Plumbing Repairs in Ottawa — Leaks, Pipes, Toilets & Faucets Fixed Right

Not every leak drips where you can see it. Signs of a hidden plumbing leak include a water meter that keeps moving when every fixture is off, a musty smell, bubbling paint, stained ceilings under bathrooms, warped flooring and a sudden jump in your City of Ottawa water bill.

To test it yourself, turn off every tap and water-using appliance, note the reading on your water meter and check it again after an hour. If it has moved, water is escaping somewhere. Our plumbers use pressure testing, moisture meters and thermal imaging to find the leak with as little opening of walls and ceilings as possible.

Copper is a durable material, but it isn't immune to wear. Over decades, the combination of water chemistry, velocity in undersized pipes, and small manufacturing or installation defects can cause pitting from the inside out. The result is a tiny pinhole that sprays a fine mist or slowly drips onto a ceiling.

One pinhole doesn't mean your whole house needs repiping. If you've had several on the same run within a few years, though, it's often more economical to replace that section — or the house — with PEX than to keep paying for individual repairs. We'll show you the pipe we removed so you can see its condition.

Some Ottawa-area homes and condos built roughly between the mid-1990s and mid-2000s used Kitec, a plastic-aluminium composite pipe with brass fittings that can corrode and fail. It's often identifiable by orange (hot) and blue (cold) pipe, sometimes with 'Kitec' printed on it. Grey polybutylene (poly-B) piping has a similar reputation.

Many insurers ask about these materials, and some limit coverage. If you think you have Kitec or poly-B, we can inspect it and give you a planned replacement quote, which is far less disruptive than an emergency repair after a fitting fails.

A toilet that runs, refills on its own or needs the handle jiggled is wasting water every hour. The usual causes are a worn flapper, a faulty fill valve, a chain that's too long or short, or a cracked overflow tube. These are inexpensive parts and quick repairs.

A toilet that rocks or leaks at the base is a different problem: the wax seal has failed, and water may be soaking into the subfloor. That should be fixed promptly to prevent rot. If your toilet is decades old, replacing it with a modern high-efficiency model can noticeably reduce water use.

Most dripping faucets have a worn cartridge, washer or O-ring. Quality faucets from major brands are designed to be rebuilt, and parts are widely available. Inexpensive faucets often aren't worth repairing because parts are hard to find or the body itself has corroded.

We carry cartridges for the most common brands. If replacement makes more sense, we can install a faucet you've bought or supply one, and we always replace the old supply lines at the same time — they're a frequent source of leaks.

Low pressure throughout the house usually points to the main shut-off, a pressure-reducing valve or corroded pipes. Low pressure at one fixture is more often a clogged aerator or a failing cartridge.

High pressure is less obvious but more damaging. It stresses joints, appliance hoses and water heaters, and causes water hammer. We test static pressure with a gauge and, where needed, install or replace a pressure-reducing valve and an expansion tank so your system runs in a safe range.

A good repair is properly supported, uses compatible materials, has no strain on joints and is pressure-tested before walls are closed. Dissimilar metals should be joined with the correct fittings to avoid galvanic corrosion, and new valves should be accessible.

Your plumber should explain what failed, show you the repaired area, clean up completely and give you a guarantee in writing. That's the standard we hold ourselves to on every Ottawa repair.

Some repairs can wait for a convenient appointment; others can't. Active water coming through a ceiling, a burst pipe, no water at all, or a leaking water heater should be treated as an emergency. Shut off the main valve and call our 24/7 line.

If you're unsure, call anyway. We'll tell you honestly whether it's safe to wait until regular hours so you don't pay after-hours rates unnecessarily.

Under-sink leaks usually come from one of four places: the supply lines, the shut-off valves, the faucet base or the drain trap. Braided supply lines last for years but eventually fray or loosen; plastic compression nuts on drain traps work loose when cabinets are used for storage; and old multi-turn shut-off valves weep from their packing nuts.

Put a dry paper towel under each connection and run water for a minute. The wet spot tells you where the leak is. Tightening a slip nut by hand is fine, but avoid over-tightening plastic fittings — they crack. If water is coming from the valve or a supply line, close the valve and call us.

Ottawa winters regularly freeze outdoor hose bibs. If a hose is left attached, water trapped in the bib can freeze back into the wall and split the pipe inside your home. The leak often isn't noticed until spring, when the tap is first used and water runs into the basement wall.

We replace damaged bibs with frost-free models that shut off water inside the heated wall, and we add an interior shut-off so the line can be drained each fall.

Every truck carries copper and PEX pipe and fittings, ABS and PVC drain parts, shut-off valves, toilet and faucet repair parts, supply lines, and common pressure-reducing valves. That stock is why most Ottawa repairs are finished in one visit rather than two.

Where a manufacturer-specific part is needed, we'll tell you the expected delivery time and make the fixture safe in the meantime so you're not left without water.

Century homes in Centretown, Lowertown, New Edinburgh and the Glebe often have a mix of materials: original cast-iron drains, sections of galvanized steel, later copper and modern PEX repairs. Joining these safely requires the right transition fittings and an understanding of how each material ages.

Before repairing one section, our plumbers look at the materials around it. If the pipe next to the leak is in similar condition, we'll tell you, so you can decide whether to repair just the failed spot or replace a longer run while the area is open.

Keep your plumbing invoices. A written record of what was repaired, when and with what materials helps with insurance claims and reassures buyers when you sell. If a repair was caused by sudden damage, photos and a description of the cause support your claim.

We provide itemised invoices and, on request, photos of the problem and the completed repair.