Does a Texas Plumbing License Cover Water Treatment?

Quick answer: Does a Texas plumbing license cover water treatment? Roger Wakefield says yes: a Texas plumbing license already covers water treatment, and he points to Texas Occupations Code section 1904.055. The state’s plumbing law adds that water treatment work is still subject to inspection and approval.

In this short video, Roger tells Texas plumbers that their license is not what is stopping them from doing water treatment work. Knowing the water is.

What does Texas plumbing law mean by “water treatment”?

The Texas State Board of Plumbing Examiners (TSBPE) is the state agency that licenses plumbers in Texas. It posts its own copy of the Plumbing License Law, which is Chapter 1301 of the Texas Occupations Code, on its Law and Rules page.

Section 1301.002 of that law defines water treatment as a business done under contract that takes the ability, experience and skill to analyze water and decide how to treat influent and effluent water, to change or purify it, or to add or remove minerals, chemicals or bacteria. Influent water is the water coming into a system. Effluent water is the water going out of it.

The same definition spells out what the term covers and what it leaves out:

• Included: installing and servicing fixed or portable water treatment equipment in a public or private water treatment system.
• Included: making the connections needed to install a water treatment system.
• Left out: treating rainwater, and repairing systems for rainwater harvesting. Rainwater harvesting means catching rain and storing it to use later.

Does a Texas plumbing license cover water treatment work?

Roger’s answer in the video is yes. He tells Texas plumbers that their plumbing license already covers water treatment, and he points to Texas Occupations Code section 1904.055 as the place the law says so.

He is also careful about where that answer stops. In the video description, Roger says plumbers outside Texas should check with their own state board, and that the video is not legal advice. This post works the same way: it explains what the Texas pages say, and it is not legal advice either.

Do you need a plumbing license to do water treatment in Texas?

The plumbing law answers this one from the other side. Section 1301.053, titled “Work Incidental to Other Professions,” lists work a person can do without being licensed under the plumbing chapter. Water treatment installations, exchanges, services or repairs are on that list.

There is one exception written right into that line. An exemption is a spot where a rule does not apply, and this one does not reach the treatment of rainwater to supply a plumbing fixture or appliance. The TSBPE ties that rainwater work to its Water Supply Protection Specialist endorsement, covered below.

Two more things the same section makes plain. First, the work is still subject to inspection and approval under state law or municipal ordinance. A municipal ordinance is a local law passed by a city. Second, the exemption only speaks for the plumbing chapter. It does not say water treatment needs no license of any kind, so if you do not hold a Texas plumbing license, ask the state which license your water treatment work needs before you take the job.

Is there a Water Treatment Specialist registration at the TSBPE?

Not on the TSBPE’s license types page, which lists four plumbing licenses, three endorsements and four registrations. None of them is called Water Treatment Specialist.

Here is the full list, as the TSBPE shows it today:

• Licenses: Tradesman Plumber-Limited, Journeyman Plumber, Master Plumber and Plumbing Inspector.
• Endorsements: Medical Gas Piping Installation, Multipurpose Residential Fire Protection Sprinkler Specialist, and Water Supply Protection Specialist.
• Registrations: Plumber’s Apprentice, Drain Cleaner-Restricted, Drain Cleaner and Residential Utilities Installer.

Each one works a little differently. To get a license, the TSBPE says you meet the eligibility rules, pass an exam and pay a fee. An endorsement is a certification you add to a Journeyman, Master or Plumbing Inspector license. A registration takes an application and a fee. The Plumber’s Apprentice registration is one, and the TSBPE says the other three registrations are added to it, much like an endorsement.

What is the Water Supply Protection Specialist endorsement?

It is the TSBPE endorsement that deals with treating water, and the water it names is rainwater. A Journeyman or Master Plumber who holds it may install, service or repair plumbing for the treatment, use and distribution of rainwater to supply a plumbing fixture, appliance or irrigation system.

That work is done under the supervision of a Responsible Master Plumber who also holds the endorsement. A Responsible Master Plumber is a Texas Master Plumber who is responsible for the general supervision and management of plumbing work. A Plumbing Inspector with the endorsement may inspect that rainwater plumbing. To qualify, the TSBPE endorsements page says you must:

• Hold a current Texas Master Plumber, Journeyman Plumber or Plumbing Inspector license.
• Complete a 24-hour training course approved by the TSBPE.
• Pass the exam and pay the fees. The exam fee is $80 for a Master, $27 for a Journeyman and $40 for an Inspector.

Which Texas plumbing licenses can install and repair plumbing?

The TSBPE pages say a Journeyman Plumber and a Master Plumber may each install, change, repair, service or renovate plumbing under the supervision of a Responsible Master Plumber. A Journeyman may also directly supervise a Plumber’s Apprentice on all job sites.

Getting to those licenses takes time on the tools. The TSBPE says the Journeyman exam takes at least 8,000 hours of experience in the plumbing trade, plus a 48-hour training course approved by the TSBPE or a training program approved by the U.S. Department of Labor Office of Apprenticeship. One path to the Master exam is holding a Journeyman license for at least two years.

Roger’s guide on how to become a plumber walks through that road, and his guide to studying for the plumbing exam helps when test day comes. Want to know what each step can pay? Read how much plumbers make.

Why don’t more Texas plumbers offer water treatment?

Roger’s answer is that the license is not the problem. In another short video, he puts it this way: “Most plumbers don’t talk about water treatment because they don’t understand it well enough to sell it.”

That is why Roger teaches plumbers to start with the customer’s own water, not a product. He says to read the city water quality report with the customer first, then test their water in front of them. Every city water system has to publish that report every year, and it is called a Consumer Confidence Report.

For plumbing companies that want to learn the water side, the HALO Water Tour is water filtration training for plumbers, taught by Roger.

How do you add water treatment to a Texas plumbing company the right way?

Go in the right order, so the license, the law and the water all line up before the first install. Here is a simple path:

1. Make sure your plumbing license is current. Licenses renew every year, and the TSBPE says every licensee needs six hours of continuing professional education to renew.
2. Read the Plumbing License Law yourself on the TSBPE Law and Rules page, starting with sections 1301.002 and 1301.053.
3. Ask your city what inspection and approval it requires for water treatment work, since the law says the work is subject to both.
4. Learn the water before you sell anything: read the customer’s city water report with them, then test their water in front of them.
5. Protect your business before you grow it. Roger’s post on the #1 legal mistake new plumbers make explains why to form a limited liability company (LLC) and keep business money and personal money apart.
6. If you have a question about your own license, call the TSBPE at (512) 936-5200, Monday to Friday, 7:30am to 4:30pm.

Roger’s training courses teach tradespeople how to build a real career in the trades and how to grow with social media.

Frequently asked questions about Texas plumbing licenses and water treatment

Here are short answers to common questions about a Texas plumbing license and water treatment work.

Does a Texas plumbing license cover water treatment?

Roger Wakefield says yes. In his video he tells Texas plumbers that their plumbing license already covers water treatment, citing Texas Occupations Code section 1904.055. Outside Texas, he says to check with your own state board.

Is water treatment exempt from the Texas plumbing license law?

Mostly. Section 1301.053 says a person does not need a license under the plumbing chapter to do water treatment installations, exchanges, services or repairs, except treating rainwater to supply a plumbing fixture or appliance. The work is still subject to inspection and approval.

Does the TSBPE have a Water Treatment Specialist registration?

Not on its license types page. The TSBPE lists four registrations: Plumber’s Apprentice, Drain Cleaner-Restricted, Drain Cleaner and Residential Utilities Installer. None of them is a Water Treatment Specialist registration.

What covers rainwater treatment in Texas plumbing?

The TSBPE ties it to the Water Supply Protection Specialist endorsement. A Journeyman or Master Plumber with that endorsement may work on plumbing for the treatment, use and distribution of rainwater, under a Responsible Master Plumber who also holds it.

Is this legal advice?

No. Roger says the same in his video. Read the law on the TSBPE site, ask your city about inspections, and call the TSBPE with questions about your own license.

Who is Roger Wakefield?

Roger Wakefield is a Texas Master Plumber with 45 years in the trade, a blue-collar keynote speaker and one of the most watched trades educators in the world, with 1.7 million followers and more than 160 million YouTube views.

About Roger Wakefield

Roger Wakefield has spent 45 years in plumbing. Today he teaches the trades to 1.7 million followers across social media, on his YouTube channel and on The Trade Talks podcast. Read Roger’s story, or watch his videos on YouTube.