DOB Updates: Register and Register/Replace

News & Press: Department of Buildings Updates

Friday, April 16, 2021

Another major issue has been the requirement for licensed master plumbers to prove the legality of an existing gas appliance installation. The licensee will usually become aware of this because of an LAA audit but, in recent months, Development inspectors have also been requiring it. Why is this happening? The stated reason is that if the Department believes it is incumbent on the licensed plumber to provide a prior filing on the LAA application. Does the Code require this?

The Code does not specifically require proof of legality of an existing installation when you replace or restore gas to an existing gas appliance. While the Construction Codes are new construction Codes, they do address existing buildings. The premises for performing any work in an existing building is that the existing installation you are looking at has been legally installed in a manner that was compliant with the Code at the time of the installation. How do you know this is correct? If there is no prior filing in one of the DOB platforms, it is next to impossible to tell if the existing appliance was ever permitted.

Unfortunately, the BIS system is notorious for having incomplete records. In many other cases it is possible for some of the appliances to have been installed or replaced without the required permits, test and/or inspections. Why is the licensee being required to provide proof of the legality of the installation? Could the Department personnel check the BIS, Build and Archived records for a prior filing? Those are both good questions.

The NYC Administrative Code provides that the owner is responsible for maintaining all of the building services in good working condition. That means that when something is broken the owner is responsible to repair or replace it in a Code compliant manner. Based on the Code, if the Department believes that an appliance was not legally installed or replaced, they should issue the owner an ECB violation; either a work without a permit violation, a failure to maintain their building or both.

Where does Register and Register/Replace come into play? The exact origins of these terms are unknown. Register is required if you are restoring gas to an appliance where there is no published prior filing. Register /Replace would be utilized when you are replacing an appliance that has no published prior filing. What are the requirements to use each term? Sometimes for Register the licensee is required to obtain an ACP-5, although they are not doing any work on the appliance or system piping other than possibly gas work. Recently the Department has required that any appliance Registered must conduct all of the required Gas inspections and tests and, in some cases, a boiler inspection. Since the gas system is active for these installations, this poses a problem. A licensed plumber must arrange for the utility to shut off the gas, conduct all inspections and tests, obtain gas authorization, and meet the utility to restore gas to the system. This will leave the building without essential service for at least 3 days and that is only under perfect conditions. Essential services will more likely be shut down in excess of 1-2 weeks. Some licensed plumbers have gotten into trouble for mistakenly believing that they can shut down the gas meter valve ahead of the inspection and restore it while they are waiting for gas authorization.

How Did We Get Here and Whose Fault Is It?
That is very complicated and is not as important as how do we handle it? This current system is untenable and has had the unintended consequence of driving a percentage of this work to unlicensed and unqualified contractors. NYC residents demand for immediate service with no drama. It is the kiss of death for a contractor to tell them that, in addition to your fees for an appliance replacement, you will have to spend more money to retroactively “Register” an existing system that “was here when I bought the building”. It does not help when a plumber shows them the BIS system page for their house and there are no permits or certificate of occupancy. At that point, most customers say, “I’ll call you tomorrow” and most times that call never comes. But somehow that work still seems to get done.

The Department generally only becomes aware of this type of work when they receive a permit application, or a report is filed with the Agency. As this issue becomes more untenable, word is getting out to the public. People are afraid that if their systems are shut down, they will never get them turned back on. That is not good from a public safety perspective. This whole process is very frustrating for licensed master plumbers. They see many installations being done by unlicensed and unqualified persons with no ramifications to the installer or to the owners.

What Is the Solution to This Problem?
We have been trying to figure out a solution to this issue for a long time. MPC members aspire to be installers and not “registrars”. With the advent of the Existing Building Code, we believe it is time to come up with a process and codify it. We need to figure out a way to handle the “undocumented” existing appliance installations that will allow for the jobs to be completed quickly while providing a deterrent for future transgressions. If it less costly for a job to be “registered” rather than properly completed, that may become the preferred method of choice.

Once a process is in place, both the industry and the Department need to better educate the public. Part of an effective solution will require a stronger enforcement component for owners and licensed plumbers alike. The inspection requirement must be workable while at the same time maintain public safety. In the latest Code revision, the MPC is lobbying for a more streamlined process for the replacement of existing appliances. This will eliminate some of the perceived hurdles owners have to face when using a licensed plumber to do their work. The Department must realize that the work is going to get done. It is in everyone’s best interest that we have a process that enable the licensee to respond and immediately complete the work. We will be discussing this issue with the Department in the coming weeks and look forward to reporting back in a future issue of the Voice.