Services
Cold-country plumbing, by the job
Six kinds of work, all of it shaped by a place where the ground freezes for months.
Frozen pipes
We find the ice with a thermometer and our hands, thaw the pipe slowly without open flame, and check each joint for a split before the water comes back on.
Pipes on outside walls, in crawl spaces and in garages
Wrapped and sealed afterward
Burst and split pipes
We cut out the split, fit new pipe and test it under pressure. If it opened inside a wall, we show you where and agree the opening before we make it.
Copper, PEX and older galvanized
Shutoff and drain-down first
Water-service lines
The line from the street to the house freezes where the ground freezes deepest. We thaw it, look at it with a camera and write up the repair or replacement options.
Thaw and camera check
Options in writing, before any digging
Outside taps and hose bibs
A hose left on over winter splits the tap and the pipe behind it. We repair the tap, and fit a frost-resistant one where it makes sense.
Drain-down in the fall
Start-up and leak check in the spring
Cabins and seasonal homes
Drain the lines and the water heater in the fall, open the place in spring and look at every joint. If the heat fails while you are away, we'll go in once you say so.
Winterizing and spring start-up
A photo text when we've been
Rental properties
One call from you or the tenant, and a written note of what we found and did, for your records. Tell us who has the key.
Tenant photo texts welcome
Invoice to the owner
About the work
Before we start
Do you pull permits?
Where the work needs one, yes, and the estimate says so. A thawed pipe or a repaired split usually doesn't; replacing a water-service line usually does.
Will you open my wall?
Only after we show you why, and agree where and how big. Closing and painting it is separate work, and the estimate says who does it.
Do you fix water heaters?
Yes. A water heater in a cold basement works harder, and we'll say whether a repair is worth it or a replacement makes more sense.
Not sure which one it is?
Describe it on the phone or text a photo. We'll tell you what we think before anyone drives out.