Commercial Plumber in Morgan Hill, CA

A Property Manager’s Guide to Plumbing in Morgan Hill

Water and sewer are run by the City

The City of Morgan Hill provides both water and sewer service, and most customers get a single bill for the two. Its Water Division runs a groundwater system of wells, pumping stations and reservoirs; its Wastewater Division maintains the sewer mains and lift stations. Sewage doesn’t stay in town: it flows through a trunk sewer to the treatment plant in Gilroy owned by the South County Regional Wastewater Authority (SCRWA), a joint powers authority of Morgan Hill and Gilroy. Save the Utilities team’s number with your building’s emergency contacts: 408-776-7333 at the Corporation Yard, 100 Edes Court (Monday to Thursday 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., Friday 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.). Leaks and sewer spills can also be reported through the City’s SeeClickFix portal.

Sewer laterals: the owner’s pipe, inspected at sale

Under Municipal Code section 13.20.070, the private sewer lateral, from the building to the public main including the connection to the main, belongs to the property owner and isn’t part of the public sewer. Owners must keep it free of displaced or open joints, roots, cracks, leaks and grease.

Morgan Hill also checks laterals when property changes hands. The City’s point-of-sale program applies to residential, commercial and industrial properties more than 15 years old (in 2026, those built before 2011):

• Camera inspection: a contractor on the City’s Qualified Contractor list (C-36 license, Morgan Hill business license and NASSCO certification) inspects the lateral by CCTV and submits the report online.
• Repairs: any licensed plumbing contractor with a Morgan Hill business license can make them, followed by a passing re-inspection. Repairs on private property need a plumbing permit; work in the sidewalk or street needs an Engineering encroachment permit.
• Certificate: the City issues a Certificate of Compliance within five business days of verifying a passing report; it’s valid for 10 years, and the buyer needs it to start water service.
• Transfer option: seller and buyer can sign a notarized Transfer of Responsibility form, after which the buyer has 180 days to complete repairs or face penalties, up to water shutoff.

The same rule applies before a new building connects to an existing lateral: it must pass inspection before the building permit’s final. Separately, buildings built on or before January 1, 1994 need a plumbing fixture inspection at sale, and toilets, urinals and showerheads made in 1993 or earlier must be replaced with high-efficiency models. See commercial sewer repair.

Apartments, condos and business complexes: shared sewer inspections

Where laterals from several buildings join a private sewer main before reaching the City’s, Morgan Hill treats it as a private sanitary sewer collection system: apartment complexes, condominiums, townhomes, mobile home parks and business complexes. These systems need an inspection by a Qualified Contractor every 2 years if they serve 10 or more buildings, and every 5 years if they serve fewer, with repairs to City standards. Newer properties are exempt, on a cutoff that moves forward each year. Whether a given townhome or apartment property counts as a shared system or a single lateral depends on how it connects to the City main; the City’s Environmental Services team (408-310-4169) can confirm.

Restaurants: grease rules come from SCRWA

The treatment plant is operated by the City of Gilroy, which provides the pretreatment and FOG (fats, oils and grease) program services for Morgan Hill under SCRWA’s discharge permit. SCRWA’s pretreatment program covers every non-residential discharger, and its 2024 Sewer Use Ordinance sets the grease interceptor rules:

• Restaurants, bakeries, take-out, hotels, hospitals, markets, reception halls and similar businesses must have a grease interceptor.
• Each interceptor serves only one business and must stay easily accessible for inspection, cleaning and grease removal.
• Pot sinks, dishwashers, floor drains and other kitchen fixtures can drain through it only with SCRWA’s approval; toilets and urinals never can.
• Interceptors must be kept in working order by periodic grease removal, and remodels that create a use needing one are subject to the same rules.
• No user may connect or discharge to the sewer without a wastewater discharge permit or authorization from SCRWA, and new users that need a permit apply at least 90 days before connecting.

SCRWA is at 1500 Southside Drive in Gilroy (408-848-0480). Pumping deals with the interceptor; scheduled hydro jetting keeps the kitchen lines leading to it open.

Backflow testing

The City’s Cross Connection Control Program requires backflow prevention on fire services and some domestic services. The City surveys for sites that need protection and contacts newly identified addresses each year. Accepted devices are lead-free reduced-pressure assemblies or, in a few cases, lead-free double checks. Assemblies are owned and maintained by the customer and must be tested every year. The City contracts with BSI Online to send notices and track results: testers enter each test at bsionline.com, and customers can reach BSI’s support line at 888-966-6050. We install and repair the assemblies these rules require; see backflow preventers.

Permits for commercial plumbing work

Morgan Hill’s Building & Fire Prevention division (408-778-6480) requires a permit for every water heater replacement. Its online permits (eTRAKiT) cover only residential reroofs, repipes, solar and water heaters applied for by a contractor; commercial work is submitted as a PDF application to permits@morganhill.ca.gov or over the counter at City Hall, 17575 Peak Avenue. Since January 1, 2026, applications must meet the 2025 California Building Standards Codes. A heat pump water heater conversion needs the manufacturer’s spec sheet and, unless the main panel is 200 A or larger, electrical load calculations. Construction hours are 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturdays, with no work on Sundays or federal holidays.

Water heaters: hard well water and SVCE rebates

All of Morgan Hill’s water is groundwater from the Coyote and Llagas aquifers, pumped by 16 active City wells. The 2025 water quality report measured hardness at 201–276 ppm, averaging about 234, which is hard water: expect scale in tank and tankless water heaters, boilers and fixtures, and plan on flushing and descaling. When it’s time to replace, Silicon Valley Clean Energy, the electricity provider for Morgan Hill, offers business rebates for heat pump water heaters replacing gas or electric resistance units. The application must be approved before installation, tankless models don’t qualify, and the claim needs the permit signed by the City inspector. See commercial water heaters.

Multifamily submeters

The Municipal Code (section 13.04.130) requires each water customer to be separately metered. Multifamily owners who use privately owned submeters instead need a City submeter permit, must bill each tenant for the water their unit uses, and must renew annually with documentation of monthly water charges; a lapsed permit can lead to suspended water service.

Sources

City of Morgan Hill: Utility services · Water Division · Wastewater Division · Utilities – Corporation Yard · Utility inspections at property sale · Private sewer lateral FAQs · Plumbing fixture FAQs · Qualified contractors · Ordinance 2322 (private sewer laterals) · Private sanitary sewer collection systems · 2022 Sanitary Sewer Management Plan · Cross Connection Control Program · Building & Fire Prevention · Water heater replacement · Encroachment permits · Submeter permits · 2025 Consumer Confidence Report. South County Regional Wastewater Authority (City of Gilroy): Industrial discharge · 2024 Sewer Use Ordinance. Silicon Valley Clean Energy: Business rebates · Business rebate equipment specifications · Communities served. Checked October 2026.