Water and sewer: ask Power and Water
City of Darwin points enquiries about damaged water and sewerage infrastructure to Power and Water. Power and Water's own website wouldn't load for our research, so we can't tell you from its pages where its sewer and water pipes end and yours begin.
Check with Power and Water before a plumber digs near the boundary or the meter, and ask whether it covers a plumber's costs when a blockage turns out to be on its side. Our sewer ownership guide shows how much these rules vary between water companies.
Stormwater and the verge
City of Darwin provides and maintains the city's stormwater system: an extensive network under roads, verges and public spaces that it inspects with CCTV. A blocked council drain is Council's to deal with.
Any work on council land, including the verge, nature strip or footpath, needs a works permit approved before it starts. Stormwater connections (with a plan) and service installations are on Council's list. It asks for at least five working days' notice, and working on council land without permission is an offence.
What's different about plumbing in Darwin
A real wet season
Darwin Airport averages 1,732.4 mm of rain a year: 432.1 mm in January and 1.0 mm in July. Its wettest day on record brought 367.6 mm, on 16 February 2011.
Heat and humidity
The mean minimum is 23.3°C across the year, and February mornings average 83% humidity with a 24.5°C dew point. In that air, cold water pipes and air conditioner lines sweat, which can look like a leak.
Cyclone country
City of Darwin says tropical cyclones can threaten the region. Once the all clear is given after one, Council's Emergency Operations Centre takes calls about trees and stormwater drains.
Renters and units
At the 2021 Census, 43.8% of Greater Darwin's occupied homes were rented, against 30.6% nationally. A quarter were flats or apartments (25.0%).
How NT plumbing licences work
The Plumbers and Drainers Licensing Act 1983 sets up the Plumbers and Drainers Licensing Board, which issues, suspends and cancels licences and keeps a register of advanced tradesmen and journeymen. Under section 38, nobody may carry out plumbing work unless licensed as a plumber, or draining work unless licensed as a drainer, paid or not.
The Act counts installing, repairing or connecting a hot or cold water service as plumbing. Section 39 carves out one thing: an owner who lives in the home may repair or replace an existing fitting on a cold water installation, as long as the new one is at least as good and its function and location don't really change. An installation with an electric heating element isn't covered.
The Board's online register wouldn't load for our research. Ask the plumber for their licence number and confirm it with the Board. Our licence check guide has the questions to ask.
Paperwork after the job
Under the NT Building Regulations, plumbing or drainage work done on its own must be notified to the Director under the Building Act within 7 days. The notice comes with a certificate from the relevant building practitioner that the work meets the code. Drainage work must be notified before it's covered up.
Certifying plumbers and drainers must hold an NT advanced tradesman licence in both plumbing and drainage. Ask who will lodge the certificate, and for your copy.
Gas is licensed separately
NT WorkSafe licenses gasfitters under the Dangerous Goods Act 1998, in four categories: general, Type B (appliance), provisional and auto. Our Darwin gas fitters page covers compliance certificates and the plate on your system.
Darwin specialists
Pick the page for your problem: hot water and solar, urgent plumbing, hidden leaks or gas fitting. Over in Palmerston, the same Territory licensing rules apply.
What we would do
Before the wet season, clear your gutters and downpipes and check where your yard drains to, because a council drain on the verge isn't yours to dig up without a permit. For anything inside the boundary, get the plumber's licence number before work starts and confirm it with the Board. If a fault looks like it's in the street or at the meter, call Power and Water first and ask how it handles it.