Strata Plumbing: Who Is Responsible

What Is A Strata Scheme?

A system of shared ownership of a building or group of buildings is known as a strata scheme. Individual owners possess their units or apartment, but if their property exists within a strata scheme, they also maintain shared ownership of common spaces such as halls, driveways, and grounds.

The property owners under this scheme join a legal body known as the owner’s corporation or body corporate, responsible for maintaining and managing many common property areas, including the plumbing system. Essentially, this means that the corporate body represents the interests of the owners that share the building.

What Is Strata Plumbing?

Strata plumbing refers to the components of each unit or apartment’s water system if those properties exist within a strata scheme. Each property is interconnected, meaning that each surrounding property shares central pipework. Due to the interconnection of the plumbing throughout the building, pipes will intermittently transverse between private and shared property, often creating confusion over who is responsible for repairing plumbing problems.

An example of this is a leaking faucet in one of the private apartments in the building. If the leak is caused by an internal component, such as fitting, this repair is the homeowner’s responsibility. However, if the leak originates from the common property’s plumbing system, its repair may become the owner corporation’s responsibility.

Commercial plumbers at Link Plumbing are readily available to repair and replace leaking faucets or to diagnose and repair more significant issues such as a burst pipe with a fixed-rate, same-day guarantee. Our technicians are available to service both individual properties and larger plumbing concerns of the building; contact us for a consultation or organise a plumber at your door today.

Who Is Responsible For The Costs Of Strata Plumbing?

The funding for plumbing within the common property is evenly distributed between the owners. A percentage of the fees that property owners give to body corporate is used to pay for the common property’s repair, installation, and maintenance of plumbing services to ensure the water system continues to function optimally. Examples of these responsibilities may include plumbing underneath the apartment, the sewerage system, and guttering.

Upgrading Strata Plumbing

When it comes to the funding for upgrading strata plumbing, who is responsible?

Owners of a property with a strata title that requires plumbing upgrades will often seek the financial support of the body corporate. However, if the funds needed to perform the upgrade do not match the funds available through body corporate, the responsibility to fund the enhancements will often fall onto private property owners. If you decide to self-fund these upgrades or share the cost with neighbouring private property owners, ensure you consult with the owner’s corporate first. This consultation is recommended as the interconnected plumbing systems may affect the common property and surrounding private properties.

Here are a few preventative methods for strata plumbing problems

Strata Plumbing

A proper maintenance schedule is the first step in preventing general plumbing problems in a strata scheme. A consistent maintenance schedule reduces the likelihood of damage building up over time and eventuating into more severe concerns. Through this, problems are repaired before they cause further damage to the immediate area and neighbouring properties.

Damage caused by the lack of maintenance causing deterioration over time is likely not covered by insurance. For many buildings, a building manager oversees the regular maintenance of common property plumbing and is a contact point if you are experiencing plumbing issues in your apartment or unit.

You should regularly check your plumbing system during the winter months as problems such as frozen pipes may occur, detected by evaluating the water pressure from your faucets. Link Plumbing provides same-day plumbers that can identify and repair this problem quickly.

Significant property damage can also result from sewer obstructions. The sewer system is another area of strata plumbing that requires regular inspection to prevent future problems. When water pressure is an identified issue, the owner’s corporation may install pressure limiting components to reduce it before it enters the strata building.

Link Plumbing for all your Strata Plumbing Needs

The nature of strata plumbing can be complex, so you should always select high-quality professionals. The team at Link Plumbing is licenced, insured, and trained to provide quick solutions and a quick response to any strata plumbing concern you have. We are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, for an extensive range of services. Call us today for all your plumbing needs on 0412 056 027.