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Room Decision System

Water & drainage

The largest hidden system in a Sarawak home — supply, drainage, waterproofing and leak control, all decided before the tiles go down.

Each decision below is shown three ways — what it changes in use, which way it moves the cost, and how it looks. Price-free; ALUMAX confirms the figure.

Room

Specialists: Plumbing & wet works

Design concept showing water & drainage realised in a room
Design concept

Isolation & shut-off

SpecialistPlumbing & wet worksTechnical decisionGet specification / site review
Specialist tradeELS coordinates
  • Mains stop onlyBaseline
  • Per-fixture stop valvesEssentialLow
  • Labelled manifoldSignatureModerate
See what each option changes
Mains stop only
In use
One main valve serves the whole home — a single tap repair means shutting off the water to everything.
Cost impact
Baseline — specialist quotation required
How it looks
Nothing added.
Per-fixture stop valves
In use
An isolation valve at each fixture, so one tap or WC can be serviced without cutting supply to the rest of the house.
Cost impact
Low — specialist quotation required
How it looks
Neat chrome stops under each fixture, out of sight behind doors.
Labelled manifold
In use
A central labelled manifold feeds each run separately — the easiest system to diagnose, isolate and maintain over decades.
Cost impact
Moderate — specialist quotation required
How it looks
A tidy manifold board in a service cupboard; every line labelled.
Take this into your room plan

Plumbing service access

SpecialistPlumbing & wet worksTechnical decisionGet specification / site review
Specialist tradeELS coordinates
  • Sealed inBaseline
  • Access panels at valves & trapsEssentialLow
  • Full maintenance accessSignatureModerate
See what each option changes
Sealed in
In use
Pipes and valves are tiled or boxed in — cleanest at handover, but any future leak or service means breaking finishes open.
Cost impact
Baseline — specialist quotation required
How it looks
A fully sealed, seamless finish — until something needs fixing.
Access panels at valves & traps
In use
Discreet access panels at the stop valves, traps and the water heater — a leak or a service is a panel off, not a wall out.
Cost impact
Low — specialist quotation required
How it looks
Near-flush access panels, colour-matched; barely noticeable.
Full maintenance access
In use
Service voids and removable kickplates give full access to the whole wet run — the easiest home to maintain over decades.
Cost impact
Moderate — specialist quotation required
How it looks
Removable kicks and panels that read as part of the joinery.
Take this into your room plan

Water heating

SpecialistPlumbing & wet worksTechnical decisionGet specification / site review
Specialist tradeELS coordinates
  • Instant point-of-useBaseline
  • Storage tankEssentialLow
  • Central / heat-pumpBespokeHigh
See what each option changes
Instant point-of-use
In use
A compact instant heater at the shower — cheap and space-saving, but limited flow and only one outlet hot at a time.
Cost impact
Baseline — specialist quotation required
How it looks
A wall unit in the bathroom.
Storage tank
In use
A storage heater gives steady hot water to several outlets at once — needs a spot with service access and a safe overflow.
Cost impact
Low — specialist quotation required
How it looks
A tank in a service area or ceiling void, out of the living space.
Central / heat-pump
In use
A central or heat-pump system serves the whole home efficiently — the most planning, and the best running cost over the years.
Cost impact
High — specialist quotation required
How it looks
A plant location and insulated runs; nothing shows in the rooms themselves.
Take this into your room plan

Water supply & points

SpecialistPlumbing & wet worksTechnical decisionGet specification / site review
Specialist tradeELS coordinates
  • Existing supply reusedBaseline
  • Hot & cold to every fixture, plannedEssentialLow
  • Plus filtered & instant-hot pointsSignatureModerate
See what each option changes
Existing supply reused
In use
Reuse the existing cold and hot runs — cheapest, but old pipes may leak or under-deliver pressure, and adding a point later means chasing open a finished wall.
Cost impact
Baseline — specialist quotation required
How it looks
Nothing new on show; the existing tap and mixer positions are kept.
Hot & cold to every fixture, planned
In use
Hot and cold roughed to every sink, basin, shower and appliance and positioned before tiling — no cold-only compromises and no later wall-chasing.
Cost impact
Low — specialist quotation required
How it looks
Taps and mixers land exactly where the layout wants them; no surface pipes.
Plus filtered & instant-hot points
In use
Dedicated points for a filter, an instant-hot tap or a softener are planned in — convenient and future-proof rather than retrofitted on a tee later.
Cost impact
Moderate — specialist quotation required
How it looks
A clean under-sink set-up; the extras are concealed, not add-on boxes on the counter.
Take this into your room plan

Appliance & condensate drainage

SpecialistPlumbing & wet worksTechnical decisionGet specification / site review
Specialist tradeELS coordinates
  • Shared / nearest drainBaseline
  • Dedicated standpipes & drainsEssentialLow
  • Plus AC condensate to a safe outfallSignatureModerate
See what each option changes
Shared / nearest drain
In use
Washer, dishwasher and AC run to the nearest available drain — simplest, but shared runs can gurgle, back up or overflow.
Cost impact
Baseline — specialist quotation required
How it looks
Hoses to a visible standpipe.
Dedicated standpipes & drains
In use
Each appliance gets its own trapped standpipe or drain, sized and positioned before the cabinets — no back-flow and no gurgle.
Cost impact
Low — specialist quotation required
How it looks
Tidy, concealed standpipes behind the appliances.
Plus AC condensate to a safe outfall
In use
AC condensate is piped to a proper outfall — not dripping onto the floor or a neighbour — with a pump where gravity will not reach.
Cost impact
Moderate — specialist quotation required
How it looks
No drip stains and no visible condensate hose; it is routed and concealed.
Take this into your room plan

Wet-area drainage & falls

SpecialistPlumbing & wet worksTechnical decisionGet specification / site review
Specialist tradeELS coordinates
  • Single floor trapBaseline
  • Graded falls to the trapEssentialLow
  • Linear channel + secondary drainSignatureModerate
See what each option changes
Single floor trap
In use
One trap with a nominal fall — water can pond in the low spots of a Sarawak wet kitchen or bathroom if the screed is not set right.
Cost impact
Baseline — specialist quotation required
How it looks
One visible floor grating.
Graded falls to the trap
In use
The floor screed is graded to fall to the trap from every direction, so water always reaches the drain and nothing pools.
Cost impact
Low — specialist quotation required
How it looks
A level-looking floor that quietly drains; the fall is felt underfoot, not seen.
Linear channel + secondary drain
In use
A linear channel and a secondary or overflow drain move large volumes fast and give a back-up if the main trap blocks — best for heavy wet use and flood-prone homes.
Cost impact
Moderate — specialist quotation required
How it looks
A clean linear slot drain instead of a central grating.
Take this into your room plan

Wastes & odour traps

SpecialistPlumbing & wet worksTechnical decisionGet specification / site review
Specialist tradeELS coordinates
  • Standard bottle trapsBaseline
  • Anti-odour deep-seal trapsEssentialLow
  • Concealed / linear wasteSignatureModerate
See what each option changes
Standard bottle traps
In use
Basic traps work day to day, but a shallow water seal can dry out or get pushed through, letting drain smell back into a Sarawak wet kitchen.
Cost impact
Baseline — specialist quotation required
How it looks
Standard white traps under the sink.
Anti-odour deep-seal traps
In use
Deeper water seals and anti-odour traps hold against evaporation and back-pressure — no drain smell rising in the heat.
Cost impact
Low — specialist quotation required
How it looks
Unobtrusive; the benefit is the absence of smell, not a visible part.
Concealed / linear waste
In use
Concealed bottle-less wastes and linear channel drains — a little more to clean well, but the cleanest look and the fastest drainage.
Cost impact
Moderate — specialist quotation required
How it looks
A slim linear channel or a near-invisible waste; minimal and modern.
Take this into your room plan

Leak containment

SpecialistPlumbing & wet worksTechnical decisionGet specification / site review
Specialist tradeELS coordinates
  • NoneBaseline
  • Trays & bunding under wet pointsEssentialLow
  • Leak sensors + auto shut-offBespokeHigh
See what each option changes
None
In use
No containment — a slow leak under a sink or water heater can soak the carcass and the floor before anyone notices.
Cost impact
Baseline — specialist quotation required
How it looks
Nothing added.
Trays & bunding under wet points
In use
Drip trays and bunding under the sink, water heater and washer catch a slow leak and drain it safely instead of into the cabinet.
Cost impact
Low — specialist quotation required
How it looks
Hidden inside the base cabinets; you never see them working.
Leak sensors + auto shut-off
In use
Leak sensors at the wet points trigger an automatic shut-off valve — the strongest protection against a burst while you are away; wiring is planned early.
Cost impact
High — specialist quotation required
How it looks
Small discreet sensors; the shut-off valve sits with the manifold, out of sight.
Take this into your room plan

Waterproofing & wet-area interface

SpecialistPlumbing & wet worksTechnical decisionGet specification / site review
Specialist tradeELS specifies
  • Basic wet-area coatBaseline
  • Full membrane + upstandsEssentialLow
  • Tanked wet roomSignatureModerate
See what each option changes
Basic wet-area coat
In use
A waterproofing coat to the wet floor — the minimum, but skipping the upstands and the tile-to-wall interface is exactly where Sarawak leaks begin.
Cost impact
Baseline — specialist quotation required
How it looks
Hidden under the tile; you only ever see the result, or the failure.
Full membrane + upstands
In use
A full membrane with upstands up the walls, sealed at pipe penetrations and the door threshold — the correctness that keeps water off the structure and the room below.
Cost impact
Low — specialist quotation required
How it looks
Invisible when done right; the sign of it is a dry ceiling below, for years.
Tanked wet room
In use
The whole wet room is tanked — floor and walls — for a curbless shower or a heavy-use wet kitchen; the most robust against standing water.
Cost impact
Moderate — specialist quotation required
How it looks
Enables a seamless, level-threshold wet room with no visible barrier.
Take this into your room plan

Each decision's badge shows who supplies it. A real figure belongs only to what ALUMAX supplies; appointed-trade works — electrical, air-conditioning, ceiling, flooring, painting, data and security — are quoted by the trade, and loose items are the owner's own purchase. ELS specifies and coordinates throughout. Cost is a relative direction only, never a price; maintenance is described in each option's “In use”.

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Water & drainage — Room Decision System | ELS