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Needing a Plumber? – DIY or Through a Contractor?

Even people who aren’t particularly handy often find it difficult to resist browsing the aisles of hardware stores. It can be a very educational experience whether you ever intend to attempt a DIY project or not.

There are now so many home shows and fairs to attend, not to mention the lineup of TV shows with projects for home and garden, that it’s hard to avoid catching the bug of inspiration to get started on a bit of home improvement.

The Moment of Truth

You spot a display of enticingly shiny, clean towel bars, toilet paper holders and other matching accessories and begin to imagine how much better they would look if it weren’t for the old, leaky sink faucet with the broken handle.

The new faucets are lovely, too, although they would make it hard to ignore the ugly sink that is stained, chipped or cracked. Not to worry, says the sign, “we can have someone install it for you.”

This would add to the cost, of course, but aren’t you saving a ton o’ money by buying the fixtures yourself at a bargain price? You might be.

Plastic is a wonderful thing for many applications, like water pipes, and the right plastic items can offer durability, light weight, affordable price and ease of use. However plastic is often not as durable and reliable when it is used for working parts inside of other things like faucets or valves.

Finding Real Savings

Many manufacturers make their products in a number of grades and it does generally cost more to buy high quality items. One way to get a grip on different quality levels is to do online comparison shopping, where you can often see items that won’t typically be offered at the local hardware or big box store.

You will often see that quality plumbing parts and fixtures have much longer warranties and you can compare the different materials used to make them. In many cases, the labor cost for installation is about the same, regardless of the quality of the item being installed.

By adding together the cost of the item and the labor to install it, then dividing by the number of years you expect the item to last, you get a more realistic estimate of the actual cost comparison between different items. Remember that cheaper items with plastic parts will rarely last as long as quality items, which may have a lifetime guarantee.

Also consider that there are a number of places that offer free or low cost classes on home improvement. If you can do relatively simple jobs yourself, it may make sense to buy a lower priced item and just enjoy the upgraded appearance for a couple of years if you are planning to either move or do a major remodel later.

Online shopping can help you get a better idea of all the items and quality levels available and reach a realistic decision on how much you need to pay for the performance you expect, even if you decide to go for the lower or mid price models available locally. These can make your home more livable and enjoyable until you either move or decide to finally upgrade that kitchen or bath to the room of your dreams.

If you will be paying for installation and expect the item to last five years or more, discuss the price of ordering higher quality items yourself with your plumbing contractor to determine which purchasing method will give you a better price overall.

Pipe Insulation Is a Smart & Easy Money Saver

If you live in Cambridge, (or any cold weather place for that matter) then this is a smart move.  There are few DIY projects that are as simple, low cost, and loaded with immediate paybacks as insulating your water pipes. With the cost of hot water heating consuming roughly 15 to 25% of the energy bill in the average US home, the return on investment for installing insulation on hot water pipes results in the homeowner showing a profit on this small investment in less than a year, often within only a few months.

Prevent Damage – Cold Water Pipes

Burst pipes can result in an enormous amount of water damage in a very short time and the cost of replacing the damaged pipe will seem minor after you figure in the cost of replacing water-logged flooring, sub-flooring, drywall, damaged electrical components and personal property.

Many people in the southern US think this can’t happen to them since temperatures rarely stay below freezing for long periods of time, but this isn’t true. Just like humans, water pipes are subject to wind chill, meaning that the effective temperature may be much lower than the reading on the thermometer.

Gaps in siding or exterior locations where different materials meet are frequent culprits in allowing cold winds to reach areas where water pipes are located. If insulation in the walls has settled, or the insulation was never adequate to begin with, pipes running through walls may not have adequate protection. This can be a problem with kitchen sinks, for example, which are often located on exterior walls to provide a window above. Insulation can be blown into areas where you can’t reach the pipe to wrap it.

Where pipes run through attics, unheated basement areas or crawl spaces, people often assume that if the area is insulated, the pipes are not at risk. This may be true if the pipes are well covered by other insulation, but it’s important to inspect the length of each pipe, especially where pipes enter the building or go through any other walls or barriers. These are often exactly the spots where cold winds can reach the pipes.

Save Energy – Hot Water Pipes

The moment hot water leaves the hot water tank, it starts losing heat as it travels toward the end point of usage. The longer the distance from tank to point of use, the greater the loss. This means that thermostat settings need to be higher to deliver water at the desired temperature and a higher percentage of hot water must be mixed with cold water in order to produce nice warm water.

Both of these run up the energy bill in a way that makes no sense when you consider how cheap and easy it is to insulate the pipes. The simplest pipe insulation is flexible and already comes in a tube shape with a slit which allows you to just slip it over the pipe and secure in place with the recommended tape.

Where you have extremes of weather or underground pipes, there are special types of insulation that use closed cells and come in a more rigid material. There are also sophisticated foams and other advanced materials. Some are constructed especially to resist moisture buildup, while others can actually wick moisture away from the pipes, which can add years to the life of the pipes.

A Few Words of Caution

Heat tapes and cables and hot water heater insulation (usually called a blanket) are other methods of preventing energy loss or protecting pipes from freezing. All of them are effective, but it is very important to follow the manufacturer’s recommendations and local building codes to avoid the possibility of inadvertently damaging the heater or pipes or creating a fire hazard.

Finding a Plumber In Cambridge, MA

There are steps you can take to help eliminate some of the stress and worry when seeking to hire a competent plumber.

Licensed: Most states now make it possible to go online and check to be certain that the plumber you call currently holds a valid license to do plumbing in that state and you should always do this, even when facing an emergency.

Insured: It is also important to be sure that the plumber carries both workman’s compensation insurance and commercial general liability insurance which will protect you and your property should a worker be injured or your home damaged during the job. While it is more common that older homes have unexpected problems, it can occur on any job. If the plumber does not carry liability insurance and damage occurs, you may be forced to seek redress from your own homeowner’s policy which is best avoided.

Sometimes fittings become stuck and break when removal is attempted, even if reasonable precautions are taken. Fixtures that appear to be in perfect condition can have hidden flaws that may not appear until someone attempts to work on them, so allowing work to proceed without proper coverage is foolish as such repairs can be expensive.

Written bids: An overflowing toilet scenario is not exactly conducive to a lengthy negotiation, but the plumber should be able to give you a quick written estimate for the service call and a “not to exceed” figure for the repair including parts and labor. If an unexpected problem is encountered, it is reasonable to renegotiate this before further work is done, but you should make it clear that you expect to be told in advance if the original estimate will be exceeded and that additional cost must be OK’d by you first.

At this point, you will probably still have to pay for the basic service call and any work done so far but, if the contractor makes you uneasy, pay him for his advice and seek someone else.

Bonds: Some states also require contractors to carry performance bonds which are usually designed to assure that all work is done to code and at least minimum standards, but the exact coverage can vary widely and does not necessarily guarantee the integrity or financial responsibility of the contractor and a bond does not take the place of quality references.

References: A good work history in your community and good references are as important as any insurance since you want the work done properly, at a fair price, to begin with. Plumbing companies are often rated by the BBB and other service groups or pre-screened by an organization and, while these ratings are also not necessarily guarantees of future performance, an unblemished record is certainly a positive thing.

If a contractor will be spending much time in your home, you may even wish to run a criminal background check just for your own reassurance. A list of satisfied customers is another plus, although of course a contractor would not list someone with whom there was a major dispute. Nevertheless, you can find out from those on the list whether the plumber performed as agreed, completed the job on time and on budget, was pleasant and easy to work with and whether the former customer would still recommend that plumber to friends or family.

Professional Affiliations: If the plumber belongs to the local Chamber of Commerce and other business and professional groups, this is another level of assurance.

For a simple job, a local plumber with a current license is probably sufficient in a pinch, but for larger jobs you should check as many sources as possible.

A plumber with years of experience will be only too happy to let you know about his/her apprenticeship, journey or master level or additional schooling and certificates they have completed to establish their competency and reputation. Look for websites in your state that list such certificates of competency and whether the information is still current.