• We will be performing upgrades on the forums and server over the weekend. The forums may be unavailable multiple times for up to an hour each. Thank you for your patience and understanding as we work to make the forums even better.

New Massachusetts Plumbing Code - bathrooms required in all substations!

Merry Christmas
I

ItsAllDownhill

Member
Location
Massachusetts
Occupation
Electrical Engineer
Frequent lurker here. For those of us in MA, the new plumbing code requires that new substation builds are required to have a gender neutral bathroom "within the facility". I've attached the relevant section here. Needless to say, this is going to cause several problems... in my case, I've got a job where there is city water available, but not city sewer, so per the code I will be required to install a septic and leach field within the substation fence. For the bathroom install, we are looking at installing a stand-alone building along the lines of something you'd find at a municipal sports field. Does anyone here have any experience grounding a septic system / leach field within a substation? I'm more concerned with safety than the land-use or cost components. Both in terms of step and touch and also for the contractors that will have to periodically empty the tank. After nearly 2 decades as a power engineer this is a new one for me. Thank you in advance!
 

Attachments

  • plumbingcode.JPG
    plumbingcode.JPG
    119.7 KB · Views: 36
R

rc/retired

Senior Member
Location
Bellvue, Colorado
Occupation
Master Electrician/Inspector retired
Ok, 1st, this really isn't an NEC issue. IMHO. 2nd, as one who recently had a septic system replaced, all is plastic. Nothing to bond.
The NEC doesn't care about gender neutral anything. Good luck!

Ron
 
I

ItsAllDownhill

Member
Location
Massachusetts
Occupation
Electrical Engineer
drcampbell said:
Everything needs servicing, sooner or later.
Click to expand...
Bingo. It also would certainly fail inspection if there weren't provisions for servicing. Furthermore we'd never allow an un-escorted contractor within an energized high voltage substation. Per the code, the bathroom has to be "within the facility."

Thank you to everyone who has replied so far!
 
JohnE

JohnE

Senior Member
Location
Milford, MA
A few thoughts. I'm also in MA. 1. The Plumbing Board does grant variances. You can apply for them to waive the toilet requirement. 2. You can also put a tight tank. It will probably require Board of Health approval, but there is a means to do that. We did that for a municipal water pumping station recently, which required the bathroom. As Hal said, the tank can be away from the facility.
 
I

ItsAllDownhill

Member
Location
Massachusetts
Occupation
Electrical Engineer
JohnE said:
A few thoughts. I'm also in MA. 1. The Plumbing Board does grant variances. You can apply for them to waive the toilet requirement. 2. You can also put a tight tank. It will probably require Board of Health approval, but there is a means to do that. We did that for a municipal water pumping station recently, which required the bathroom. As Hal said, the tank can be away from the facility.
Click to expand...
In terms of variances, off-the-record conversations have indicated that's only going to happen if there are wetlands or historical land issues. Which is fairly unlikely. In terms of tight tanks, that's a consideration that I haven't explored. Or know much about other than what it is. Is there some kind of alarming function when its determined that the tank needs to be emptied? I plead total ignorance here, if you have any experience I welcome it. Thank you for replying!
 
tortuga

tortuga

Code Historian
Location
Oregon
Occupation
Electrical Design
ItsAllDownhill said:
Frequent lurker here. For those of us in MA, the new plumbing code requires that new substation builds are required to have a gender neutral bathroom "within the facility". I've attached the relevant section here. Needless to say, this is going to cause several problems... in my case, I've got a job where there is city water available, but not city sewer, so per the code I will be required to install a septic and leach field within the substation fence. For the bathroom install, we are looking at installing a stand-alone building along the lines of something you'd find at a municipal sports field. Does anyone here have any experience grounding a septic system / leach field within a substation? I'm more concerned with safety than the land-use or cost components. Both in terms of step and touch and also for the contractors that will have to periodically empty the tank. After nearly 2 decades as a power engineer this is a new one for me. Thank you in advance!
Click to expand...
My take on that is a 'substation' is only an 'employee facility' if someone regularly reports to work there.
If its a unattended building there is no requirement in the plumbing code, though anytome an employee is present OSHA would still require restroom access of some type. Like a porta pot if work was happening there.
 
L

letgomywago

Senior Member
Location
Washington state and Oregon coast
Occupation
residential electrician
electrofelon said:
Apparently this applies to new substations. How often are New substations built? Almost Never?
Click to expand...
But would it apply after a certain percentage of work is done on one. There are idiots with rifles who shoot these things every 10 years or so if that happens when is it "new" is it new entirely or if they redo all the transformers and switches
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top