Taps

Design

Good design

See the following corporate documents to identify relevant project design requirements:

Sunshine Coast Planning Scheme

Sunshine Coast Design

Open Space Landscape Infrastructure Manual (LIM)

Embellishment requirements

Warranty and asset life

Taps

Once the location of the tap has been decided, based on the Environment and Liveability Strategy (ELS) and Recreation Parks Plan (RPP) guidance, consider the appropriate embellishment level to suit the selected site.

Overarching design considerations:

• All open spaces should include universal access (e.g. offset from pathway and at accessible heights).
• Incorporate water saving measures.
• All taps are required to be connected to mains water supply (unless connected to a rainwater tank).

test 2

Overarching design considerations:

• All open spaces should include universal access (e.g. offset from pathway and at accessible heights).
• Incorporate water saving measures.
• All taps are required to be connected to mains water supply (unless connected to a rainwater tank).

There are two types of taps installed in open spaces:

• Public access taps are required less frequently, generally in relation to food preparation areas, and as part of dog bowl/tap combinations.
• Maintenance taps are required at all levels of parks for watering and wash down of facilities.

Design of a public access tap

Public access taps provide a water source in open spaces, for the convenience of the public.

Public use taps may be installed to provide accessible and safe water points while ensuring proper drainage and maintenance considerations.

• Where a tap is installed, ensure that the product includes universal access features, by installing the tap at a safe offset from a pathway, at a height which can be reached by a person using a wheelchair and push button timer.
• Taps adjacent to paths should be installed on the lower grade side. It is preferred that waste water falls to a splash pad and discharges to an appropriate garden bed. The splash pad base must be well drained and angled away from paths of travel to prevent water ponding and algae build up on pathways.
• If pipes and/or conduit are to be installed near a pathway, the preferred location is under the pathway within 500 mm of the edge, parallel to the pathway edge for maintenance access.
• Tap posts should bolt down to the finished surface for ease of replacement.

Materials, fixings and finishes

• Vandal resistant fixings.
• Minimal welding joins, reduces corrosion and vandalism.

• Timed flow (316 marine grade stainless steel push button) tapware (preferred). The force is to be no greater than 19.5 N. At beach access points, a sand filter may be required.

• Standard brass/316 marine grade stainless steel turn taps are NOT preferred, as this style of tap is more difficult to use.

• Where possible spout thread should not enable users to connect their own hoses.
• Must be tamper proof.

Design of a maintenance tap

Maintenance taps are required by operational staff to maintain gardens and for cleaning purposes (particularly near barbecues).

The following should be consider when installing maintenance taps.

• Maintenance taps may be brass or stainless steel, fixed to a bollard. The turn handle is retained by operational staff to prevent unauthorised use.
• Locate taps for garden maintenance purposes, unobtrusively and within garden beds. Taps for cleaning purposes should be located nearby to the area/building to be cleaned.

Materials, fixings and finishes

• Vandal resistant fixings.
• Minimal welding joins, reduces corrosion and vandalism.
• To be a standard brass/316 stainless steel tap.
• Locate at the back of a public use tap post where possible and flow into a garden bed.
• Maintenance taps must have removable handle and be tamper proof:

• provide a ‘top assembly vandal proof flat brass’. 

• do not use ‘spline spindle’ top - over time the teeth become worn and the top no longer fits the corresponding vandal proof tap key. 

• Be fixed securely to ensure they cannot be turned upside down and used as a drinking fountain.
• Spout thread should not enable users to connect their own hoses.

See Figure 3: Typical maintenance tap.

Tap post design

Council prefers the use of stainless steel or recycled plastic posts, due to the ongoing maintenance costs associated with timber.

• Stainless steel should be 316 marine grade
• Recycled plastic should be blue, black or brown (blue is preferred to help identify from afar).
• Posts are to be designed to shed or repel water.

Council plumbing and underground services requirements

This section outlines the key regulatory and technical requirements for the installation of taps in open spaces. 

General requirements

• Taps must be installed as per the Plumbing and Drainage Act 2018 by a licensed plumber.
• Plumbing works may require a Council plumbing compliance application and permit or notifiable works as per Plumbing and Drainage Regulation 2019. Contact Council (Building and Plumbing) team.
• If there is no water supply available, an application must be made to Unitywater for a new water meter to supply the park/reserve (this may not apply in all situations).
• Products must hold current WaterMark certification to indicate the product has been tested and has passed requirements regarding its suitability for supplying water for human consumption.
• Products must be marked with the WaterMark logo and License Number.
• Plumbing connections and components are to be fully enclosed in the tap body.
• Taps must be installed by a licensed plumber (drainers licence is not sufficient).

Water supply

All taps are required to link to mains water supply with:

1. an appropriate dual check valve (back flow prevention device).
2. an isolation valve (for emergency shut off) on the supply line of each embellishment. Installed in an easily accessible location within 1.0 m of the tap, not inside the tap.
3. a pressure limiting valve.

Discharging water

The waste water discharge methods illustrated are examples only and must be determined by calculated usage and site/soil conditions.

Pits

• Council (Parks and Gardens) prefer pits to be either:
  • a concrete pit or
  • a PVC pit  or
  • 150 mm diameter plastic irrigation pit.
• For shelters/larger concrete area with taps piped to wastewater discharge, Council (Parks and Gardens) prefer either:
  • a concrete pit or
  • a plastic pit where the pit is not driven over by vehicles.
• Council (Parks and Gardens) do not prefer Polycrete (polymer) pits. Polymer pits must be installed with galvanised lids and a concrete collar (to protect the pit), unless the pit is installed into a garden bed.
• Where the use of metallic lids is required, lids are to be coated in a heat resistant, pedestrian grade anti-slip coating.

Drainage grates

• If drainage grates are used, heel guard grates are required to AS 3996 – Access covers and grates.
• Grate should be sectional, so that they can be easily lifted and maintained. Avoid sectional cross brace as it restricts use of a shovel. Lifter must be provided for maintenance.
• Drainage grate hinges are not recommended, as they can trap sand and seize.
• The grate should finish flush with the finished surface level.

See LIM Landscape drainage for further guidance.

Outlet pipes

• The outlet pipe is recommended to be a minimum 65 mm diameter with a self-cleansing fall.
• A level site installation of a tap requires a larger diameter pipe to prevent sand/silt blockage.
• A sloping site installation of a tap requires a smaller diameter pipe due to the grade of application and increased natural water velocity.

Methods of discharging water

The following methods of discharging waste water should be used in the listed order below:

1. Splash pads (preferred option)

2. Drainage grate with soakage trench