Plumbing Services in Glen Allen, VA

Glen Allen, VA

Plumbing services in Glen Allen look a little different from the city. Most of the houses here were built in the last few decades, in subdivisions spread between Mountain Road, Twin Hickory and the streets around Innsbrook and Wyndham, alongside a scattering of older homes on larger lots. Newer houses mean fewer rusted pipes, but they have their own common problems, and most of them start with the water heater, the drains and the supply lines hidden in the walls.

What we see in Glen Allen homes

The most common call here is a water heater. Many houses in the same subdivision were built within a few years of each other, so their original heaters tend to wear out at about the same time, and a leaking tank on one street is often followed by another a few doors down. We repair the ones worth repairing and replace the rest, with the heater, labor and permit priced on separate lines.

The second is drains. Busy family houses with several bathrooms send a lot of hair, soap and grease down the lines, and slow tubs and kitchen sinks are a regular call. We clear them, run them and explain what keeps them flowing.

The third is supply lines. Some houses built before the mid-nineties still have gray polybutylene supply pipe, which can split behind a wall or in a garage ceiling without warning. Newer houses use PEX or copper, but even those can leak at a fitting or a valve, especially where a line runs through an outside wall or a garage.

Slabs, crawl spaces and garages

Glen Allen has a mix of foundations. Crawl space houses make pipes easier to reach. Slab houses mean a hidden leak can run under the floor, which shows as a warm spot, a sound of running water or a meter that keeps turning with every tap off. Many houses keep the water heater in the garage, where cold winter air makes it work harder and puts the nearby pipes at risk on the hardest freezes.

Working with Henrico County

Glen Allen is in Henrico County, which issues plumbing permits, inspects permitted work and runs the public water and sewer service up to your meter and property line. If a backup or a pressure problem turns out to be on the county side, we tell you so you can call them.

Services for Glen Allen

We offer every service here that we offer in the city: water heater repair and replacement, drain cleaning, leak repair including hidden leaks under a slab, repiping for houses with polybutylene or failing lines, and emergency plumbing for water you can’t stop. The full list is on our plumbing services page, and the service area page covers Richmond and Midlothian too.

Services in Glen Allen

• Emergency plumbingA burst pipe, an overflowing toilet or no water at all: same-day visits when we can, with the after-hours rate told to you before we come.
• Drain cleaningSlow sinks, backed-up toilets and floor drains that gurgle, cleared and checked, with a camera look at the line when the clog keeps coming back.
• Leak repairDrips under the sink, wet spots on the ceiling and a water bill that jumps for no reason, found and fixed with a written price first.
• Water heater repair and replacementNo hot water, rusty water or a tank that leaks at the base: repaired when it's worth it, replaced with tank or tankless when it isn't.
• RepipingOld pipes that leak again and again, low pressure or discolored water, replaced with new lines and the walls patched behind us.

Guides

• Frozen and Burst Pipes in Richmond: What to DoWhat to do about frozen and burst pipes in Richmond, which pipes are most at risk, how to thaw a line safely and how to keep it from happening again.
• Repair or Replace a Water Heater? A Richmond GuideHow to decide whether to repair or replace a water heater in the Richmond area, with the signs to watch, what each choice involves and what to ask.
• Repiping an Older Richmond House, Step by StepWhat repiping an older Richmond house involves, which old pipes cause trouble, how to tell if yours need replacing and what to ask before you agree to a quote.
• Tree Roots in Sewer Lines Around MidlothianWhy tree roots get into sewer lines around Midlothian and Richmond, the warning signs, camera inspections and the choices for clearing or repairing a line.

Questions from Glen Allen

• Who issues plumbing permits in Glen Allen?

  Glen Allen is in Henrico County, so the county issues permits and inspects plumbing work such as water heater replacements and repipes. We file the permit and book the inspection for you.

• How do I know if my house has polybutylene pipe?

  Look where the water line enters the house, at the water heater connections and under sinks. Polybutylene is a flexible gray plastic, often with metal crimp rings at the joints. If you aren't sure, ask on any visit and the plumber checks.

• My water heater is in the garage. Does that matter?

  It can. A garage heater sits in a colder space in winter, so it works harder and the lines to it can be at risk of freezing. A drain pan and a leak alarm are worth having there, and we check the venting and the anchoring on every visit.