Backup: Overflow of a plumbing fixture due to drain stoppage.

 

Back Pressure: Pressure that resists the flow of fluid in a piping system.

 

Back Flow: When water traveling from one system backs into any part of the main distribution system, usually by siphoning.

 

Blackwater: Wastewater specifically from a toilet.

 

Gray Water: Waste water from fixtures other than toilets.

 

PEX: Stands for cross-linked polyethylene. A flexible plastic supply line that is stronger than PE. In bathrooms, it is used for water supply lines.

 

PE: Stands for polyethylene. A flexible plastic supply line.

 

Shutoff Valve: Valves installed under sinks and toilets used to shut off water supply in the event of a malfunction or repair. Also called an Angle Stop, Straight Stop or Supply Stop.

 

Siphoning: The suction or pulling effect that takes place in the trapway of a toilet as it is filled with outgoing water and waste.

 

Boiler: A sealed tank where water is turned to steam for heating or power.

 

Fitting: Any part that joins together two sections of pipe. Comes in many shapes, sizes & connection styles. Examples: elbows, couplings, bends, wyes, etc.

 

Fixture: Anything that accepts or discharges water or wastewater: faucets, sinks, toilets, tubs.

Plumber’s Putty: A dough-like putty that seals joints between fixture surfaces and metal pieces, such as the drain.

 

Plumbing Snake: A thin, flexible length of spiral-wound metal, which is inserted into a drain and rotated to clear anything that is clogged in the pipes.

 

Sediment: The substance that settles on the bottom of a water tank. Also known as lime.

 

Sewage pump: Pumping blackwater (toilet waste) to a public sewer line.

 

Septic Pump: Pumps blackwater (toilet waste) to a private septic tank and drainfield system.

 

Septic Tank: A tank used to detain domestic wastes to allow the settling of solids prior to distribution. Septic tanks are used when a sewer line is not available to carry them to a treatment plant.

 

Sump Pump: Designed to remove unwanted water, such as surface or groundwater that leak into a building. Sump pumps only have to pump water, never solids.

 

Valve: A device that regulates the flow of water.

 

Water Heaters: Hot water tanks, sources of hot water in buildings. Types of water heaters include: tankless, tankless coils, indirect water heaters, solar and geothermal.