CertIBEau is the Water Certification for Buildings, which is mandatory since 1 June 2021 for buildings connected to the water supply for the first time and for large premises and establishments where water is supplied to the public.
This is an obligation for new buildings to have a certificate of conformity for internal water and sanitation installations.
CertIBEau is governed by a Decree of the Walloon Parliament (Belgian Gazette of 2 April 2019) and by an Order of the Walloon Government (Belgian Gazette of 9 December 2019).
Faulty sanitation facilities can pose health hazards and cause pollution. CertIBEau aims to better manage these water cycle risks in private homes and public buildings.
Its purpose is to verify compliance with the standards in force or, if necessary, to provide technical recommendations to secure compliance.
The certification covers 2 aspects:
Its challenges are therefore threefold: health, environment and information.
All buildings that are connected to the water supply for the first time as from 1 June 2021 (date of the connection application) must be certified. The installation must be compliant before the connection to the water supply is definitively put into service and for the building to have access to water. A CertIBEau is mandatory for each water meter.
We create your new connection and put it into operation temporarily. We limit the available water flow to about 150 l/hour and seal the valve with which this adjustment was made.
As soon as your entire private water installation is fully functional, you must contact a certifier to make an appointment to check the conformity of the "water" installation of your home, both with regard to the supply (water meter, non-return valve, connection of the rainwater tank, swimming pool, cistern, etc.) and the discharge (sewer, treatment plant, dispersal drain, etc.).
A list of certifiers is available at www.certibeau.be.
On the day of the audit, you (or your representative) must be present. You will need to ensure that you have unrestricted access to all facilities and actively participate (e.g. turning on a tap, flushing the toilet, etc.).
Useful tip: take photos of these installations as they are being built.
The approved certifier draws up a certificate form and a detailed visit report specifying, in particular, the conformity or otherwise of the installation as well as the list of non-conformities and any recommendations.
Depending on the outcome of the report, there are 4 possible scenarios:
Note that risk management does not stop once the CertIBEau is granted. You must also ensure that you maintain, operate and adjust your facilities correctly. For this purpose, fact sheets are available on the website www.certibeau.be.
The cost of this certification is freely determined by the market and will depend on the complexity of the project. More information about CertIBEau can be found at www.certibeau.be.