter 11, Storm Drainage
a. The board does not adopt Chapter 1101.6,
Subsoil Drains, which includes:
(i) Chapter
1101.6.1, Discharge.
(ii) Chapter
1101.6.2, Sump.
(iii) Chapter
1101.6.3, Splash Blocks.
(iv)
Chapter 1101.6.4, Backwater Valve.
(v) Chapter 1101.6.5, Open Area.
b. The board does not adopt
Chapter 1101.7, Building Subdrains.
c. The board does not adopt Chapter 1101.8,
Areaway Drains.
d. The board does
not adopt Chapter 1101.9, Window Areaway Drains.
e. The board does not adopt Chapter 1101.10,
Filling Stations and Motor Vehicle Washing Establishments.
f. The board does not adopt Chapter 1101.11,
Paved Areas.
(11)
Chapter 12, Fuel Gas Piping
a.
The board does not adopt Chapter 12, Fuel Gas Piping.
(12)
Chapter 13, Health Care Facilities
and Medical Gas and Medical Vacuum Systems
a. The board does not adopt Chapter 13,
Health Care Facilities and Medical Gas and Medical Vacuum Systems.
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