Hiring a Plumber

What not to say to a plumber

In this podcast Greg talks about how to get the business relationship with a prospective plumber off on the right foot, with solid advice on what not to say to a plumber. Duration: 8:41

Frequently UNasked Questions;

• Why you don't always get a licensed plumber when you call one, and why it matters.
  

  A story:

  Acme Plumbing (a fictitious company)
  Joe Homeowner (a fictitious person)
  John - employee (a fictitious person)
  Free (the estimate on the phone)

  Joe Homeowner calls Acme Plumbing. A nice lady answer the phone and says "Acme Plumbing, home of the free estimate, license plumber for over 20 years."

  Joe Homeowner says, "I need you to send a plumber over hear ASAP."

  The nice lady at Acme says "within 60 minutes, sir!" and Joe responds "Great!"

  So, John shows up (he isn't really a fictitious person, he's a person working for the owner of Acme Plumbing.) John, has been doing this for two years now and has been riding along with another guy who has been working at Acme for 5 years. Neither of them are licensed plumbers, nor trained to any standard set anywhere. They sometimes do a good job, and sometimes not!

  John fixes the leak for an agreed amount and all is fine, until another leak causes Joe Homeowner to call and hire John again. John and Joe were "chummy" before and are still on OK terms now, because it's a different faucet leaking now and Joe figures John's last job worked (plus he seemed clean, honest, etc.), so he will use him again .

  This repeats itself five more times in six months, until Joe Homeowner is getting poor. John now tells him he needs a pressure regulator and that will cost $500. Joe nearly has a cow, and says "my regulator isn't leaking it looks fine, it’s all dry” , “I just want what work you have done to not leak”, “Don’t try to sell me more”, John explains: “your regulator is letting pressure thru so high its causing your faucets to drip, it’s not leaking externally, its leaking internally, and needs replacing “, Joe Homeowner replies, “If that’s what is wrong, why didn’t you fix that first?"

  But John didn't take a pressure reading when he first went to fix the faucets, so he didn't know the pressure was so high (over 150 psi in this case!). He didn't diagnose the cause of the leaking faucets to begin with, he waited until there were so many occurances of it, he couldn't ignore it any longer (plus he made more money with the additional service calls). He thought his work would not leak because it was new. The flow of water didn't reveal the high pressure, because the regulator was restricting the flow, but not the pressure. Once the faucet opened up the "push" was lost. Trained plumbers should know this.

  The pint being made is understanding system dynamics, thermal expansion, and other techie stuff is an important element of plumbing knowledge. Being a professional plumber is more than parts replacement and ability to solder, and “roto rooter” ( a misused term). Employees might be educated, even ethical, but not always. Employees are just that, they are not plumbing contractors. Further, all Licensed contractors aren’t all educated beyond passing a test given by State Licensing Board - which does not require continued education at all. So, 40 years can pass with multiple product developments and advancements, yet you're assured very little as to if the “plumber” knows how to, or even anything about the better advancements.

  Well done plumbing can and should last much longer and perform better than it commonly does today!
  

  Water pressure and flow are my specialty, and too often the cause of your problem. As you can see in this story example that the leak is often just the symptom, not the true problem.
  

  The good news is that I.A.P.M.O. link and the Green Plumbers USA have entered into an agreement to train “plumbers.” IAPMO happens to be the source of State Lic. Board Training material and test questions. Green Plumbers USA is a fairly new organization, but I will say that when/if Green plumbers USA gets done the Certification they offer will be worth more than the current State Lic. (that is our goal).
  

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• The Cost of Plumbing Service: Myths, Fears, and Facts
  

  

  When you go out to eat for breakfast, do you ask the restaurant manager how much he paid for the eggs, potatoes, and bacon on your plate?
  Of course not, though everyone expects the cost of the food to be marked up by a huge margin.
  

  If you took a taxi to your breakfast, you’d fully expect to pay a trip charge as well as a tip.

  But when it comes to plumbing, consumers sometimes have unfair expectations. They think, “If I knew how to solder, I could fix plumbing problems myself.”

  They ask, “That faucet only costs $40 at the store, why are you charging so much to install it?” More goes into soldering pipes or installing a faucet than goes into most breakfasts.

  Besides the charge for his expertise, you need to factor in that a plumber has the expense of a plumbing truck, tools, and parts. Not to mention a plumber is expected to have liability insurance and be trained to prevent or correct any potential problems that could occur during a service call.

  As a consumer, I can understand the fear of overpaying. However, the next time that you hire a plumber, try to consider all the expenses that go into plumbing work. That, or start bugging restaurant managers – you know, to be fair.

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