The History of Perth Plumbing

Let’s take a deep dive into the history of Perth plumbing, from the early settlement to the modern world we live in today.

The Early Settlement (1829 –1890)

In 1829 when the first European settlers arrived in Perth, Western Australia, they were unprepared for the long, dry and hot summers. They had to rely on swamps, lakes, wells, freshwater springs and rainwater tanks for their water supply. Due to the gold rush in the late 1890s, Western Australia’s population started to rapidly increase and with that came water shortages and pollution in the wells. This resulted in typhoid and other waterborne diseases, so the region urgently needed a safe water supply.

The Establishment of the Water Supply Scheme

The Colonial Governments and Town Councils disagreed about who bore responsibility for the public water supply. After much debate, they established the city’s first water supply scheme. They decided to source water from a 140,000,000 gallon storage dam in the Darling Range, east of Perth. The dam would connect to a 1,260,000 gallon service reservoir 16 miles away at Mt Eliza. Overlooking the city of Perth, the reservoir enabled water distribution to the surrounding areas. Designed to accommodate the needs of 25,000 people, the scheme aimed to supply each person with 30 gallons of water per day. This amount was sufficient for one water closet and one bath daily in each home, and the cost was included in the household rates.

That same year, a serious typhoid outbreak resulted in the urgent need for the construction of a working sewerage system. In 1891, Perth witnessed the establishment of its first piped water system, operated by a private company. Numerous customer complaints arose regarding the network’s price and service.

A New Era of Historic Plumbing (1890 –1978)

Between 1897 and 1904, city authorities upgraded the drains, leading to waste disposal in the Swan River. This action caused a variety of social and health issues. Due to the short supply of sanitation and clean water, the community established the Perth Master Plumbers Association. Back then, waste disposal methods were far from glamorous. People used a bucket toilet housed in a wooden structure, commonly known as a ‘pan closet toilet’ or ‘thunderbox’.

In the following years, authorities constructed more dams and reservoirs to extend piped water supply across the state. However, due to Perth’s excessive water usage, these measures proved inadequate. The city urgently required a new, reliable water supply.

The Dry Spell

By the late 1960s, the rapidly expanding city of Perth entered a dry decade. After extensive research, officials turned to groundwater as a solution to the state’s diminishing water supply, finding it both easily accessible and affordable. Just a decade later, the city sourced nearly half of its water supply from groundwater reserves.

The evolution of the state’s water systems created opportunities for many plumbing businesses to establish themselves across Perth. As plumbing technology advanced and the demand for innovative products grew, the development of toilet cisterns and hot water systems emerged.

Water Restrictions in Western Australia

However, due to the population’s lax water usage, the government soon imposed voluntary water restrictions. As conditions worsened over time, they introduced stricter measures. To accommodate the gardening community, the government launched a campaign encouraging households to install their own bores. Today, a quarter of Perth’s households have their own bore water supply.

Despite water restrictions and the groundwater revolution, Perth’s water supplies did not stop dwindling. To ease the pressure on the supplies, the government introduced a user-pays system in 1978 which saw a significant reduction in water use.

The First Desalination Plant (late 90s – today)

At the turn of the 21st century, the Millennium Drought began to impact Perth’s waterways. By 2001, the city’s dams reached their driest levels since the 1914 drought. The dams’ stream flows had nearly halved since the 1970s, confirming a drying trend in the region’s climate. This situation required urgent action, with the government announcing plans in 2002 for a seawater desalination plant to supply the state.

With A Second On The Way…

Environmentalists objected to the government’s announcement, prompting a search for alternative solutions. However, with no suitable alternatives emerging, the government opened the city’s first desalination plant in 2006. After experiencing another dry winter in 2011, the government commissioned a second desalination plant. At the same time, the state’s various dams deteriorated, stressed by the drying climate and the increased water usage of the expanding city. Despite the state’s best efforts to avoid disaster, it was recently revealed that Western Australians have consumed more water in the last 20 years than any other state.

The Arrival Of Metropolitan Plumbing In Perth

While the government searches for additional water-saving alternatives, you can take steps to reduce your water usage. Did you know that a tap dripping at one drip per second wastes over 12,000 litres of water per year? Indeed, a leaking tap is one of the simplest water-wasting issues to fix. Plumbers can easily repair leaking taps, a task that requires immediate attention. Instead of searching for a plumber in Perth, contact a local Metropolitan expert today.

Since Adelaide company Metropolitan Plumbing arrived in Perth in the late 1990s, the company has expanded to become one of the most recognised plumbing service provider names in Australia. In 2020, Metropolitan’s commitment to customer service was recognised with the Product Review award for the plumbing category across all of Australia. Contact the name you know and love today.