This report summarizes design considerations for independent indoor and outdoor residential leak detection and repair certification trainings aimed at plumbers and landscape professionals. In early 2022, with funding from the Bay Area Water Supply and Conservation Agency and Valley Water, CalWEP conducted five focus groups with plumbers and irrigation experts and interviewed a number of water agency staff, trade organizations representatives and other industry experts to identify leak trends and industry motivations and barriers to earning a leak detection and repair training certification. This research is intended to inform the development of a training framework for professionals, where those who successfully complete the training could opt into an online directory of trained professionals. Such a directory is anticipated to improve agency customer service, support agency leak programs, and ultimately reduce customer leak response times.
Research highlights address common customer-side leak types and response; training design considerations such as price-point, format, and curriculum considerations; marketing and administrative considerations geared towards conservation staff, as well as summaries of example training programs and agency leak programs. These extensive findings have been packaged into a comprehensive report available to CalWEP members only (coming soon – December 2022). This executive summary is available to all interested parties.
