Ask five plumbers whether your new geyser needs a Certificate of Compliance and you can get five answers. That is not because plumbers are careless - it is because the industry genuinely disagrees, and the usual sources contradict each other.
This guide separates the part that is settled from the part that is not, because the practical answer turns out to be the same either way.
SANS 10254 is settled law
Made a regulation on 8 June 2001. Every fixed electric geyser installed or replaced since then must meet it - that part nobody disputes.
Whether a CoC is required is not settled
PIRB says one must be issued on all plumbing work. Others say a 2022 change left it to municipal by-laws. Neither cites the text.
The safe action is the same either way
Use a PIRB-registered plumber and take the PIRB CoC. It satisfies every reading of the rule and costs you nothing if it turns out not to be mandatory.
You will be asked for paperwork later
Manufacturers require compliant installation by a qualified plumber for warranty, and insurers ask for documentation after a burst.
What is actually settled
SANS 10254 governs the installation, maintenance, replacement and repair of fixed electric storage water heaters. It was made law through Government Regulation No. 7079, gazetted on 8 June 2001. Every geyser installed or replaced since that date has had to meet it.
The compliance items are physical and checkable. Per the IOPSA compliance tables, a compliant installation has:
A temperature and pressure safety valveRequired
The valve that stops a geyser becoming a pressure vessel. Its discharge must be piped away safely.
An expansion control valve and a pressure control valveRequired
Water expands as it heats. Without somewhere to go, the pressure goes into your plumbing.
Isolating valve and vacuum breakersRequired
So the geyser can be shut off on its own, and so the cylinder cannot be collapsed by a vacuum when the supply drops.
Correct mounting, and a drip tray with an outletRequired
A tray that drains nowhere is decoration. This is the item that decides whether a leak becomes a ceiling.
What is not settled: the certificate
PIRB, the Plumbing Industry Registration Board, states on its own certificate page that "a PIRB CoC must be issued on all plumbing work undertaken by a Licenced plumber which includes but is not limited to geysers, solar water installations, heat pumps". The certificate is a self-certification by the licensed plumber, issued in triplicate - one copy to you, one for the local authority or your insurer, one for the plumber.
Against that, a number of plumbing firms and insurance brokers state that a change to SANS 10254 on 24 June 2022 removed the certificate requirement from every standard, regulation and act - leaving it to municipal by-laws, most of which still ask for a PIRB CoC.
What to do, given the disagreement
Use a PIRB-registered plumber
This is the one decision that satisfies every reading. If a certificate is required by law, by by-law, or by nobody, a registered plumber can still issue one.
Ask your municipality what its by-law says
This is the question that actually decides it for your property. One call, and it is the only answer specific to where you live.
Take the certificate anyway
If it is not required, you have lost nothing. If it is - by by-law, by your insurer, or by a buyer's conveyancer years from now - you have it.
Keep it with the geyser's paperwork
Warranty claims want proof of compliant installation by a qualified plumber. The certificate and the invoice belong in the same place.
If you are the plumbing business, not the customer
The disagreement above is your opportunity rather than your problem. A customer who has been told three different things will choose the person who explains it honestly, and PIRB registration is what lets you issue the certificate at the end of it.
Explain the by-law question rather than asserting the ruleRecommended
Saying 'your municipality decides, and I can issue the certificate either way' is both accurate and more persuasive than a confident claim the customer may have heard contradicted.
Common questions
Do I legally need a Certificate of Compliance for a new geyser?
This is genuinely disputed and we will not pretend otherwise. PIRB states that a CoC must be issued on all plumbing work including geysers, but cites no source authority. A number of plumbing firms state that a June 2022 change to SANS 10254 removed the requirement from any standard or act, leaving it to municipal by-laws - without quoting the amending text. Ask your municipality what its by-law requires; that is the answer that applies to your property. Taking the certificate is the safe choice under every reading.
What does SANS 10254 actually require?
It governs installation, maintenance, replacement and repair of fixed electric storage water heaters, and was made law by Government Regulation No. 7079 on 8 June 2001. In practice it means a temperature and pressure safety valve, an expansion control valve, a pressure control valve, an isolating valve, vacuum breakers, correct mounting, and a drip tray with an outlet.
My geyser burst. Will my insurer pay without a certificate?
That depends on your policy and we have not read it, so treat anyone who answers this definitively with caution. What is consistent is that insurers ask for documentation after a claim and manufacturers require compliant installation by a qualified plumber for warranty. Keeping the certificate and the invoice together is cheap insurance against that conversation.
Is a plumbing CoC the same as the electrical one?
No. The electrical Certificate of Compliance covers your fixed electrical installation under the Electrical Installation Regulations and is issued by a registered person. A plumbing CoC is issued by a PIRB-licensed plumber. A geyser has both an electrical connection and a plumbing installation, which is part of why this gets confused.
What about a gas geyser?
Different regime entirely. Gas installations fall under the Pressure Equipment Regulations and require a registered gas practitioner and a Certificate of Conformity. SANS 10254 covers fixed ELECTRIC storage water heaters. See the gas guide.
Free check - about 3 minutes
Can you actually win a government tender right now?
Most bids are rejected on paperwork long before anyone reads the price. Score your business against what organs of state actually verify - CSD, SARS status, B-BBEE, CIPC, CIDB and COIDA - and see exactly which document is standing between you and a valid bid.
Free, and you see your full result immediately. We ask for your name and an email or phone number so we can send you the scorecard.