New bathrooms, moved fixtures, repiping, water heaters.
Plumbing rough-in
This Sheet is for licensed pros
It counts the materials, costs, permit and inspections for the trade. Here’s what the job involves, what to ask and how to hire a licensed plumber.
Are you a contractor?
Why this is a pro job
New drain, vent and water lines need a permit, a test and an inspection before the walls close. A plumbing mistake hides in the wall until it leaks, backs up or lets sewer gas in. Water heaters add gas or power, venting and a relief valve that must work. Most places require a licensed plumber; a few let you work on the house you live in under a permit.
Hire this out: licensed work with a permit.
How it goes
5 stages
1
Plan the fixtures
What goes where. The drain size and slope and the vent decide where a toilet, shower or sink can go.
2
Permit
The plumber pulls it. Swapping a water heater for one of the same size is quicker in many towns, but it still gets a permit and an inspection.
3
Rough-in
Drains, vents and water lines with the walls open, then tested with water or air and inspected.
4
Close up
Drywall and tile after the rough inspection passes.
5
Set fixtures
Toilets, sinks, faucets, the water heater; then the final inspection.
What you can do yourself
Once the pros are done, these parts are DIY. Each has a Sheet: the materials counted, the tools and the steps.
Licensed plumber? Who pulls the permit, and who is there for the inspections?
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Are the drain and vent sizes and the slope planned for every fixture?
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What’s included: opening the walls, patching, setting the fixtures?
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For a water heater: same size, or should it change? Expansion tank and relief line included?
These are the general rules. Your state, province or town may add its own: check with your local building department before you start.
Licenses and registration
Hire a plumber licensed for your area — most states license plumbers, some through the city or county — who pulls the plumbing permit from your local building department. A home improvement contractor’s registration doesn’t cover plumbing. Some places let the owner of a single-family home do the plumbing in the home they live in under a homeowner permit — ask your building department before you start. Rules change — your building department has the last word.
How to hire a licensed plumber
This is licensed work: only a licensed plumber should do it. Ask these questions and check the license before you sign.
Ask before you hire
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Your license number? Look it up on your state’s (or city’s) licensing board website before you sign.
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Will you pull the permit in your name and be there for the inspections?
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Can I have the price and the scope in writing, with the license number on it?
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Is opening and patching the walls included, or is that on me?
Check the license
Look the license up with your state or local licensing board before you sign.
Permit and inspections
The plumber pulls the plumbing permit from your local building department. New pipes are tested and inspected before the walls close; the final inspection comes once the fixtures are in. Keep the approval with your house papers — buyers and insurers ask for it.
Get quotes from local pros
Quotes from local pros need the online version
StudSheet sends quote requests to verified local pros through your account, so it needs the online version at app.studsheet.com. For now, copy this page and send it to a contractor you trust.
After the work
Painters can patch and paint the holes the work leaves. Never the licensed work itself.