We are all aware of the age-old saying that ‘Water is life’. Water is like an invisible force that keeps life going at its pace. During the prehistoric eras, the supply and use of water were primarily from the natural flowing rivers and streams.
However, as civilizations evolved and grew, so did the nature of water supply and its subsequent use. This change gave rise to the need for plumbing in ancient civilizations. Name any civilization of the ancient world; a mention of their plumbing system would cover a large chunk of their social construct.
Plumbing
The name of plumbing is so intricately associated with the Roman Civilization that the name itself is derived from the Roman word for lead Plumbum. It is because the early Roman plumbing was essentially done with lead pipes. Only during the start of the Modern era (mostly after the Second World War), the lead pipes were replaced with copper or iron pipes for the hazard of lead poisoning.
The modern definition of plumbing does not only encompass the area of water supply, but also sewage, gas, heating systems, or anything that is of liquid in nature and requires transportation from one point to another via a network of pipelines.
Modern-day plumbing has seen a huge surge in technology and management since the days of the industrial revolution. Plumbing and sanitation are given such importance that they are often part of syllabuses of major engineering branches like civil, architecture, etc.
The Australian Take
In this time of YouTube and Tik Tok, almost anything is DIY (short for Do It Yourself). However, here in Australia when it comes to plumbing, DIY is a strict no. This statement might be of concern to the non-locals but plumbers here are just a click away.
Various online sites like the Royal Flush offer 24 X 7 services to customers who are facing plumbing problems. Their services are not limited to plumbing only. They also cater to specific areas like renovations of the bathroom or kitchen, heating systems, drain relining, to name a few.
There is good enough reason for the Australian Government to ban DIY projects when it comes to plumbing. Often the DIY doers have practically no understanding of plumbing or their related equipment.
This lack of knowledge would lead to a substandard job that would not only affect the residential unit but also the whole town or the city’s plumbing and sewage system, thereby causing more overhead for the government workers.
However, there are still some activities related to plumbing that one could take into their own hands in Australia, like:
