Slab Leak Repair
Slab leaks are the signature problem of Valley tract homes, where aging copper wears through under the concrete and shows up as a warm floor or a meter that never stops.
See the detailsPlumbing repair across the City of Los Angeles
A leak under the slab in the Valley, a root-choked lateral near the harbor, a dead water heater in a downtown loft: we handle the plumbing calls that come up across the City of Los Angeles.
Plumbing in Los Angeles, in short
Across the City of Los Angeles, most of our calls involve aging supply pipes, clay or cast iron sewer laterals, worn water heaters and slab leaks under postwar Valley homes. We send a plumber from our Broadway office, find the cause with pressure tests, cameras or acoustic tools, explain the options and typical prices on site, and fix it the same visit when parts allow.
How we cover Los Angeles
Los Angeles is a big city to cover from one address, so we plan routes around the freeways rather than the map. Our office on South Broadway sits close to the 110 and the 101, which puts the Valley, the Eastside, the Westside and the harbor within reach on most days. Overnight calls move faster because the freeways are open, and that matters when water is running into a ceiling or a sewer is backing into a tub.
The city's plumbing is a mix of eras. Downtown has brick and concrete buildings with cast iron stacks that have been in service for generations, the hills have long runs of pipe chasing steep lots, and the Valley is mostly postwar tract homes on slabs. Each one fails in its own way, and a plumber who knows the pattern finds the problem sooner. When the trouble is under the floor, we start with pinpoint leak locating before anyone opens a wall.
Homes and pipes
The homes and pipes we work on across Los Angeles
- Postwar Valley slab homesThousands of ranch homes built from the 1940s to the 1960s sit on concrete slabs with copper or galvanized supply lines running through or under them. Pinhole leaks and slab leaks are the common result once those pipes age.
- Prewar bungalows and duplexesOlder neighborhoods closer to downtown have raised foundations with crawlspaces, galvanized supply pipe and cast iron drains. Crawlspace access makes repairs simpler, but corroded galvanized often leads to a repipe conversation.
- Hillside homes with long runsHouses in the Santa Monica Mountains and the Verdugo foothills often have long supply runs, steep sewer laterals and tight access. Pressure swings and slow slope movement show up as leaks at fittings and joints.
- Apartments and mixed-use buildingsCourtyard apartments, dingbats and older mid-rise buildings share stacks and mains, so one clog or leak can reach several units. Shutoff valves in these buildings are often old and stiff.
- Harbor homes in salt airIn San Pedro and Wilmington, marine air wears on exposed hose bibs, gas meters and outdoor piping faster than it does inland. Older harbor houses also tend to have clay sewer laterals.
What people call about
Plumbing calls we take most often in Los Angeles
Main Line Clog Clearing
Clay and cast iron laterals under pre-1970s houses collect roots and scale, and a main line backup usually appears first at the lowest drain in the house.
See the detailsWater Heater Replacement
Hard imported water builds sediment in tanks, so many heaters across the city wear out early and need replacing with proper strapping and venting.
See the detailsEmergency Plumbing
Burst lines, sewage backups and gas smells don't wait for business hours, and a large share of our Los Angeles calls come in at night or on weekends.
See the detailsWhole-House Repiping
Galvanized supply pipe in older bungalows and duplexes closes up with rust until pressure drops at every fixture, and patching one section rarely holds.
See the detailsBackflow Testing
LADWP requires yearly testing of backflow prevention assemblies on many commercial, multifamily and irrigation services, and building managers call us to handle it.
See the detailsWhat to know before a plumbing repair in Los Angeles
Water in the City of Los Angeles comes from LADWP, and the meter box usually sits near the sidewalk with a curb valve inside. Knowing where your house shutoff is before something breaks saves real damage. Many older homes have a gate valve near the front hose bib or where the line enters the house, and those valves are often seized. Swapping one for a quarter-turn ball valve is a small job we do often, and it makes the next emergency much shorter.
Permits for repipes, water heater replacements, gas work and sewer replacement in the city go through LADBS, and an inspector checks the work before it is closed up. Gas work also involves SoCalGas when a meter has to be shut off or restored. We pull the permits for the jobs that need them and schedule the inspection, so you are not left handling paperwork while the walls are open. Smaller repairs like a faucet cartridge or a toilet flapper need nothing filed.
Earthquake prep is part of everyday plumbing here. The 1994 Northridge earthquake, a magnitude 6.7 event, tipped water heaters and broke gas and water lines across the Valley, and the lessons stuck. California requires two straps on a residential water heater, one in the upper third and one in the lower third of the tank. When we work near a heater we check its straps and flex lines, and we can add a seismic shutoff on the gas line if you want one.
Inside the city
Los Angeles neighborhoods with their own page
- Reseda 91335
- Winnetka 91306
- Canoga Park 91303
- West Hills 91307
- Tarzana 91356
- Chatsworth 91311
- Porter Ranch 91326
- Granada Hills 91344
- North Hills 91343
- Lake Balboa 91406
- Panorama City 91402
- Valley Glen 91401
- Sun Valley 91352
- Pacoima 91331
- Sylmar 91342
- Sunland-Tujunga 91042
- San Pedro 90731
- Wilmington 90744
- Mission Hills 91345
- Valley Village 91607
- Harbor City 90710
Questions we hear
Questions from Los Angeles
How fast can a plumber reach my home in the City of Los Angeles?
It depends on where you are and the time of day. Downtown and nearby neighborhoods are close to our Broadway office, while the north Valley and the harbor take longer at rush hour. Overnight, freeway travel is quicker. When you call, we give you an honest arrival window and tell you what to do with the water or gas in the meantime.
Do I need a permit to replace a water heater in Los Angeles?
Yes. In the City of Los Angeles, replacing a water heater requires an LADBS permit. The inspector checks the strapping, the venting, the gas line hookup and the relief valve discharge pipe. We pull the permit as part of the job and meet the inspector. Nearby cities such as Burbank run their own building departments with similar requirements.
Why does hard water matter for plumbing in Los Angeles?
Much of the city's imported water carries a lot of calcium and magnesium. It leaves scale in tank heaters, clogs tankless heat exchangers, crusts faucet aerators and makes valve cartridges stick. Flushing a tank yearly, descaling a tankless unit and, for some homes, adding a softener keep fixtures working longer. Our guide on hard water damage covers the signs.
Which Los Angeles neighborhoods do you cover?
We cover the whole city, with heavy coverage in the San Fernando Valley, from Reseda and Canoga Park to Granada Hills and Sylmar, plus the harbor in San Pedro and Wilmington. Downtown, the Eastside, Hollywood and the Westside are close to our office. We also work in nearby cities across Los Angeles County, Ventura County and Orange County.
Next door
Nearby areas we also cover
Los Angeles County
Leaks, sewer clogs, water heaters and gas work across the county, from Valley tract homes to harbor bungalows and foothill cities.
Local detailsBurbank 91502
Plumbing repair across Burbank, from Magnolia Park bungalows and Rancho homes to foothill houses and downtown apartments.
Local detailsGlendale 91205
Plumbing for Glendale's Spanish revival houses, hillside homes and apartment buildings, including drains, heaters, gas lines and repipes.
Local detailsSanta Monica 90401
Drain, repipe and water heater work for Santa Monica bungalows and older apartment buildings, planned around salt air and aging cast iron drains.
Local detailsPlumbing trouble in Los Angeles?
One phone line, answered around the clock. Tell us the street and what you are seeing.