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5 Questions To Ask Before Hiring A Plumber | Sugar Land, TX
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Many homeowners tend to look for a plumber when they have an emergency. It’s not until you’re faced with backups, leaky pipes, or clogged drains that you go crazy about finding the best near you. In haste, you may hire any available plumber but that’ll cost you more money and disappointments in the future. Therefore, before making any decision, it’s essential to have a list of questionnaires that’ll help ascertain the company’s credibility. Doing this helps you find a reliable plumbing contractor you can count on to solve your plumbing issues.
bluefrog Plumbing + Drain of West Houston has a team of top-rated professionals that can get any job done with utmost professionalism. We are your certified, insured, and experienced plumbing experts and the surrounding region.
That said, here are the top 5 questions that you should ask a professional before hiring:
Do You Have the Necessary Licenses and Permits?
Often, homeowners assume that every professional needs to have a license to operate. However, you might be surprised to realize just how many quacks in the name of ‘professional plumbers’ run your town. Imagine paying thousands of dollars to fix your foundation waterproofing, only to find that you have a flood the next time it rains! These unqualified ones lack adequate knowledge to fix challenging problems and are a risk you can’t afford to take.
However, being licensed means that the professional is registered with the governing body in Sugar Land, TX, and has gone through government testing that certifies them as regional or state plumbing contractors. Besides, they’ve taken additional annual re-certification tests that enable them to remain up to date with the latest advancements in the plumbing industry and building codes.
Are You Bonded and Insured?
Look through different companies’ online reviews, and you’re bound to see some horror stories about an unqualified plumber who either failed to fix a plumbing issue right the first time or aggravated the problem altogether. Worse still, they didn’t have insurance cover to protect their workforce from the perils of the job and your property from unforeseen damages. So, where does this leave you? Well, you’ll be held liable to pay for medical bills and other expenses in case of an accident.
You can’t expect any professional to advertise to their clients that they aren’t insured, so it is your job to ask. If you aren’t convinced by verbal answers, it’s your right to demand proof of insurance.
How transparent are your services?
Many companies have a clause in their contract that says homeowners are to bear any reasonable expenses to complete the job. Therefore, when getting an estimate, ensure you ask if the total amount quoted is a flat rate (this won’t change because of subsequent labor costs) or if they’re using an hourly rate plus the cost of materials. The second option’s main problem is that while the cost of materials is fixed, a job may run longer than expected, thereby costing you more than you had planned.
Ensure you clearly understand what you’re getting into before you sign a contract to avoid surprises once the job is done. Your plumber should be clear on the cost of labor, material, contingency for possible risks, consultation fees, transport, and follow-up costs.
Besides, if the job will take several days or weeks, it’s vital to hire a professional who doesn’t ask for 100 percent of the total cost before the job even starts. It’s better to work on “milestones,” i.e., you only pay a certain percentage once part of the job is completed.
Do you Offer 24 Emergency Service?
A plumbing problem can happen any time, including on weekends, holidays, and in the wee hours of the night when you’re sound asleep. Therefore, it’s essential to have a professional who can come through to offer a real-time solution before the problem escalates into a full-blown disaster. A 24-hour plumber is available day and night, 7 days a week, so you don’t have to worry or wait until morning to have your burst pipe or clogged toilet fixed. And whether you need replacements, maintenance, or repair services, an emergency one has all the necessary tools, material, and knowledge to handle a myriad of issues ASAP.
In any emergency plumbing situation, response time is also crucial. Without quick mitigation, small leaks can quickly destroy your home, adding expenses exponentially as time goes by. However, a plumber who shows up sooner can mean the difference between a $10 washer fix and a $10,000 water damage disaster.
Who’s doing the work?
If you’re working with a small plumbing company, the professional giving you the quotation might not be the one completing the task. There are times when they outsource the job to other contractors. Therefore, try to find out who will be working for you exactly, whether they’re qualified and their level of experience on the job. If the professional can’t provide details or you’re uncomfortable with their answer, you may want to keep looking.
If they’re qualified, you can go ahead and ask about the kind of warranties and guarantees that come with their work. Warranties provide assurance and safeguard your plumbing investment. Some professionals offer regular inspection of certain fittings under specified conditions every few months or annually. Whatever you discuss verbally, ensure that it’s in writing and keep the paperwork filed in a safe place for when you need a follow-up job performed.
We Are Among the Top-Rated Professionals in Sugar Land, TX
Hiring a plumber can be a daunting task, especially if you don’t know what to look for. bluefrog Plumbing + Drain of West Houston has made it easy for you to find the right plumber— Us! We are your most capable, credible, and trustworthy sugar Land plumbing company that checks all the boxes.
Whenever you need honest, insured, and legally sound service, give us a call for a world-class professional solution to all your plumbing woes!
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