Overview
The purpose of the Streets Department’s Professional Plumber Notification Website is for certified,
licensed
plumbers completing excavation work in the City of Philadelphia to notify the Streets Department upon
completion of their backfill work.
Notification of the completed temporary patchwork is sent to the Highway Division, so they can schedule and
complete the permanent repair of the roadway.
This website also includes information on how to acquire a permit through the
Department of Licenses & Inspections,
responsibility of contractor’s when backfilling ditches and complying with code requirements and other
Streets Department initiatives.
Attention: Plumber backfill website now lists all permits without a
backfill date and has a two year history of permits issued.
Definition
A plumbing permit is a document that ensures that plumbing installations are performed by licensed
personnel in order to safeguard persons and property from unsanitary unhealthy plumbing conditions.
Requirements
A plumbing permit is required for the installation, alteration, renewal, replacement or repair of
plumbing.
Plumbing Permits Process
This link takes you to the L&I site. Once there click Permits which you'll find in the
Services list.
PGW CAST IRON GAS PIPE SAFETY NOTICE
Plumber's Ditch
Definition
A plumber's ditch is a hole that is dug by a plumber in order to repair the service lateral or sewer
line.
Requirements
A plumber must have a street opening or footway permit, as appropriate, for any work that involves
digging in the public right of way. Once the plumber is finished with the work, the plumber must backfill
the ditch. If the opening is in the street, the plumber must then notify the Streets Department that their
work is complete. The Streets Department will then schedule the permanent restoration of the ditch. The
plumber is responsible to keep the ditch in a safe condition for 30 days after the backfill notification is
received by the Streets Department or until the Streets Department begins the permanent restoration, which
ever comes first.
Definition
All plumbers are certified and licensed on the basis of their knowledge of the code and their
professional achievements.
Requirements
The first step in becoming a registered plumber is to apply for an Application for Plumber’s
Examination, Form 81-181, to become a Journeyman Plumber or a Master Plumber.
Along with Application for Plumber’s Examination Form, you will also need a Plumbing
Request for Reference, Form 81-182, which will verify that other plumbers can attest that they know you,
your skills, how long you have been employed by them and dates of your employment.
IMPORTANT NOTICE
TO PLUMBERS FROM STREETS
Our Most Popular Sites
Backfilling Process
Definition
Backfilling is the process of filling the excavated area caused by the plumbing repair for safe roadways
and/or footway traffic.
Requirements
Ditches and other street openings shall not be backfilled until all tests required by various utility
companies and/or the Water Department have been completed. They must be carefully backfilled with materials
approved by the Streets Department and shall be equivalent to clean excavated soil, loam, sandy clay, sand and
gravel. The backfill shall be thoroughly
compacted in layers of no more than six inches by rolling and
tamping with mechanical rammers or by hand tamping with heavy iron tampers. As a last step the street opening
shall be made safe by topping the dirt with an
asphaltic cold mix paving material rolled level with the
surrounding roadway surface.