Fixtures, Fixture Fittings, and Water Heaters
Fixtures, Fixture Fittings, and Water Heaters
This domain tests installation details: how fixtures are set, spaced and connected, and how water heaters are protected.
Fixtures and fittings
Fixtures must be listed, installed per the manufacturer and the code, level and secure, with accessible valves and connections. Water closets need clearance from the centerline to a side wall or partition and clear space in front. Accessible work under the barrier-free subcode (N.J.A.C. 5:23-7) requires a 17–19 in. seat height, grab bars, a 34 in. maximum lavatory rim, knee clearance and a turning space. Faucets and shower valves must be listed for the application; shower valves need anti-scald protection, and public lavatories are limited to 120°F delivery.
Water heaters
- A temperature and pressure relief valve is required, rated for the heater's input, with its sensing element in the top 6 in. of the tank.
- The discharge pipe must be the full size of the valve outlet - not reduced, capped, threaded or trapped - and must terminate within 6 in. of the floor or outside the building.
- Heaters in attics or above ceilings, or where leakage would cause damage, need a drain pan piped to a safe point.
- Gas heaters need combustion air and proper venting; ignition sources in garages are elevated; closed systems need expansion control.
Worked example. An installer pipes a T&P valve's 3/4 in. outlet down to 3/8 in. copper and ends it inside a bucket. Two violations: reducing the discharge and terminating it where it is neither safe nor visible. Correct: full-size pipe to within 6 in. of the floor, or to the exterior, plainly visible.
Traps. Plugging a T&P valve to stop a leak; capping the discharge; omitting the pan under an attic heater; ignoring clearance dimensions when replacing a toilet.