Sometimes when you call or meet with a plumber they can say things that might pass over your ears at first, but if you listen carefully and have a little background knowledge, this can go a long way in making sure you understand your plumber and what they’re really trying to say to you.
With this in mind, here’s our translation guide for when you speak to a plumber – or in other words… “what a plumber actually means when they say....”
“We’re pretty booked out at the moment”
Most people don’t know this but a Monday is typically the busiest day on a plumber’s schedule. Now we don’t want to offend any DIYers and handy hubby's, but many wives give us a call on a Monday asking us to fix something that’s been tinkered with over the weekend.
This being the case, if you call mid morning on a Monday you might find that a plumber has already got a lot of bookings. Sure most plumbers will try as hard as they can to fit you in but you will need to understand that there could be some waiting involved.
“Ok... let’s just calm down for a moment .”
This roughly translates into ‘there’s a green, rectangular lid in your front yard, if you lift that up and turn the tap inside the hole, this will turn your water off’.
It amazes us how many people call us that have water gushing out of a burst pipe or leaking tap and don’t know how to turn the mains water off on their property. In Brisbane you will find that most homes have a cover and tap that looks like the pictures below. Simply open the lid using the finger hole provided and turn the valve to the right and your water will be shut off.
“That’s not really my area of expertise”
As plumbers we spend a lot of time learning our trade. Hours and hours of working on the job and years of trial and error help us learn the tips and tricks that get the job done on time and in budget. We aren’t babysitters, builders, animal catchers or appliance and white good repairmen – please don’t ask us about these things.
“There’s a what in where?”
You wouldn't believe some of the things we’ve seen stuck in pipes, toilets and sinks. One of the more common things we see is the old ‘brick in the cistern’ that is now causing the toilet to not run properly. Another fairly regular occurrence is wedding rings or jewellery being flushed down the toilet.
What to do if a ring or jewellery has been flushed down the toilet:-
- First, remain calm – and if it was your husband’s fault, slap that man upside the head!
- DO NOT flush the toilet again and try to stop anyone else using it.
- Call us on 0412 634 599 as the ring could still be caught in the toilet trap.
- Sit back, remain calm and wait for us to arrive and take a look at your system to hopefully retrieve the ring.
If you’re determined to do this yourself (or make your hubby get his hands dirty) this link is going to get you on your way
“Do you have little ones?”
The main reason we ask this is because those ‘flushable’ bum wipes that are so popular now are a huge culprit in creating blocked pipes. Toilet paper easily degrades and breaks down when it’s flushed. Those wipes are a little stronger and don’t break down as easily so they tend to build up and block much quicker than other paper-based products.
“Yes, there are cheaper parts on the market but I don’t use those”
It always amazes me how hung up people get on saving a couple of bucks by buying cheaper parts. At the end of the day, like with everything in life, you get what you pay for. We tend to use medium to high quality parts depending on the job. Sure we can use top notch everything but who wants to pay a small fortune to get a Brisbane plumber to pop out and fix a tap.
We have used many different parts over the years and have discovered what works best in most situations. Take our word, we’re not trying to go out and charge like a wounded bull – that won’t get us anywhere! We simply offer our customers that balance between quality and budget.
So that’s it. If you hear your local Brisbane plumber say any of these things you know what he means and perhaps you’ve saved yourself some headache and hard earned dollars along the way!
Thanks for reading.
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