Foundations of Plumbing   

This course trains for a career in plumbing. You will learn specialized plumbing skills and terminology for residential, commercial, and industrial plumbing systems. In addition, this course teaches the math, geometry, and physical principles needed to work on plumbing systems.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC, Mac, or Chromebook.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 10 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.
• Access to state-wide plumbing codes is beneficial to building familiarity with the codebook.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

With an aging infrastructure and dwindling trade workforce, the demand for more skilled plumbers has never been greater. In fact, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that plumbing and related jobs will increase at a faster-than-average rate, with roughly 43,000 openings expected annually through 2033.  With the proper plumbing training, you could enter and build a scalable career in this high-demand field.

This Foundations of Plumbing course is perfect for teaching you the fundamental, job-ready skills relevant to the plumbing and piping industry. In this self-paced course, you will learn how to work on modern plumbing systems from in-depth course material developed by industry experts and employers. After completing this plumbing foundation course, you will possess the specialized skills and technical knowledge needed to start a career in plumbing.

1. Plumbing History, Codes, and Principles
2. Tools of the Plumbing Trade
3. First Aid and Safety
4. Basic Math for Plumbing
5. Water Supply, Water Sources, Waste Disposal, and Sewage Disposal
6. Mechanical Properties and Protection of Building Materials and Structure
7. Piping Materials Used in Plumbing Work
8. Joining Methods for DWV and Pressure Piping
9. Squares, Square Roots, and Basic Geometry
10. Plumbing Fixtures
11. Faucets and Related Devices
12. Valves
13. Water Heaters
14. Building Plans, Drawings, and Scale Rulers
15. Sketching
16. Communication and Skills Professionalism
17. Pipe Joining Techniques
18. Special Applications of Plastic Pipe and Fittings
19. Introduction to Welding
20. Soldering, Brazing, Cutting, and Gas Welding
21. Piping Materials, Sources, and Distribution for Potable Water
22. Water Pipe Sizing: Main-and-Branch and Individual Run Systems
23. Water Heaters and Hot Water Distribution
24. Cross-Connection Protection and Pipe Identification
25. Sewers & Sewage Disposal Methods
26. Drainage Fixture Units
27. Building Drains
28. Stacks
29. Applied Plumbing Mathematics
30. Applied Geometric Concepts
31. Properties of Water and Air
32. Venting Plumbing Drainage Systems
33. Sump Pumps, Sewage Pumps, and Sewage Ejectors
34. Plumbing Traps
35. Fixture Supports
36. Hoisting and Rigging
37. Safety Concepts
38. Rough-In Sheets, Single Line Drawings, and Isometric Drawings
39. Venting Plumbing Drainage Systems
40. Winning Customer Service
41. Customers Revealed
42. Customer Expectations
43. Customer Service: Why Do It?
44. The Decline (and Revival) of Customer Service
45. Moving Forward with the Four P's
46. Traits of Outstanding Customer Reps
47. Measuring Customer Service
48. Customer Service Communication
49. Helping Upset Customers

What you will learn

• Basic concepts of plumbing safety and the safety procedures for material and equipment use
• The function of components required for the construction of standard piping and water supply systems
• The use and meaning of specialty drawings associated with construction detail
• The application and installation of standard plumbing fixtures
• How to identify piping materials and fixture types used in plumbing work
• Methods to perform the essential math functions, calculations, and interpretation of the plumbing codes required to complete standard plumbing services

How you will benefit

• Obtain communication and active listening skills
• Gain skills to be more productive
• Acquire essential reasoning skills
• Learn wide knowledge of plumbing skills
• Possess the ability to attend our exclusive annual virtual National Apprenticeship Week events, featuring live webinars, workshops, and employer interactions

Adam Seek

Adam Seek has more than 25 years of experience in the plumbing industry. He is a licensed plumber, pipefitter, instructor, and maintenance/service technician with an excellent track record of success in safety, quality control, planning, development, and project management. His career in plumbing started at a young age, when he first joined his family's plumbing business. He then went on to a four-year program where he was awarded for his aptitude and academic achievements.