REQUIREMENTS FOR MAINS FED
DRINKING WATER COOLERS TO COMPLY WITH THE WATER FITTINGS REGULATIONS
Requirements of the Water Supply
(Water Fittings) Regulations 1999
The Water
Fittings Regulations (England and Wales), the Scottish Water Byelaws, and
soon the Northern Ireland Water Regulations, are to protect the quality of
water supplied against contamination and to promote water efficiency. Every
water fitting, plumbing system and appliance which receives water from the
public supply comes under the scope of these Regulations. Regulation 4
requires “every fitting to be of an appropriate quality and standard and be
suitable for the circumstances in which it is used”. The best way to
demonstrate that a fitting complies with this is by manufacturers submitting
their products for assessment by WRAS against the Government’s performance
requirements – ‘the Regulators’ Specification’- to gain WRAS Approval.
The main
components of water coolers which are checked for compliance are:
·
supply hoses [non-compliant hoses can cause a strong taint in water,
especially if the water is warm and stagnant] ;
· solenoid/dispensing/isolating valves [especially for reliability to
prevent waste of water over a reasonable lifetime];
· backflow protection devices [to protect the plumbing system against
contamination by back-siphonage].
WRAS Approval and listing of
fittings and products which meet the requirements of the Regulations
On behalf of
the Water Suppliers, WRAS approves fittings and products, including coolers,
which have been tested and assessed as meeting the requirements of the
Regulations. Approved products are listed in the WRAS Water Fittings and
Materials Directory, which is freely available on the WRAS website (www.wras.co.uk/Directory).
Approval and listing is for five years, and includes full contact
information for the manufacturer or the factor. WRAS Approval means that
provided the fitting is installed in accordance with any approval
conditions, it will comply with the requirements for water fittings in the
Regulations – including that it will not contaminate or otherwise taint the
water supplied and, where applicable, will not contaminate the water
installation by backflow. Where applicable, WRAS Approval includes
assessment of the effect of non-metallic components on water quality, using
the British Standard BS6920 to check that components will not encourage
microbial growth or taint the water, both of which can lead to complaints of
bad tasting water. WRAS Approval, whilst excluding assessment of product
performance for its intended purpose, does include assessment of
the durability of mechanical components over a reasonable lifetime. WRAS
staff are happy to advise applicants on detailed requirements for WRAS
Approval before application. For example, if the components used are
already WRAS listed, they will not be tested anew. Many applications
are facilitated by applicants changing (generally imported) components for
listed components.