IMPORTANT LAA UPDATES

Master Plumbers Council of the City of New York, Inc. * 240-21 Braddock Avenue, Bellerose, NY 11426 * (718) 793-6300

A NEWSLETTER PUBLICATION OF THE MASTER PLUMBERS COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK, INC.

VOICE

The

of the Licensed Master Plumber

Vol. 14, Issue 3

September 2014

In this Edition:

Boiler Service Training

Oil Tank Affadavits

Advanced Gas Heating Technologies

Fuel Gas Code Changes Coming

Events and News

IMPORTANT LAA UPDATES

s written in the prior issue, the LAA Division is

understa ed and this is the main cause for the

long delays in obtaining manually  led permits.

At press time the wait is approaching 14 – 16 weeks

weeks for some permits to be issued. We have written

a letter to the commissioner to implore him to rectify

this situation. Winter is approaching and the volume of

permits will surely increase. As stated by the editor in

the previous issue of  e Voice, the sta working at the

LAA Division is not the problem. We have been working

closely with them over the past two months to implement

the new LAA changes.  ey are making an extra e ort

to help plumbers when the projects involve restoration

of gas in both residential and commercial cooking

applications and especially when domestic hot water and

heat are involved. To take advantage of their generosity,

plumbers should bring their application to the window

and request to see a supervisor. We realize this is a very

frustrating for everyone involved but please be mindful

of this information if and when you do go to the counter

and ask for help.

LAA TRAINING

 e LAA Division has started training classes to go over

the new changes to the LAA.

 e categories covered were:

1. Introduction to the LAA form

2. Category 1 vs Category 2 work

3. Common work proposals

4. Electronic  ling

5. LAA Audits

6. Service Updates / Comments

Many of our members have reported that the classes were

informative and conducted in a professional manner.

 ere was a very detailed PowerPoint presentation

covering all of the changes in  ling and procedures.  e

sta provided ample time for questions and answers.

Attendees who had additional or job-speci c questions

were a orded the opportunity to submit them on a form

at the end of the session.  ere were many DOB Hub

inspectors and enforcement inspectors in attendance.

 ey participated in the question and answer session as

well.  e MPC would like to thank the entire LAA sta

or all of the hard work they put into the development of

the presentation.

NEW LAA FORM

A dra version of the new LAA form was presented at

the training session and discussed. A copy of the form is

available for review on our website. Please note that this

is a dra form and some changes may be made before the

 nal version is posted. You will notice many changes to

the new form. In the  ling status box you will see a box

for renewal and a box for amendment.  e amendment

box is the new name for the existing PAA.  e renewal

box does not mean that you can actually renew an LAA.

 e fee assessment box is divided into two categories:

Category 1 and Category 2. Another important change

is that you will be required to submit the actual ACP#5

DEP control number on your application.  is will re-

quire you to obtain that number prior to submission of

the application. In addition, in the appliance date section

you will now be required to provide a listing number for

any appliance installed. MEA numbers will no longer

be accepted a er the code change goes into e ect.  e

listing number can be a UL number or a CSA number

Continued on Page 7

Master Plumbers Council of the City of New York, Inc.  e Voice of the Licensed Master Plumber

Master Plumbers Council of the

City of New York, Inc.

240-21 Braddock Avenue, Bellerose, NY 11426

Phone: 718-793-6300 * Fax: 718-343-0759

www.nycmpc.org

The Voice of the Licensed Master Plumber,

a membership publication of the NYCMPC.

All text for articles is due by the 1st day of the

month prior to publication.

We welcome your suggestions and contributions.

NYCMPC Board President

Michael Loise

Executive Director

John F. DeLillo, Jr.

[email protected]

Editors

George Bassolino

Chris Biscuiti

Graphics

Janene Meyerowitz

JM Image Management, LLC

[email protected]

GENERAL DISCLAIMER STATEMENT:

The information provided in this newsletter is to be used only to

educate businesses and the general public on plumbing and related

construction issues that may affect their daily business or personal

lives. All opinions expressed herein are those of the individual

authors only and do not necessarily represent the opinions of the

NYCMPC, its officers, Board of Directors, the NYCMPC newsletter

or its editors. The NYCMPC does not guarantee the accuracy or

the correctness of advertising, articles or references to information

sources herein, nor does the NYCMPC intend to endorse, rate, or

otherwise officially comment on products available. Therefore, the

readers are cautioned to rely on information contained herein at

their own risk. All information that is available to you through this

newsletter is provided “as is” without warranty or condition of any

kind, either expressed or implied, including, but not limited to, the

implied warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular

purpose. The information contained in the newsletter is believed

to be correct and accurate. However, the NYCMPC cannot and will

not assume responsibility for the consequences of errors contained

in the articles or misapplication of any information provided.

NYCMPC expressly disclaims any liability for any special, incidental, or

consequential damages, including without limitation, lost revenues,

or lost profits, resulting from the use or misuse.

A Message from the

Executive Director of the

Master Plumbers Council

Hello and welcome to the latest edition of  e Voice of

the Licensed Master Plumber. We have some important

updates in this edition of the newsletter and are excited

about upcoming events.

At our latest Chapter Membership Meeting we reviewed

our progress with Department of Buildings in regards

to the changes to the LAA permit that are scheduled to

go into e ect on October 1st, 2014. We met with the

LAA Division to clarify the LAA permit process and

to ascertain what can be done to reduce the long wait

period for manually  led permit applications. We are

continuing to  nalize a list of what can and cannot  led

on an LAA.  is list will be available to our members

this year. For more information regarding this change

please see page 1.

In September, National Grid hosted some seminars

for our members in Basic Gas Heating and Advanced

and High E ciency Troubleshooting.  e seminars

were a success and the feedback from the members

who attended has been positive. We hope to work with

National Grid, as well as other companies, to provide

similar seminars in the future. For more information

regarding the National Grid seminars please see page 4.

Our Annual Educational & Energy E ciency Trade

Expo is just around the corner on October 7th from

1:30 – 9:00 pm. An extremely important event for our

council, the expo will be  lled with tables hosted by the

Department of Buildings, National Grid, and ConEd,

as well as many of our a liate members. Various

educational presentations will be made throughout

the evening, including an MPC presentation regarding

the code changes that you will not want to miss. Our

MPC booth will have great prizes and giveaways. Your

support at this event will be greatly appreciated. Please

www.nycmpc.org/2014expo.

Our next Chapter Membership Meeting is on November

5th at 5:00 pm at Vetro’s Restaurant and Lounge in

Howard Beach and don’t forget to mark your calendars

for our Holiday Dinner Dance on December 6th at  e

Inn

at Ne

w Hyde Park.

I look forward to seeing you all at our upcoming Trade

Expo. Stop by the booth and say hello!

With Warm Regards,

John F. DeLillo, Jr.

NYCMPC Executive Director

Master Plumbers Council of the City of New York, Inc.  e Voice of the Licensed Master Plumber

Recently there have been some questions about when oil

tank a davits are required, who is licensed to provide

and a davit and the format of the a davit.

WHEN IS AN AFFIDAVIT REQUIRED?

Whenever an oil to gas conversion is completed and the

tanks are taken out of service the licensed plumber is

required to provide the Fire Department with an a davit

for the removal or abandonment of the tanks. A copy of

the letter must also be provided to the DOB plumbing

division in order to obtain signo .

WHO CAN FILE AN AFFIDAVIT FOR AN OIL

TANK REMOVAL?

A licensed master plumber is quali ed to seal or remove

fuel-oil tank(s) less than or equal to 330 gallons in size

(< or =330 gallons). For all tanks in excess of 330 gallons

the sealing or removal must be completed by a person

holding a certi cate or license or by a person who is

employed and supervised by a person holding such

certi cate, or a person holding an oil-burning equipment

installer license issued by the Department of Buildings

or by a person who is employed by and under the direct

supervision of a person holding such license.

 e a davit shall contain the following information:

• Must be on company letterhead and notarized

•  e name of the licensee sealing and/or removing the

tank

•  e type of license sealing and/or removing the

tank(s)

•  e number location and size of the tanks

•  e type of product removed

• State whether the system is a temporary or permeant

seal

•  e a davit shall state whether the storage system

was sealed and/or removed in accordance with the

guidelines described R3404-01 and FC3404.2.13

 e a davit should be sent to:

Fire Department City of New Yo r k

Bureau of Fire Prevention

Attn: Deputy Chief Inspector J. Martinez

9 Metro Tech Center

Brooklyn, NY 11201

GUIDELINES FOR OIL TANK AFFIDAVITS

n September 8th and 9th eight Master Plumber

Council member employees attended the Basic

Gas Heating Troubleshooting course hosted

by National Grid at their Queens Service Station in

Spring eld. It was followed by the Advanced and High

E ciency course on September 17th and 18th.  ese

two-day courses were presented by National Grid and

the Master Plumbers Council to provide training for

our members.  e courses consisted of classroom

training with power point presentations and hands-on

training with working gas appliances and controls.  e

instructor was Kevin Dunn who was a past supervisor

for the company. Kevin came up through the ranks of the

company, troubleshooting residential and commercial

boilers. His teaching style made his communication and

lessons clear as he made his presentation. He blended

technical knowledge with real world experience and

made the class very interesting for the students.

It had been a couple of years since these courses were

last o ered.  e Master Plumbers Council believes

strongly that continuing education for the industry is

very important. Our education committee identi ed the

need to o er members the option to do training on gas

appliances and controls.  ey met with National Grid

o cials and came up with a plan to o er these courses.

 e Master Plumbers Council would like to thank

National Grid for graciously donating their facilities

and instructor to make this possible. National Grid is a

valued industry partner and they too recognize the need

for continued training and education. Special thanks go

out to Rosella Brugnoli and Anthony Massimino, whose

e orts were essential to make this valuable learning

experience possible.

 e courses were a success and we are planning to meet

with National Grid to schedule more classes in the future.

MPC Education Committee

MPC PRESENTS BOILER SERVICE TRAINING CLASSES

Master Plumbers Council of the City of New York, Inc.  e Voice of the Licensed Master Plumber

KEY POINTS

•  e increasing popularity of gas for home heating has

led to improved e ciencies.

• Energy factors of natural gas water heaters range

from 0.67 (storage) to 0.96 (tankless).

• ENERGY STAR Most E cient 2014 furnaces have

annual fuel utilization e ciencies of 97 to 98 percent.

ore than half of all US homes have natural gas

service and residential consumption is expect-

ed to reach 7.4 quads by 2020, according to the

U.S. Department of Energy. Part of this growth is being

driven by the increasing popularity of gas home heating.

Gas technologies, whether for space or water heating,

continue to improve in e ciency and features, providing

builders with a variety of options from which to choose.

COMBINATION SPACE AND WATER HEATERS

 ese systems combine high-e ciency, storage water

heaters or boilers with hydronic air handlers. When

space heating is needed, the thermostat activates a small

pump, which circulates hot water (from the water heater)

through an air handler coil.  en, a fan blows air through

these coils and into the duct system. Advantages include

less maintenance and space. Installation requires a

contractor who has the training and experience to handle

the integrated plumbing and HVAC installation.

CONDENSING STORAGE WATER HEATERS

Gas condensing water heaters recover heat from

combustion gases through a submerged helical coil

or multiple pass ba ed  ues.  is increases thermal

e ciencies as much as 96 percent. Products typically

have  ring rates ranging from 76,000 to 120,000 Btu/

hour with power or direct venting. While these systems

cost more upfront, they reduce water heating bills nearly

30 percent. Su cient space is required to accommodate

a condensate drain and special venting. National Grid

now o ers incentives of up to $200 for NYC & LI

customers.

CONDENSING TANKLESS WATER HEATERS

Tankless product manufacturers introduced condensing

products with energy factors (EF) of up to 0.96 starting

in 2009. Like condensing storage types, additional

heat is extracted from the exhaust gases, reducing the

temperature to around 100°F. At this temperature, a less

expensive venting material, like PVC, can be used.

One design features ultra-low NOx condensing

technology, which provides a 0.95 E F.  e primary heat

exchanger is constructed of erosion-resistant copper.  e

secondary heat exchanger is made of stainless steel to

protect against corrosion. Units with maximum  ow rates

of up to 10 gallons per minute are available.

ENERGY STAR STORAGE WATER HEATERS

E ciency levels have increased from 0.62 to 0.67

EF; some power-vented units are higher at 0.7 E F.

Several strategies are used: pressurized combustion or

atmospheric combustion with motorized vent damper or

power or direct vents with plastic pipe venting. Common

features include electronic ignition and advanced

electronic control/diagnostics. National Grid now o ers

incentives of up to $100 for NYC customers.

E ciency is increased by incorporating better insulation,

heat traps, and more e cient burners. Water heating bills

are reduced by about 7 percent; no special installation or

maintenance is required.

HYBRID (TANK/TANKLESS) WATER HEATERS

Traditional storage water heaters and tankless water

heaters are integrated with matched hydronic air

handlers.  ese water heaters address the shortcomings

of both tank (center  ue losses) and tankless (cold water

on low/intermittent draws) systems. E ciency factors

range from 0.70 to 0.80.

Firing rates and storage-only volumes typically range

from under 100,000 to up to 200,000 Btu/hour and

4 to 40 gallons, respectively. One design features a

patented heat transfer process that utilizes a secondary

heat exchanger to capture the heated  ue gas from the

tankless unit and route it through a bu er tank to extract

additional heat.

MOST EFFICIENT ENERGY STAR FURNACES

Furnaces with the ENERGY STAR Most E cient 2014

designation have annual fuel utilization e ciencies

(AFUEs) of 97 to 98 percent, resulting in a 20 to 23

ADVANCED GAS HEATING TECHNOLOGIES LEAD TO

ENERGY SAVINGS

Master Plumbers Council of the City of New York, Inc.  e Voice of the Licensed Master Plumber

percent savings over a standard furnace.

Features include automatic adjustment of

fan speed, heat and air ow for ultimate

temperature control, and easy-to-use,

programmable Wi-Fi thermostats. Some

units come with high-e ciency gas valves,

two-stage heating, and smaller Btu input per

burner for quieter startup and operation.

SOLAR HYBRID WATER

HEATERS

 ese heaters take advantage of the free

energy provided by the sun via solar-thermal

panels in combination with a storage gas

heater. Some units combine a power direct

vent heater with an internal solar-thermal

coil heat exchanger. One system is rated at

76,000 Btu and comes in two sizes, 75 and

100 gallons, with a maximum temperature of

180°F. A helical- n heat exchanger provides

auxiliary heating.

Another 70-gallon system requires about the

same amount of space as a conventional water

heater. An 80 percent e ciency, low NOx

backup gas burner supplements solar energy

when required. A burner control system

allows a large volume of hot water to be

drawn from the tank before switching on the

auxiliary burner.

WHOLE-HOME GAS TANKLESS WATER

HEATERS

 ese systems cost more, but reduce water

heating bills by about 30 percent. Installation

requires a large gas line (typically at least 3/4

inch) plus space for the required venting.

Maintenance is more complicated; a regular

maintenance check every few years is

recommended. ENERGY STAR rated units are

available.

Visit National Grid’s Energy E ciency

Services at ngrid.com/nycbiz for more

information on rebates or call: 1-877-316-

9491.

 is article previously appeared in the National

Grid newsletter, and is used with permission.

depending on the manufacturer. If you fail to list the number your

application will be delayed until you comply. We will address all of

these new changes in a future issue of  e Voice. In the meantime

our DOB operations committee will be making a presentation on

this and other code changes at our Annual Trade show. See details

inside of this issue so you can attended and take advantage of this

unique opportunity.

EMERGENCY WORK NOTIFICATION APPROVALS

Some important notes and changes to the procedures:

• Follow the proper procedure to obtain the emergency work

noti cation procedures.

• If the EWN application is denied you cannot do any work at that

location.

• You cannot expand the scope of work listed on your EWN. If

you have to expand the work scope you must  le another EWN

or you may be subject to a WWP violation.

• If you  le a EWN and do not do any work you must notify the

LAA Division within 2 days to have it withdrawn.

• Indicate the EWN on your LAA Application.

LAA UPDATES CONTINUED

Master Plumbers Council of the City of New York, Inc.  e Voice of the Licensed Master Plumber

 e following are important changes to the 2014 FGC

that shall be in e ect on October 01, 2014

406.1.1.1 WELDER’S QUALIFICATIONS

(5).  e licensed master plumber employing the

welder(s) shall submit a statement to the department

including who welded the gas piping along with a copy(s)

of the certi ed welder quali cation report(s) witnessed

by a representative of the licensed master plumber at the

time of the  rst roughing inspection.

406.1.1.3 WELDING RECORDS

 e licensed master plumber employing the welder(s)

shall assign to each welder an identi cation symbol

or number to identify the welds performed by that

particular welder.  e welder shall identify all welds

with his or her symbol or number.  e licensed master

plumber shall maintain records identifying the weld(s)

made by each welder for at least six years and shall make

such records available to the department upon request.

 e following is an important rule regarding approved

1 Published date for changes to go into e ect

testing that shall be in e ect on October 01, 2014:

RULE RELATING TO APPROVED TESTING

AGENCIES

Section 1. Paragraph (8) and subparagraphs (i) and (ii)

of paragraph (8) of subdivision (c) of section 101-07 of

the rules of the City of New Yor k are amended to read as

follows:

Pipe welder qualifying agencies

An agency shall be deemed an approved agency

for qualifying welders of gas piping installations in

accordance with section 406.1.1.1 of the Fuel Gas Code

and high pressure gas systems.

A pipe welder qualifying agency shall be responsible

for the following:

(A) [Verifying that welder performance quali cations

are in accordance with ASME Boiler and

Pressure Vessel Code Section IX] Complying with

the requirements of section 406.1.1.1 of the Fuel

Gas Code and section 1210.2.2 of the Mechanical

Code;

IMPORTANT FUEL GAS CODE CHANGES REGARDING WELDING

Master Plumbers Council of the City of New York, Inc.  e Voice of the Licensed Master Plumber

(B) Positively identifying each welder or welding

operator being quali ed;

the quali cation test;

(D) Verifying that all welder quali cation records

(e.g., QW-484 forms or equivalent) accurately

record the data required by ASME Boiler and

Pressure Vessel Code Section IX and are certi ed

by the manufacturer or contractor; and

(E) Signing the welder quali cation record and

submitting a copy to the department when

required].

Editors Notes:  ese important new changes will require

increased contractor compliance.  e most notable

changes are the written requirement to have the welder’s

documents available at the time of the rough inspection

and the labeling of each joint by the welder in the  led

or shop. Also remember that all plumbers employing

welders are required to maintain a continuity log that

must be made available to the DOB upon request.

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Master Plumbers Council of the City of New York, Inc.  e Voice of the Licensed Master Plumber

Master Plumbers Council of the City of New York, Inc.  e Voice of the Licensed Master Plumber

240-21 BRADDOCK AVENUE

BELLEROSE, NY 11426

T. 718.793.6300

F. 718.343.0759

JOHN F. DELILLO, JR.

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

E. JOHND@NYCMPC.ORG

WWW.NYCMPC.ORG

Master Plumbers Council

of the City of New York, Inc.

240-21 Braddock Avenue

Bellerose, NY 11426

(718) 793-6300

Gregory T. Chillino

Attorney at Law

Former Director of Prosecutions and Investigative Attorney

for NYC Department of Buildings

Administrative Hearings, Licensing Matters and Disciplinary

Proceedings, Article 78’s, ECB Violations, Civil Litigation.

315 Madison Avenue

Suite 901

New York, NY 10017

(646) 395-0500

GC@GClicensinglaw.com

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