Maybe you’ve finally had it with that drippy faucet. Or the slow-running drain. Or your balky toilet. Or maybe it’s more urgent: Your dishwasher flooded the kitchen, or there’s an ominous water stain on the ceiling directly beneath the upstairs bathroom.
But, as you’d expect, Checkbook also found that many plumbing outfits scored poorly overall, with reviews that frequently include words such as “overcharged,” “unprofessional,” “incompetent,” “rude,” “messy,” “no-show” and “dishonest.”
Once you’ve identified several possible companies, price should be your next consideration. Fortunately, you don’t have to pay more to get good work: Checkbook found that many of the companies that rate best for the quality of their work also are among the lowest in price. Washington Consumers’ Checkbook’s undercover shoppers requested price quotes for five plumbing jobs and found that costs varied dramatically for the same work. For example, prices to supply and install an InSinkErator Badger 5 garbage disposal ranged from $200 to $650. And prices to supply and install a Bradford White model RG250T6N 50-gallon water heater ranged from $1,195 to $2,800.
If you have a large remodeling job — a new kitchen or bathroom, for instance — then getting several bids is especially critical. A significant amount of money is at stake, and the percentage of variation in prices on such major jobs is larger than the variation on smaller installation jobs.
Unfortunately, although it’s fairly straightforward to get price quotes for plumbing installation or remodeling work, it’s often difficult to get accurate pricing for repairs in advance. Your best bet is to call a few reputable companies. Then:
- Provide a detailed description of your problem.
- Find out how the company computes charges for labor. Get its minimum charge and what that includes, the time unit it uses to calculate charges (10-minute increments? 15? 30?), and how much it charges per time unit.
- Get an ETA. If you want to know exactly when a plumber will arrive, request the first service call of the day.
- Clear the area. You don’t want to pay someone $150 an hour to remove junk from underneath your kitchen sink.
- Stick around — but stay out of the way. Remember that the plumber is on the clock until that person writes up the ticket.
- Get a firm price before giving any go-ahead. If it’s a simple fix, you probably won’t pay much more than the company’s minimum service fee. But if your repair is complex or costly, getting a price in advance eliminates the possibility of sticker shock after the work is done — and gives you a chance to collect prices from other outfits if you think you’re being overcharged.
Of course, the best way to avoid plumbing problems is to follow some basic rules for keeping your plumbing in good order. You should:
- Make sure everyone in your household knows where the water shut-off valves are and how to use them. If you don’t know, ask a plumber to give you a tour, then label each valve with a description of its function and instructions for turning it off. If a pipe bursts, quickly stopping the flow of leaking water can prevent extensive damage. Once or twice a year, test the main water shut-off valve to your home to ensure it’s working properly.
- Periodically check exposed pipes, faucets and your water heater for leaks. Regularly inspect ceilings and walls for signs of water damage. If you find a leak, have it repaired immediately.
- Have your septic tank system inspected regularly by a licensed professional.
- Install smoke and carbon monoxide detectors near your water heater and furnace.
- Keep all flammable and combustible materials away from your water heater.
- Have a plumber or heating and air-conditioning service check your water heater’s venting for proper draft and ensure the room is properly ventilated.
- Dispose of grease or rendered fat in the trash. Never pour it down a drain.
- Cover bathtub and shower drains with screens to prevent hair from clogging pipes.
- Pay close attention to the directions and warning labels for chemical drain cleaners, because they are dangerous. When pouring a cleaner, avert your face and keep it as far away as possible from the bottle and the drain.
- Avoid using a drain cleaner if a drain is completely clogged, because it will probably produce a large pool of highly caustic water. Also, using a drain cleaner on completely clogged drains may simply enlarge the blockage. Try a plunger. If that doesn’t work, call a professional.
- Use insulation to cover pipes that run through exterior walls, an attic, crawl space or unheated basement to prevent pipes from freezing — and possibly bursting. If a certain section of pipe is highly susceptible to freezing, use electric heat tape to keep the pipe warm.
- Use shut-off valves inside your home during winter to turn off the water supply to outside spigots, remove hoses attached to the house and turn on the spigots to drain any remaining water from the pipes.
- Avoid shutting off your heating system completely if you will be away from home during winter. Instead, set your thermostat to 55 degrees to keep your pipes from freezing.
- Periodically check the temperature setting of your water heater; most models should be set between 120 and 140 degrees. Running the burner at the lower end of that range saves energy and extends the life of the appliance. Follow the manufacturer’s instructions for how to drain the sediment from the bottom of your model, and do that once a year. If it seems too complicated, ask a plumber or HVAC repair person to do it for you the next time one comes to your home to fix something else.
- Avoid flushing anything down the toilet that doesn’t belong there. Items that can clog up the works include: baby and other types of wipes (even those that claim to be “flushable”), paper towels, feminine products, disposable diapers, cat litter, hair and more.
- Use care when operating your garbage disposal. Make sure its on-off switch is not located in an area where it can be accidentally turned on. If you have children, consider buying a batch-feed model that won’t operate without a stopper in place.
- Heed the warnings in your garbage disposal’s operating manual. Many models can become clogged if you try to dispose of coffee grounds, uncooked rice and more. Always run a steady stream of water into your disposal when in use.
- Free floor drains. Avoid expensive backups by pouring water into indoor drains to make sure they work. Ensure that outdoor drains aren’t covered or clogged with leaves and other debris.
- Flush a half-cup of copper sulfate crystals down a toilet if you’ve had backups in your main sewer line due to tree roots invading the works, because doing so will kill the roots. Don’t pour them down a sink or bath drain, because they might corrode your indoor pipes.
Kevin Brasler is executive editor of Washington Consumers’ Checkbook magazine and Checkbook.org, a nonprofit organization with a mission to help consumers get the best service and lowest prices. It is supported by consumers and takes no money from the service providers it evaluates. You can access Checkbook’s ratings of local plumbers free of charge until Nov. 20 at Checkbook.org/WashingtonPost/Plumbers.
