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YOUR PLUMBING SCHEMATIC
 A plumbing schematic is as basic as it gets. Plumbing your own bathroom, kitchen or even upgrading pipes and fixtures can seem like a monumental task, but if you start here, you’ll take your first step to plumbing success! The fact is that it's not always as simple as you might wish it were, but it’s doable ... even by those with minimal do-it-yourself plumbing skills if you plan ahead. A plumbing schematic (also called a plumbing diagram) is needed to get a plumbing permit and is very important when you go to buy the parts you’ll need. A few simple symbols and their actual fittings shown right.
 Generally, when upgrading, replacing or moving any plumbing fixture you're going to need a plumbing permit. The drawing (left) was made using those few symbols above, which ultimately resulted in the finished project (below) shown in illustration. Make sure you check with your local building department, as some cities and municipalities offer their own rules for who can and cannot work on your plumbing.
Keep in mind that, if you so choose, you are the General Contractor if you own the home, and  therefore are allowed to do most of the remodeling projects, including producing your floor plans and plumbing schematic, in that home.
Permits are cheap anyway, and are there to provide that things don’t leak and drains (actually the stuff in them) flow downhill.
If you’ve decided to do the plumbing yourself, congratulations! Take your time and gather all the knowledge and information you can, then go scout out the parts. There are many types of pipes and fittings, but in today’s world, PVC rules. Click the previous link to see the range of materials. To learn some of the things you can and cannot do yourself and how to think about your bathroom plumbing diagram visit this page.
Before you do anything, however, make sure you know how to shut off the main water supply to the house.  Most homes have a shut-off valve in a small concrete box in the ground close to the street (left). A small rectangular, round cornered cover at ground level—with the word “Water” embossed on it—can be opened, and the shut-off valve closed using a tool called a Water Shut-Off Wrench (below), available at hardware stores and big boxes for a few dollars. Every homeowner should have one of these for emergencies.
Finally, heres a plumbing symbols sheet that has all—and we mean all—of the symbols you’ll ever need.
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