What is Commercial Plumbing?

Plumbing services are categorized based on the type of building they service. While many people associate plumbing with homes and residential properties, commercial plumbing services focus on buildings like offices and retail spaces. 

Discover what commercial plumbers do, their services, the differences between commercial and residential plumbing and the specialized equipment used in commercial plumbing.

What is a Commercial Plumber?

Instead of working on a typical home or apartment home, commercial plumbers primarily offer their services to owners of retail and commercial buildings. Common examples of buildings that need commercial plumbing include:

• Office buildings
• Retail stores
• Malls and department stores
• Restaurants and cafés
• Hotels, motels and lodging services
• Schools and universities
• Hospitals and clinics
• Industrial and warehousing buildings
• Government facilities

What Do Commercial Plumbers Do?

At first glance, commercial plumbers may seem similar to residential and emergency plumbers, as they share many of the same skills. They all maintain and repair standard fixtures like toilets, sinks, drains and pipes.

However, what distinguishes commercial plumbers is their ability to handle the larger and more complex plumbing systems found in commercial buildings. Here’s a breakdown of the services commercial plumbers offer.

• Maintain complex plumbing networks: Due to the larger number of rooms and floors, plumbing networks in commercial buildings are more complex and extensive than in most homes. The pipes and fixtures, such as sinks and toilets, also experience much heavier use.
  
  For example, toilets, showers and sinks in a school or a university will be used many more times than home equivalents. Commercial plumbers can diagnose, assess, maintain and repair all parts of these systems, ensuring they perform reliably.

• Fix industrial and commercial equipment: Commercial plumbers frequently install, maintain and repair equipment not often used in residential buildings. For instance, they have the skills and training to handle industrial boilers, heavy-duty water heaters, hydraulic systems, high-pressure piping and commercial grease interceptors.

• Advanced training and education: The variety of building types they can work on requires them to stay up-to-date with the latest building, construction, fire safety, health safety and industrial standards. This knowledge ensures their services are of the highest quality and compliant with all local laws and regulations.
  
  For example, Blue Collars offers commercial plumbing in Charleston, SC. Our team receives regular training and education on the latest regulations in Charleston, the state of South Carolina and relevant federal laws.

• Commercial emergency plumbing: Professional commercial plumbing companies may also offer emergency plumbing services. They have the training to handle emergencies unique to commercial buildings, such as grease trap overflows, boiler malfunctions, multi-level water leaks or fire sprinkler system issues.
  
  Contacting a commercial emergency plumber near you is the fastest way to address plumbing emergencies on your commercial or industrial property.

What Equipment Do Commercial Plumbers Use?

While all plumbers are familiar with pipe wrenches, plungers and augers, commercial plumbers are trained to use additional tools. Here are a few examples of tooling and equipment a commercial plumber might use, from routine maintenance to emergency repairs.

• Hydro jetting machines: These machines can generate high-pressure water jets to clean large-diameter industrial piping and clear severe blockages. A 24-hour emergency plumber near you may use one to remove debris, grease and clogs in your retail or industrial building.

• Industrial pipe wrenches: Commercial plumbers often rely on extra-large pipe wrenches to handle the large-diameter pipes commonly found in commercial buildings. They allow plumbers to loosen or tighten the largest and toughest pipes, ensuring fast and efficient maintenance.

• Pipe locators: Many buildings have complex pipe networks that extend far underground or behind building walls. A pipe locator is an electronic device used by commercial plumbers to locate hidden or buried pipes, minimizing excavation or wall removal when diagnosing issues.

• Gas detectors: Locating a gas leak in a commercial kitchen, laboratory or industrial building is often more challenging due to the scale of their pipe and gas line networks. Commercial plumbers can use gas detectors to locate leaky pipes, allowing them to perform repairs quickly and efficiently.

• Hydraulic pipe benders: When your building requires new pipes to be installed or replaced, a commercial plumber can use a hydraulic pipe bender to shape them accurately. They ensure the piping system is safe, accessible for maintenance and compliant with local, state and federal building codes and regulations.

Blue Collars Meets Your Commercial Plumbing Needs

Are you looking for a reliable Charleston plumbing company that can handle retail, industrial and commercial buildings? Blue Collars offers fast and efficient commercial plumbing services, including new equipment installations, repairs, maintenance, and emergency responses. Contact us today to schedule a service.