18 AAC 31.515. Plumbing

(a) Except for a food establishment described in (e) of this section, the operator of a food establishment shall ensure that plumbing is sized, installed, and maintained as required by applicable state and local plumbing codes and is consistent with good public health practices.

(b) Cross-connections between potable and nonpotable water supplies, chemical feed lines, or similar devices are prohibited.

(1) any nonpotable water system is used only for fire protection, air conditioning, heating, or flushing toilets;

(2) each outlet on a nonpotable water line is posted: "DANGER-UNSAFE WATER";

(3) hot and cold running water under pressure is provided to all plumbing fixtures with faucets, including handwash, warewashing, preparation, processing, and janitorial sinks;

(4) a potable water system is equipped with devices to prevent backflow and back-siphonage at fixtures and equipment unless a permanent air gap at least twice the diameter of the water supply inlet separates the water supply inlet and the equipment or fixture's flood level rim;

(5) a hose is not attached to a faucet unless a backflow prevention device is installed on the faucet or a permanent air gap at least twice the diameter of the water supply inlet is maintained;

(6) grease traps, if used, are accessible for cleaning and kept clean;

(7) warewashing machines are not directly connected to the sewage system; if a warewashing machine is located next to a floor drain with a trap, the warewasher's waste outlet may be connected directly on the inlet side of the floor drain trap;

(8) drain lines from equipment do not discharge wastewater directly on a floor; and

(9) a minimum of a double check valve or an approved reduced-pressure backflow assembly is installed between copper pipe or copper tubing and a carbonated beverage dispensing machine.

(d) The operator of a food establishment shall ensure that fixtures or equipment in which food or drink is stored, prepared, or served, such as refrigerators, steam kettles, potato peelers, ice storage bins, and preparation sinks, are not directly connected to a drainage system. The operator shall ensure that this equipment is drained by means of indirect waste pipes and that the drained wastes discharge through an air break into an open floor sink or another approved receptor that is properly connected to the drainage system. The requirements of this subsection do not apply to

(1) a warewashing sink in a preparation area unless the sink is used to soak, wash, or prepare ready-to-eat food; or

(2) a walk-in refrigerator or combination walk-in, reach-in refrigerator used for storage and sales of products in bottles, cartons, or containers.

(e) The requirements of this section do not apply to a

(1) temporary food service subject to 18 AAC 31.600;

(2) limited food service that dispenses only prepackaged food and that meets the requirements of 18 AAC 31.610(c) ;

(3) mobile food unit that dispenses only prepackaged food and that meets the requirements of 18 AAC 31.620(g) ;

(4) mobile retail food vendor that sells only prepackaged food and that meets the requirements of 18 AAC 31.625(1) ; or

(5) kiosk that sells only prepackaged food and that meets the requirements of 18 AAC 31.615(c) .

History: Eff. 5/18/97, Register 142; am/readopt 12/19/99, Register 152

Authority: AS 17.20.005

Editor's note: Effective 12/19/99, Register 152, the Department of Environmental Conservation readopted 18 AAC 31.515, to affirm the validity of that section following statutory amendments made in ch. 72, SLA 1998. The department also amended 18 AAC 31.515(e) by adding a new paragraph. Chapter 72, SLA 1998 relocated department authority to adopt regulations in 18 AAC 31 from AS 03.05 to AS 17.20.

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