Some San Francisco Plumbers May Claim Great Service:
But You Should Check Their Qualifications Plumbers often specialize in (and may be limited to) certain plumbing tasks. A plumber that’s trained for basic repairs in your home may not be capable of large projects, such as a remodel or  copper repipe or a sewer line replacement.

The Expensive Phone Book Ads:
When you’re trying to find a plumber, don’t just look for the biggest ad in the phonebook. Large ads are very expensive, a full page ad alone can cost around 8K to 10K. These companies are slaves to the phone company and they charege more per service or they get you with upsells or unnecessary sales.

Beware of Multiple Estimates From The Yellow Pages:
When you check the ads you will notice multiple companies, but beware many of the ads are from the same company, who has simply a different business license. Your multiple estimates may be from the same company playing you. You should call several different San Francisco plumbers with different size ads. “With my insiders knowledge I would call the smaller ads closer to the back.

Step 1: Check Credentials of San Francisco Plumbers:
One step in scheduling a plumbing appointment requires that you check credentials before you spend valuable time making phone calls. After you’ve picked out a few plumbers who seem worth an inquiry, do some background research. Go to the CSLB Contractors State Licensing Board www.cslb.ca.gov and search by the plumbers contractors license.

Step 2: Describe The Work The Best You Can:
When you make your calls to local plumbers, try to be as concise as possible in describing the issues you’ve experienced. Even without any plumbing knowledge, you can check around the problem area to see what isn’t working. Let a plumber know if he’ll be dealing with anything out of the ordinary, such as unusual fixtures, outdated plumbing, or new technology. And for each call you make, be sure to tell the same story. This way, any time or monetary estimate will be measured accurately.

Step 3: Answer Questions & Take Notes:
You’ll learn a lot by the questions each plumber asks. Is he thorough in his questioning or does he just want to jump into an expensive house call? Take note of the concerns each plumber has and the responses that each gives you.

Step 4: Ask Questions & Take Notes
After you’ve gone through your description and listened to the comments made by the plumber, ask a few questions of your own. There are some things you should know before you consider making an appointment with a San Francisco Plumber.

Use any or all of the questions from the list below if they will be useful in your search.

* How long have you been a local plumber?
* How many plumbing jobs have you completed?
* Do you have experience with the type of work I’ve described?
* How long should it take to solve my problem?
* Will you be able to complete the work in a single visit?
* Do you carry current workers’ compensation and liability insurance?
* Is there a charge for your estimate?
* Do you or your technicians have any special certifications?
* What type of warranty will you provide for your work? What does it
cover?
* Do you do the work yourself or do you send employees to do it?
* Will you provide a written contract?
* Do you charge by the job or by the hour?

Step 5: Making the Final Decision:
Now it’s time to select your San Francisco plumber and make an appointment. Ask any final questions and insist that your plumber come prepared to provide a written estimate, before work begins, timing, quality,and warranty agreement.

The following is a list of key resources for the plumbing industry.

Associations & Licensing
BBB Better Business Bureau, www.bbb.gov
CSLB Contractors State Licensing Board, www.cslb.ca.gov
DCA California Department of Consumer Affairs, www.dca.ca.gov

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San Francisco Plumbers specialize in either service and repair or remodel plumbing.

If you are a homeowner faced with the problem of a clogged kitchen sink, a leaking bathroom faucet, or a toilet clog, then you are in need of a service and repair specialist. Repair Plumbers do many tasks such as drain cleaning, water heater replacement and repair, they repair and install garbage disposals, fix leaking faucets, fix pipes under the sink. Remodel plumbers usually don’t like service and repair they may more likely charge you more because of their reluctance to do the job, remodel plumbers have a different mindset and like to be at job sites for longer periods and work on the main plumbing pipes and don’t usually have the necessary items on their vehicles to perform a wide variety of repair tasks.

If you are rebuilding a new house or remodeling an entire kitchen then what you need is a remodel plumber. Some service companies will have remodel plumbers who perform those types of jobs, so make sure you ask them to send out an experienced plumber and not just a service technician.

Make sure the plumber you choose is experienced with San Francisco code and is licensed.

If you want to make sure you are hiring the right plumber then as a homeowner it is your responsibility to be a savvy consumer and make sure the professional you choose has a valid contractors license, workman’s insurance and liability insurance. This is important since new projects and repair jobs can involve high costs and requires an individual with special knowledge, skills and experience, things can go wrong a simple copper repair could burst flooding your home, you need to be protected.

What should you ask the plumber?
Regardless of whether you want to hire a San Francisco Plumber for new home construction or for repairs to existing plumbing in your building, you should interview the tradesmen thoroughly before you entrust one with the job and allow him to work in your home. These steps are necessary to protect yourself from possible problems. Make sure you interview several contractors before making your selection. Ask for quotes from all of them and make comparisons to find the best overall quote and match it to the other attributes of the contractor to get an overall picture before you take a final decision.

Ask the individual if they are a remodel or service plumber and find out if they are experienced at the task at hand.

Why should you hire a licensed San Francisco Plumber?
Do not hire an unlicensed plumber, there are many of them out there, if you do hire one you have no recourse if there is a problem. California, has regulations that prescribe minimum standards for licensed tradespeople. The governing body is the State Contractor Licensing Board. Prior to hiring a plumber check with the board at http://www.cslb.ca.gov to confirm the plumbing contractor you intend to hire is licensed, has no unresolved complaints and has the workers and liability insurance.

Ask the plumber for his proof of insurance and ascertain the limits for liability coverage.

How much should a San Francisco Plumber charge for service?
Don’t forget to check the pricing structure. Some plumbers charge an hourly rate that can range from $150 – $350 an hour but there is no guarantee of time, a 3 hour job can easily turn into a 6 hour job and if they are charging by the hour, they would prefer to make 3 additional hours of pay.

Beware of additional charges on weekends. Be clear how the plumber calculates these charges, is the extra amount justifiable.

Careful selection while hiring a local Plumber may save you a lot of unnecessary grief and money. Ask questions, be informed…you can usually figure out with in a short period whether the contractor you are about to hire will prove to be a good choice for the task at hand.

Always get for a written estimate before any work begins.

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