What a house call usually covers
- Kitchen, bathroom and laundry drains that back up or run slowly
- Main sewer lines that gurgle, smell or flood the floor drain
- Pinhole leaks in copper, failed poly-B fittings and seized shut-off valves
- Gas and electric tank heaters, plus tankless units that throw error codes
- Toilets that rock, run or leak at the base
- Sump crocks, discharge lines and backwater valves in finished basements
Housing stock we know well
Most Scarborough houses were built between the late 1940s and the 1980s. That means cast iron stacks and clay laterals in the older bungalows, copper supply lines that are now fifty or more years old, and plenty of basements finished long after the plumbing was roughed in. Newer townhouse rows and condo towers bring PEX, ABS and shared risers, which change who is responsible for which pipe.
- Post-war bungalows: cast iron, clay sewer laterals, low basement ceilings
- Backsplits and sidesplits: long horizontal drain runs and several floor levels
- Semis and towns: shared walls, tight mechanical rooms, stacked bathrooms
- Condo suites: in-suite valves, building risers and property-manager sign-off
Margin note: Ask for the main shut-off location on the first call. If nobody in the house knows, finding it is the first thing we do on site.
How a residential visit runs
- Phone in and tell us the symptoms: the sound, the smell, the puddle
- We tell you which valve or breaker to turn off while you wait
- The plumber arrives, lays drop cloths and finds the cause
- You see the problem and the price before any cutting starts
- Repair, then water run through it and every joint checked dry
Where to go next
Each repair has its own page with the tools, parts and tests involved. The house files explain what to expect from your type of home, and the workbook covers the jobs you can safely handle yourself before calling.