Australian Made and Owned
Australian WaterMark™ certification
The Plumbing Code of Australia requires certain plumbing materials and products to be certified and authorised for use in Australia. This ensures that they are fit for purpose, and protects consumers from poor quality or unsafe products.
Any product that comes into contact with drinking water (including faucets, pipes, backflow preventers, filters, and other related devices) must be approved.
Plumbing materials and products are regulated under the WaterMark Certification Scheme (WMCS), a mandatory national scheme administered by the Australian Building Codes Board (ABCB).
If a device is not WaterMark™ certified, there is a high likelihood that it does not meet the required safety and quality standards for use in drinking water systems, and therefore, may not be allowed to be installed. Technically, installing a non-WaterMark™ certified device in an Australian drinking water network may be illegal, depending on the local regulations and the type of device.
If you have purchased a plumbing product overseas or plan to use a second-hand product of unclear origin, you can search for the product on the ABCB WaterMark database. You can use the database to check on any product you suspect does not comply with the plumbing codes or standards.
What the WaterMark™ certification implies
The WaterMark™ Procedure for Certification is based on ISO/IEC 17067, Conformity assessment—Fundamentals of product certification and guidelines for product certification schemes.
The Procedure for Certification ensures that products are manufactured in compliance with the relevant applicable specification and are in compliance with the requirements of the Scheme.
A licence to use the WaterMark is issued by an Approved Certifier subject to product compliance with the relevant applicable specification and the terms and conditions in the Approved User Agreement between the Approved Certifier and the Approved User.
To achieve WaterMark™ certification, products shall be certified as fully complying with an applicable specification through type testing. Full type testing shall be certified by an Approved Certifier as having been carried out in an accredited testing laboratory. The manufacturer of the product shall be certified by the Approved Certifier as having a quality management system, including batch release testing, appropriate for the product. In addition, the Approved User shall comply with the conditions of the WaterMark Licence.
The product is granted certification under the Scheme, including application of the WaterMark, if all of the above requirements are met.
Performance Requirements and Test Methods
Products in contact with drinking water shall comply with AS/NZS 4020. The Standard requires that products do not affect the taste or appearance of water, do not support the growth of microorganisms, and do not release cytotoxic or mutagenic compounds, or metals and organic compounds, depending on the type of product and whether it is used in-line, at end-of-line, or in hot water systems.
AS/NZS 4020 applies a scaling factor when required during product exposure (as is also done in USA standard NSF/ANSI 61-2022), to compensate for the difference between laboratory and field conditions.
When subjected to permanent hydrostatic pressure test of 2 +0.1, −0 MPa at the manufacturer’s stated maximum operating temperature of ‘x’ +5, −0°C for 60 min +10, −0 s, all component shall not leak.
Components subjected to permanent hydrostatic pressure shall meet a minimum burst pressure of 3.5 MPa when tested at ambient temperature.
