General requirements
The Building Regulations requirements for Hygiene is set out under Part G1 of Technical Guidance Document G for Bathrooms and Kitchens
A dwelling shall be provided with:
a bathroom containing either a fixed bath or a shower bath, and a washbasin, and
a kitchen containing a sink of adequate size and a draining board, and
a suitable installation for the provision of hot and cold water to the bath or shower bath, washbasin and sink.
Bathroom requirement for dwellings
Every dwelling (house or flat) should have at least one bathroom, with a fixed bath or shower, and a washbasin.
Kitchen requirement for dwellings
Every dwelling (house or flat) should have a kitchen which is adequately fitted for the installation and use of cooking equipment. The kitchen should contain a sink of adequate size and a draining board.
Cold water supply requirements
The cold water supply to the kitchen sink should be taken directly from the service pipe supplying water to the dwelling;
The cold water supply to the bath or shower and the washbasin and to other appliances in the dwelling should be from a cold water storage cistern.
The bath, shower, washbasin, and sink should also have a piped supply of hot water, which may be from a central source or from a unit water heater.
Discharge from bathroom
The bath, shower, washbasin and sink should discharge through a trap and branch pipe to a discharge stack, or may, if it is on the ground floor, discharge into a gully.
Further Guidance on drainage is provided in Part H - Drainage located in Section H of this app.
Guidance on sinks
Guidance is provided in the following standards:
IS 132 Part 1:1975
IS 132: 1964
IS I.S. EN13310 : 2003
Capacity of cold water cistern
The cold water storage cistern should have:
an actual capacity of not less than 212 litres in the case of a dwelling containing up to three bedrooms.
an actual capacity of not less than 340 litres in the case of a dwelling containing four or more bedrooms.
Cistern access and container
The cistern should be properly covered but not airtight, accessible for cleaning and replacement, and fitted with an overflow pipe so located as to discharge in a manner that will give ready warning of the occurrence of overflow without causing any nuisance or any dampness in the dwelling
Service pipe to a dwelling
The service pipe to each dwelling should be provided with a stopcock or sluice valve fitted with a crutch wheel for manual operation in a convenient position within the dwelling and near to the point of entry of the pipe to the dwelling.
Protection from frost
The cistern, service pipe and fittings and any associated cold water pipes should be adequately protected against damage by frost, These should be insulated or adequately protected.
Other types of dwellings
For other types of dwellings, e.g. apartments in apartment blocks or multi-occupancy buildings, alternative arrangements or ways of achieving compliance may be appropriate, subject to the approval of Irish Water
What is a flushing device?
Flushing device - A device fitted to a cistern to provide controlled measured volume(s) of water to a WC pan or suite for flushing.
What is a pressure flush valve?
Pressure Flush Valve - A valve directly connected to a stored water supply, which delivers a pre-determined volume of flushing water for removal of excrement from a WC pan. Two third/ one third flush buttons are examples and are ways of conserving water.
How many bathrooms, toilets etc do you need to provide?
Guidance on the scale of provision, selection, installation, and special requirements of sanitary appliances in domestic, commercial and public buildings is contained in BS 6465 Sanitary installations, Part 1; Part 2 and Part 3 : 2006.
Every dwelling (house or flat) should have at least one water closet and one washbasin. The washbasin should be located in, or adjacent to, the room containing the water closet.
For Accessible requirements in Dwellings please refer to Appendix M or Section M3 of Technical Guidance Document M.
Separation of kitchens and cooking areas from bathrooms/sanitary facilities
A room or space containing a water closet should be separated from a place used for the preparation or cooking of food by means of a door in a dwelling.
Requirements of water closets/urinals
Any sanitary convenience (water closet or urinal) should be of such design as to facilitate efficient use of water for flushing. Any flushing device should be capable of cleansing the water closet pan effectively.
Volume of water required for flushing?
All water closets should have a maximum flush volume of 6 litres or less and comply with the requirements for class 2 products in IS EN 997:2003 regardless of the type of flushing device employed.
The type of flushing activator e.g. handle, button, sensor etc., will be dependent on particular design and aesthetics.
Manual flushing requirements
For all manually activated flushing devices (except pressure flushing valves) a dual flush facility combining a maximum flush volume of 6 litres and a reduced flush volume no greater than two thirds of the maximum should be used.
Activation of flush mechanism
The method of activation of the dual flush should be readily discernible e.g. separate buttons or pads of different sizes, segmented buttons (two-thirds, one third) etc.
Please see Appendix M and Technical Guidance Document M for further guidance on accessible WCs
Volumetric water requirements for flushing
Guidance on Drainage and Waste Water disposal given TGD H is based on a maximum flush volume of 5 litres or more.
Where WCs with maximum flush volumes of less than 5 litres are used, consideration should be given to the increased risk of blockages. Guidance on the design of sanitary pipework suitable for use with WCs with maximum flush volumes as low as 4 litres can be found in IS EN 12056.
What do we need to comply with if we are upgrading sanitary facilities
When an existing WC suite, comprising of WC pan and flushing cistern is to be replaced by a suite incorporating a manual flushing device (except a pressure flushing valve), a dual flush facility should be installed i.e. 2/3 1/3 .
Alternatively, a single flush WC suite of maximum flush volume 6 litres may be used when replacing existing WC suites of flush volumes greater than 6 litres, for example 7.5, 9 or 13 litres.
However, if the flushing cistern alone is to be changed, without changing the WC pan, the replacement should be of the same size as the one it replaces.
A single flush cistern should not be replaced with a dual flush cistern, when the WC pan is remaining.
Are there any requirements for the surfaces of sanitary appliances
Every sanitary appliance should have a surface which is smooth and non-absorbent and capable of being easily cleaned.
Requirements for water supplies to wash basins?
A washbasin should be provided with a hot water supply and a cold water supply.
Requirement states that a washbasin provided in, or adjacent to, a room containing a water closet (toilet) should have a supply of hot water, which may be from a central source or from a unit water heater, and a piped supply of cold water from a storage cistern.
Standards for cold water supply
A cold water storage system should be designed and installed in accordance with the recommendations set out in BS 6700: 2006.
Requirements for the discharge from water closets
A water closet should discharge through a trap and branch pipe into a discharge stack or a foul drain. No part of the water closet pan should be connected to any pipe other than a flush pipe or branch pipe.
Requirements for the discharge from washbasins
A washbasin should discharge through a trap and branch pipe to a discharge stack or may, where the washbasin is located on the ground floor, discharge into a gully.
