How to celebrate international Hug a Plumber Day this 25 April

Give a special thank-you to the unsung heroes that keep our lives flowing—literally. Without plumbers, we would live in a much more disgusting world.

Quick facts

• • When is it? Every April 25th
  • #HugaPlumberDay #NationalHugAPlumberDay

There is a group of unsung heroes who have brought to everyone in the world the convenience and comfort of life as we know it over the past millennia. Every day they work to ensure that people have water flowing to their homes, that the toilet washes away the unmentionable results of being human, and that our clothes can all be washed and the dirt that had soiled them taken away. And, of course, these fabulous people are known as plumbers!

Hug A Plumber Day reminds everyone across the world to sing the praises of these important men and women who make sure that modern living remains clean.

It’s not just about sewers and toilets

The history of plumbers goes back to the birth of indoor plumbing and sewers, as well as allowing civilization to move away from naturally occurring bodies of fresh water. Initially, people who performed plumbing activities had to ensure that all of the wastewater from a community was piped into the river or another body of water the community was built on.

But, as time and infrastructure improved, plumbers built massive pipelines that brought fresh water inland and moved sewage away to treatment plants where it could be passed into natural waterways.

Of course, the most visible, and arguably one of the most important, variety of plumbers are those who provide services for all of the homes in a community. When a family has a leak in their home, the toilet clogged and the plunger just isn’t doing its job, it’s time to call not ghostbusters but the plumber.

When building a new home and there’s a need to make sure it’s all piped correctly, then plumbers are there to make sure that the new home will remain comfortable for decades to come.

It’s also important to remember that calling a plumber can actually be helpful for saving water, which makes the environment more sustainable and also saves on regular water bills. Plumbers can help to stop dripping faucets, which can waste huge amounts of water. They can also help homeowners and business owners to upgrade to more eco-friendly toilets, shower heads, and drainage pipes.

Hug A Plumber Day reminds people that many of their modern comforts exist because of the tireless efforts of plumbers, and giving them a hug is the least that can be done to thank them.

Plumbing timeline

• • 300 BC: Romans start building aqueducts. Wealthy Roman rulers and others have a system of aqueducts built to deliver water through pipes, tunnels, canals and bridges.[1]
  • 1596: First flushable toilet is created. Invented by Sir John Harington, the godson of Queen Elizabeth I, the first modern flushable toilet is invented.
  • 1829: First indoor plumbing installed at a hotel. The Tremont Hotel of Boston is the first to feature indoor plumbing for its guests with eight ‘water closets’.
  • 1855: America’s first citywide sewer system is built. In Chicago, Illinois, the flow of the river is reversed and canal construction is completed which helps transform the city into an international hub.
  • 2003: First international plumbing codes are established. The International Code Council is created to ensure standards in plumbing projects around the world.

Hug or show appreciation to a plumber

Hug A Plumber Day is remarkably easy to celebrate. Try out some of the following ideas: The first and most obvious way is to find a friendly plumber in your life, and wrap them in a big hug to thank them for doing the job that so few people will do.

If you don’t know any plumbers well enough to hug them, then come up with some of your own creative ways to appreciate a plumber. One way is by simply saying a kind ‘thank you’. Also remember that there is a lot to be thankful for. Every time you take a shower, wash your hands, get a glass of water, or flush the toilet, somewhere out there in the world there is a plumber to thank. And Hug a Plumber Day is the perfect time to do it.

Write a positive review for your regular plumber

Writing a positive online review for a local plumber is a wonderful way to thank them this Hug a Plumber Day. You can also recommend your regular plumber to a friend, post some positive feedback on their website or give them a thumbs up on Google, LinkerIn or other business pages. It’s a great way to show appreciation and give them a virtual hug.

Learn more about plumbing

One of the best ways to show a plumber how much they are appreciated is to swot up on the work that they do.

To get you started, here’s some fast facts and history about plumbing:

• • Standardised plumbing can be traced all the way back to 3000 BC when pipes were used in the Indus River Valley civilization
  • 300 BC: Romans started building aqueducts. Wealthy Roman rulers and others built a system of aqueducts to deliver water through pipes, tunnels, canals and bridges
  • The origin of the word plumber comes from the Latin word ‘plumbum’ meaning ‘lead’, which is the material pipes were made from originally. This is also why lead is abbreviated as Pb on the periodic table
  • 1596: The first flushable toilet is created. Invented by Sir John Harington, the godson of Queen Elizabeth I, the first modern flushable toilet is invented
  • 1829: The first indoor plumbing system was installed at a hotel. The Tremont Hotel of Boston was the first to feature indoor plumbing for its guests with eight ‘water closets’
  • The first faucet that allowed cold and hot water to flow with the turn of just one handle was invented in 1939 by Al Moen.
  • 1855: America’s first citywide sewer system was built. In Chicago, Illinois, the flow of the river being reversed and canal construction completed which helped transform the city into an international hub
  • Since 1963, tons of copper pipe has been installed in the US. In fact, it’s enough to wrap around the planet Earth 200 times
  • 2003: The first international plumbing codes were established. The International Code Council is created to ensure standards in plumbing projects around the world.

Reworked by Eamonn Ryan