How to Choose Best Plumbing Advice. Pay a Little, Save a Lot

Have you considered which plumbing advice worth taking?

It’s easy to ask for and get a plumbing advice for free, but is it worth taking? How do you know?

In the video below, we show you an example that would give you a clearer view on it.

We have come across people who are obsessed with free quote/plumbing advice. But is it wise to make a decision out of a free advice?

Would you go to a doctor or a lawyer or an accountant that gives you a free advice? And would you take them on board and start implementing them?

It’s very important to call out people who would give you a sound advice, not just taking care of their own best interest.

Here’s an example.

At a job we went to, we were called because their hot water system was pouring out water. The tank was rusted out. It was a 135 litre Rheem, about 15 years old. This type of hot water system was probably designed 40 years ago and haven’t changed much.

Would you buy a phone or a car that was designed 40 years ago? You wouldn’t. There’s such better stuff out in the market.

Another thing is, the location of the hot water system in this case was illegal. It was moved to another location for some reason, and now it was too close from the external wall. It needs to be about 500 metres away from the external wall and clearly it was below that. So even if we wanted to, we couldn’t just stick a new hot water system in the same location. It’s illegal.

The other option is to put it on another wall, but as you can see in the video, there was only one other wall. If we did move it there, it would mean extending the pipes and moving things around, which is not hard to do, but is it really the best location for the house?

We knew it was convenient and easy because the gas and the water were there, but your hot water system needs to be next to your kitchen. That’s where the best location is. When you want to rinse a cup or a plate, you would want hot water straight away. While when you take a shower, by the time you take your clothes off, the water should already be hot. You wouldn’t mind waiting for 30-40 seconds for the hot water to come through.

Our advice

So we advised to our client to shift the location of the hot water system as well as switching to a instantaneous one like a B16. That’s what we used at our place, working great with 4 kids.

It is a bit more work, but definitely worth it. We explained to him the reasons why, and he agreed.

We showed you in the video the new location – near the kitchen. So when they need to rinse a plate, they can get hot water straight away.

Watch the video till the end to see the result!

Hope this makes sense. You can ring around and get a free quote on replacing a storage hot water system. But the problem is, when the plumber comes out with the new hot water system, they would tell you that the location is illegal, and you would need to pay more that you expected. You might also need other extra things that you didn’t know about.

Even if you get a plumber out for a free quote, will they give you other options and wise advices? Like in this case, it only cost a couple hundred dollars extra, and now they have an efficient and safe hot water system.

It’s not always about getting the free quote. That’s not where you’re saving money. Whatever decision you make, you’ll be stuck with it for a long time, and it might cost you more money along the way. It’s about making a good investment, and getting a plumber who cares about you, not just doing the easiest or cheapest job.

If you need help, give us a call. We’ll be happy to help.