Frequently asked questions.

We service over 50 Northside Brisbane suburbs — from Ashgrove and Paddington down to Sandgate, out to Ferny Grove and Mitchelton, and across the Brisbane City Council and Moreton Bay Regional Council areas. If you’re unsure, give us a call — we’ve probably been on your street within the past month, and even if you’re just outside our usual patch, we’ll let you know upfront rather than waste your time.

Yes — My Brisbane Plumber operates a true 24/7 emergency line, including weekends and public holidays. A burst pipe, gas leak, blocked sewer or no-hot-water situation gets a real plumber on the phone, not a call centre, and we aim to be on site within the hour for genuine emergencies in our service area.

Absolutely. We’re QBCC licensed plumbers and gas fitters, fully insured, and proud members of the Master Plumbers Association. Every job that requires one is finished with a Form 4 or compliance certificate, and we’re happy to show you our credentials before any work starts — you should never let an unlicensed plumber touch your home or business.

We accept bank transfer, EFTPOS, all major credit cards, and cash on completion. For larger jobs we offer no-interest-ever payment plans, and we’re happy to sit down with you to walk through the quote before we start. We don’t take payment until you’ve seen the work and given us the nod.

Easiest way is to call 1300 558 445. For most jobs we can give you a clear, upfront estimate over the phone — describe the issue or send a photo and we’ll size it up. For more complex jobs (bathroom rebuild, hot water swap, commercial backflow) we’ll come out for a free site inspection and leave you with a fixed quote in writing.

All workmanship is guaranteed for 6.5 years — well beyond the industry-standard 12 months. That covers the labour and the install. The hardware itself (taps, hot water units, drain cameras) carries the manufacturer’s warranty on top, and we’ll register the unit on your behalf and give you the paperwork before we leave.

Yes — we’re set up for both. On the residential side we look after houses, units, body corporates, and renovations. Commercially we’ve got long-running clients including restaurants, fast-food outlets, nursing homes and offices. Backflow testing, grease-trap maintenance and after-hours commercial work are all standard.

For routine bookings during business hours we don’t charge a call-out fee — you pay for the job, not the trip. After-hours and emergency call-outs do attract a higher rate to reflect the on-call cost, but we’ll always tell you the rate before we leave the depot, never spring it on the invoice.

For a true emergency — burst pipe, sewer back-up, gas leak, no hot water in the dead of winter — we aim to be on your doorstep within the hour for any of our Northside service suburbs. The first thing we do on the phone is help you stop the damage (mains tap, gas isolation, electrical safety) so the meter isn’t ticking up while we’re still in the truck.

Yes — an after-hours, weekend or public-holiday emergency does attract a higher rate to cover the on-call cost. We’ll always quote the rate before we’re dispatched, so there’s no surprise on the invoice. Most jobs end up cheaper than waiting until Monday and dealing with the water damage.

Anything that’s causing active damage or a safety risk: a burst or leaking pipe behind a wall, a toilet that won’t stop overflowing, a hot water unit that’s leaking gas or scalding water, a blocked main sewer, or a gas leak. If you can smell gas or see water coming from somewhere it shouldn’t, treat it as an emergency and call straight away — don’t wait it out.

We’ll stop the leak and replace the burst section the same visit. For the water damage itself — soaked carpet, cabinetry, plaster — that’s typically a builder or restoration crew, but we’ll happily refer you to local trades we’ve worked with for years. Often we’ll book them in directly for you while we’re still on site.

Yes — if water is actively coming out somewhere, find the mains tap (usually at the front of the property near the meter) and turn it clockwise to stop the flow. We’ll talk you through it on the phone if you can’t find it. For a gas emergency, isolate the gas at the meter and leave the property until we get there.

Turn the water (or gas) off at the meter, move valuables and electronics away from the leak, take a quick photo of the damage if it’s safe, and don’t use any electrical fittings near standing water. Keep the kids and pets out of the affected area, and don’t try to DIY a permanent fix — a temporary plug is fine, but we’ll need to do the job properly when we arrive.

Every plumber on call is QBCC licensed and gas-fit accredited, with full insurance. The same crew you’d get on a Tuesday morning is the same crew that turns up at 11pm on Saturday. We don’t sub-contract emergency work to whoever’s available.

Tree roots are the number one cause we see — jacaranda, fig and gum tree roots love hairline cracks in older clay pipes. After that it’s wet wipes (even the “flushable” ones), kitchen fats, and slow-degrading shower hair. Older Northside homes built pre-1980 often still have the original earthenware sewer line, which is what we end up either jet-clearing or relining once the roots get aggressive.

Yes — on most blocked drain jobs we run a CCTV camera through the pipe before we quote, so we know exactly what we’re dealing with and you know exactly what you’re paying for. We can record the footage and email it to you, which is useful if you’re negotiating with insurance, body corp or a real estate agent.

Not usually. Modern drain repair on most jobs uses pipe relining or no-dig hydro-jet clearing — the only digging is at one access point. For full pipe replacement we’ll obviously need to expose the line, but we plan the trench so it follows existing garden beds where possible, and we always backfill, compact and turf so you’d barely know we were there.

A standard hydro-jet unblock and camera inspection is usually 1–2 hours on site. Tree-root cutting and follow-up jet clean adds another hour or two. A pipe-reline job typically takes a single day from arrival to clean-up. We’ll always give you a time window before we start and call if anything changes.

Yes — stormwater, sewer, surface drainage, sub-surface ag-drains, the lot. Brisbane storm season hits hard, and a lot of older homes have undersized or collapsed stormwater lines that suddenly get noticed when the laundry floods. We’ll diagnose and quote both stormwater and sewer issues in the same visit.

On most pipe runs, yes — you save the excavation cost, the landscaping reinstatement, and the disruption. Relining works on pipes from about 50mm up, and the relined section typically outlasts the original pipework. We’ll quote both options where it’s a close call, so you can compare and choose.

Yes — if we’re already on site with the camera and the jet, we’ll usually do a quick inspection of the connected lines so you know whether the next blockage is coming. We’ll mention it — we won’t pressure you to do extra work, but you’ll have the info to make the call.

Almost always a worn-out tap washer or O-ring — over time the rubber compresses and stops sealing properly. Sometimes it’s the valve seat itself that’s pitted, in which case we’ll re-seat it with a small tool rather than replace the whole tap. Either way, it’s a 15–30 minute fix on a single tap and saves you a surprising amount on the water bill.

Yes — usually it’s a faulty inlet or outlet valve in the cistern, and a small drip is enough to add hundreds to your annual water bill. Most cisterns we just rebuild the internals on rather than replacing the whole unit, which keeps the cost down. If the bowl itself is cracked or the suite is more than 20 years old, we’ll talk you through replacement options.

Most of the time, yes. Modern mixers and quarter-turn taps can have just the cartridge swapped out, which is far cheaper than a full tap replacement. We carry common cartridges in the van. If the tap is genuinely past its life (corroded, mismatched chrome, leaking from the body) we’ll quote replacement options, including water-efficient models that pay back over time.

For a non-emergency tap drip we typically get you booked in within 1–2 working days, often same-day if you’re flexible on time. If the leak is bad enough that water is pooling or running, treat it as urgent and we’ll get you in same-day — turn the tap isolator off (small valve under the basin) while you wait.

All workmanship is covered by our 6.5-year guarantee. The cartridge or valve itself carries the manufacturer’s warranty (typically 1–5 years). If the same tap goes again within the warranty period from a workmanship issue, we come back for free.

If you’ve got more than one fixture playing up, batch them — we only need one site visit instead of three, which usually halves the total. We’ll come out, give you a single quote covering all of them, and book one appointment to knock them over. Cost-effective and tidy.

If a toilet keeps blocking despite ordinary use, the cause is usually one of three things: a partial blockage further down the sewer line, a worn or under-flushing cistern (low water volume per flush), or, more rarely, a soil pipe that’s lost its fall over the years. We’ll camera the line and figure out which it is — one quote, one fix.

If we keep clearing the same blockage every few months, the camera shows root infestation in multiple places, or there’s a visible collapse in the pipe wall, replacement (or pipe relining) is more economical long-term. We’ll show you the camera footage and lay out the options — clear-now-fix-later versus a one-and-done repair — with the costs of each.

Pipe relining is the no-dig fix — we feed a resin-impregnated liner into the existing pipe, inflate it to the pipe wall, and let it cure into a smooth, jointless new pipe inside the old one. It restores full flow, blocks roots, and typically lasts decades. We use it most often on the main sewer line under driveways and gardens where digging would mean tearing up the landscape.

A spot pipe repair (a single section dug up and replaced) is usually a one-day job. A relining run on the main sewer line is typically a single day from arrival to clean-up. Larger replacements where we’re replacing a long section under hard surfaces can be 2–3 days — we’ll give you a clear timeline before we start and stick to it.

For a relining job you usually lose toilet/sink use for the cure window (typically 4–6 hours). For a dig-and-replace, we time the disconnection so you’re only without water for as little as possible, often a couple of hours mid-day. If the disruption is going to be longer (full bathroom or main-line replacement) we’ll talk you through options like a portable toilet hire.

Yes. Pipe relining is purpose-built for exactly this scenario — we access through an existing inspection point, line the pipe through the concrete, and you don’t lose your driveway. Where lining isn’t suitable we use directional drilling or carefully cut and reinstate the slab. Either way, we won’t leave you with a hacked-up driveway.

Yes. The reline workmanship is covered under our standard 6.5-year workmanship warranty. The reline material itself (the resin and liner system) carries a long manufacturer warranty — we’ll give you the paperwork on completion so you have it for any future house sale or insurance claim.

Camera first, sonar second. The CCTV crawler tells us what the problem is and where (it transmits its location to a surface receiver). For deeper or more complex jobs we’ll use acoustic leak detection or trace gas to pinpoint the failure to within a hand-span before we excavate. The point is: dig once, fix it, move on.

In Queensland, yes — roof plumbing is a licensed plumbing discipline. That includes gutters, downpipes, rainwater heads, box gutters, flashings around penetrations, and rainwater tank connections. Anyone touching them under a renovation should be a licensed plumber, not a general handyman, and the work needs Form 4 sign-off.

Twice a year for most Brisbane homes — once before storm season (October) and once mid-year. If you’ve got jacarandas, gum trees or pine needles overhead, four times a year is more realistic. Blocked gutters are the number one cause of fascia rot and roof-leak claims we get to assess in autumn.

Yes — it’s usually the right call when one section has gone. Modern Colorbond gutter is much faster to install than the old galvanised, and matching new sections to old often looks worse than a clean replacement. We’ll quote both options — spot replacement vs. whole-house — and you decide.

Usually a flashing or hidden gutter issue rather than the gutter itself. Common culprits are missing or rotted gutter aprons, rusted-through valley irons, and improperly sealed roof penetrations. We’ll get up there, inspect, photograph, and quote — rust spots can usually be cut out and patched, but rotted timber fascia behind the gutter often needs a carpenter as well.

Yes — rainwater tank installation, repairs, and connection to garden, toilet or laundry. We’ll size the tank to your roof catchment, put in a first-flush diverter and overflow, and connect it through a proper backflow prevention setup so you’re Council-compliant. Existing tanks we can also retrofit a pump and pressure switch so it actually delivers usable water.

If it’s actively leaking inside the home, we treat it as a priority — usually same-day or next-day. We’ll often do a quick temporary fix (silicone, patch flashing) to stop the immediate damage and then come back for the proper repair when materials are sourced. Don’t wait for the next storm to find out it wasn’t fixed.

Yes — we work around solar regularly. We won’t touch the panels themselves (that’s a job for a licensed solar electrician) but we can re-flash around them, sort out water ingress at the panel feet, and re-bed any tiles that have shifted from the install. Where we genuinely need a panel removed, we coordinate with your solar provider.

Two main tools: acoustic leak detection (a high-sensitivity microphone that hears water escaping under pressure) and tracer gas detection (a safe, non-flammable gas pumped into the line that we sniff out at the surface). Between the two we can usually pinpoint a leak under concrete, behind tiles, or in a wall cavity to within a hand-span before any cutting happens.

Most Brisbane home insurers will cover the cost of leak detection when there’s an active claim — we provide an itemised invoice and a written report so you have the paperwork they’ll ask for. We’ve worked with most of the big insurers and know what their assessors want to see. If you’re unsure, give us a call before you lodge and we can talk you through it.

On a typical residential job we get the leak source to within 100–200mm, which means cutting a hand-sized access hole rather than ripping up a whole bathroom floor. On more complex jobs (concrete slab, multi-storey, embedded heated floors) it might be a bit wider, but we’d rather be a touch wide and right than narrow and wrong — same number of cuts, less chasing.

Yes, but it’s harder — we may need to come back when the leak is actively happening. For pressure-side leaks we can pressurise the line and listen for it; for drainage-side intermittent leaks we’ll often run dye or smoke through the system to see where it appears. Bring photos of any wet spots and timing notes (after a rain? After a hot shower?) — it shortcuts the diagnosis.

Most residential leak detections run 1–3 hours including a written report. Concrete slab leaks under tiles can take longer because of access and the time the tracer gas needs to migrate. Once located, the actual repair is a separate visit unless it’s simple enough to do same-day — we’ll quote the repair right after we’ve found the leak.

If your bill has jumped without a usage change, you’re probably leaking somewhere — most often a slow-running toilet (the silent kind), a hot water relief valve constantly weeping, or a buried pipe leak in the front yard. Read your meter at night before bed and again first thing in the morning — if it’s ticked over with no use, you’ve got a leak. Call us with the number.

Yes — gas leak detection uses a different sensor (a hydrocarbon sniffer) but the same principle. If you can smell gas, isolate at the meter immediately and ventilate. We’re QBCC gas-fit accredited and can trace, repair and re-certify the line so you get your gas back on safely. Don’t try to DIY a gas leak — the legal liability is significant.

Because the same blockage symptom (water rising in a shower, gurgling toilet) can mean very different problems — from a wet wipe build-up to tree-root damage to a collapsed pipe. The camera lets us see the cause before we clear, so we don’t just push the problem further down and have you ringing again next month. It usually pays for itself.

Yes — we record the inspection and email you an MP4 along with our written report, including the location of the blockage relative to landmarks (driveway, sewer pit, etc). Useful if you’re selling, insuring, dealing with body corporate, or just want to know exactly what’s going on under your house.

A snake punches a hole through the blockage and is great for hair, tissue and soft material. A hydro-jet uses high-pressure water to scour the entire pipe wall — root mat, fat build-up, sediment — restoring near-original diameter. For tree-root jobs in particular, jetting paired with a cutter head is the gold standard. We use whichever’s right for the job.

On a typical 80–100mm sewer line our crew adjusts the pressure to suit the pipe material — clay, PVC, copper, cast iron each get a different setting. We won’t use full pressure on a clearly fragile pipe; we’ll camera-confirm the condition first and recommend reline if the pipe is borderline. Better to know than blow it apart.

Most homes never need a routine inspection until there’s a symptom. But if you’ve had repeated blockages, large trees within 6m of the sewer line, or you’ve just bought an older house, a one-off camera survey is a sensible spend — you’ll know whether you’re sitting on a future $20k bill or whether the line is sound for another 30 years.

We’ll show you the footage on the screen, explain what’s wrong, and give you a written quote with options — clear-and-monitor, spot repair, full reline, or replacement. No high-pressure sales: we lay out the cost vs risk and you decide. If it’s genuinely an urgent safety issue we’ll tell you that, and recommend an interim fix until the proper repair is booked.

Yes — pre-purchase drain inspections are increasingly common, especially on Northside Brisbane homes built before 1980. We send a written report with photos and footage, suitable for inclusion in your due-diligence package. We work to your settlement timeline.

Yes — rough-in and fit-off for full bathroom and kitchen renovations. We coordinate closely with your builder, tiler and electrician so the plumbing is sized, located and Form-4 certified at the right stages of the build. We can come on board as the lead plumber on the job or work alongside an existing project plumber.

Either way works. Most clients prefer to choose their own tapware and fixtures (better range, better pricing, your style), and we install them. If you’d rather we supply, we work with reliable wholesalers and pass on trade pricing. We’re happy to give you a list of brands and models we know stand up over time vs ones to avoid.

A like-for-like swap (gas-to-gas or electric-to-electric, same location) is typically a half-day. A change-over to a different fuel type or location, or a heat-pump install, takes a full day because of pipework, electrical and compliance steps. We aim to have you with hot water by the end of the day — if there’s any risk of overrun we’ll tell you upfront.

Yes — gas cooktops, ovens, hot water units, gas heaters, BBQ points and outdoor fire features. Every install gets a compliance certificate (Form 4) which you’ll need for insurance, sale of the property, and gas supply continuity. We won’t install something that’s not certified for your supply or location.

For most domestic plumbing work that needs council notification (Form 4, new connections, certain back-flow installs) we lodge the paperwork on your behalf. For larger commercial or multi-residential work that needs full plumbing approval, we’ll work with your project consultant or arrange the lodgement — either way you’re not chasing council yourself.

Yes — we size, source, install and connect rainwater tanks for garden, toilet, laundry or full domestic use. Greywater diversion (laundry to garden, shower to toilet) we also do, with the right pump and treatment to meet QLD greywater regulations. Saves on water bills and helps drought-proof the garden.

Two parts: we use trade-grade, manufacturer-warranted parts (not bargain-bin fittings), and we install to or above the relevant plumbing code rather than the bare minimum. Tapware is sealed and pressure-tested before we sign off, every joint is flux-cleaned, and we leave isolation taps where they should be so the next repair is a 5-minute job, not a wall-cut.

Yes — we’re QBCC-licensed for backflow installation, testing and certification. Brisbane City Council requires annual testing on most commercial backflow devices (RPZD, double-check, etc); we manage the testing schedule, lodge the certificate with Council, and email you the renewal reminder so you’re never out of compliance. Most of our long-term commercial clients put the annual test on a recurring booking.

Yes — for restaurants, cafes, clinics and retail, we do after-hours fit-outs and repair work so the business doesn’t lose trading hours. We’ll quote the after-hours rate up-front (it’s a premium over standard hours) and book the time around your operating window. For genuinely urgent commercial breakdowns we run the same 24/7 emergency line as residential.

Restaurants, fast food, body corporates, units, nursing homes, retail and small office. That covers grease traps, commercial dishwashers and glass washers, pre-rinse and tap stations, hot water systems sized for commercial flow, drainage, backflow, gas appliances, accessible bathroom fit-outs and tenancy changeovers. If it’s a business that uses water or gas, we’ve probably done it.

Yes — for ongoing commercial sites we offer scheduled-maintenance contracts (quarterly grease trap, annual backflow test, hot water service, etc) at a discount on per-call rates, with priority response on emergency callouts. It works out cheaper for you and means we know your site, which means faster diagnosis when something does go wrong.

Yes — we work with several Brisbane body corporates and managers and understand the approval and access process. For a real emergency (burst pipe, sewer back-up affecting common property) we’ll attend immediately and invoice the body corp directly. For approved scheduled work we’ll quote, get sign-off, and coordinate with your body corp manager.

Yes — itemised invoices with PO references, GST breakdown, and (for body corp or insurance work) photo records of the issue and the completed repair. Annual maintenance reports cover all visits across the year, so you’ve got the paperwork ready for audits, insurance renewals, or council compliance.

Yes — we run drop-sheets, isolation barriers, and minimal-disruption work flows for cafes, restaurants and retail. We coordinate with the kitchen or floor manager before turning anything off, leave clear ‘wet floor’ signage where needed, and clean down before clocking out. The customer in your business shouldn’t know we were there.

Yes — QBCC gas-fit licensed and accredited. Every gas job gets a Form 4 (gas compliance certificate) lodged with the licensing body, and we’ll give you a copy for your records. Anyone touching gas pipework or appliances in Queensland legally needs to be licensed; using an unlicensed operator can void your insurance and create real safety risk.

Yes — we install Rheem, Bosch, Aquamax, Dux and Rinnai gas units, including instantaneous (continuous flow) and storage models. We size the unit to your household’s hot water demand, install to manufacturer spec, and certify the gas connection. We’ll also dispose of the old unit and register the warranty on your behalf.

Treat it as an emergency. Don’t turn any electrical switches on or off, don’t use phones inside (use a phone outside), open windows, isolate the gas at the meter (turn the valve perpendicular to the pipe), and call us straight away. We’ll dispatch a licensed gas fitter to find and fix the leak, then re-certify and re-pressurise the line.

Both. Natural gas is more common in older Northside Brisbane suburbs that have mains gas reticulation; LPG (bottled gas) we install for newer developments, rural properties, BBQ points, and outdoor fire features. We do bottle change-overs, regulator replacements, and full LPG line installation including buried mains.

A like-for-like cooktop or oven swap is usually 1–2 hours including the gas check and Form 4. New gas point installation (e.g. running a line to a BBQ or new heater) takes longer because of the pipe run, pressure test and certification. We’ll quote the job in writing before we start so the time and cost are clear.

Yes — we offer a gas appliance safety check (cooktop, oven, hot water, heater, BBQ point) which covers leak testing, ventilation check, flue inspection on hot water units, and a Form 4 if it’s required. We recommend it for any property purchase, after a long absence, or if any appliance is showing yellow flame or carbon staining. Safety check first, repairs second.

Yes — whether you’re relocating a kitchen, putting in a butler’s pantry, adding an outdoor entertaining area with a gas BBQ point, or upsizing the line for a new appliance, we plan the route, get the materials, install, pressure-test, and certify. Coordinated with your builder so the gas work happens at the right stage of the build.

A typical electric storage tank lasts 8–12 years, gas storage 10–15 years, and instantaneous gas (continuous flow) 12–15 years. Heat pumps are newer in Australia but well-installed units typically run 10–15 years. The biggest factors are water hardness (Brisbane city water is moderately hard, which shortens tank life) and whether the relief valve has been serviced regularly.

Telltale signs: rusty water from the hot tap (tank corrosion), pooling water under the unit (tank wall failure), running out of hot water faster than it used to (sediment build-up reducing usable capacity), or the unit is more than 12 years old and starting to make banging noises (sediment again). At that point repair-vs-replace usually tips toward replace, but we’ll diagnose before recommending.

Depends on your usage and energy setup. If you have rooftop solar, a heat pump or solar hot water unit pays back over a few years in lower electricity bills. If you have natural gas and good demand, instantaneous gas is hard to beat for endless hot water. For a one-bedroom unit with intermittent use, an electric storage unit on off-peak might still be the cheapest. We’ll quote the like-for-like option AND the upgrade option so you can compare.

Yes — we install Reclaim, Sanden, Stiebel and Rheem heat-pump units. They’re ideal for households with daytime solar, since the unit can be timed to run on excess solar production. Installation is more involved than a standard tank (siting, condensate, electrical) but the running-cost savings are significant for medium-to-large households.

If your unit has gone and you’re without hot water, we treat it as urgent. For common storage models (Rheem 250L, Aquamax 315L, etc) we usually get a same-day or next-day replacement; specialty units (heat pumps, large commercial) might be 1–2 days while we source the unit. We’ll keep you in the loop on timing.

Almost always yes — we measure and quote with the existing footprint in mind, and modern units are typically the same size or smaller than the unit they replace. If you’re moving from a storage tank to instantaneous, we sometimes relocate to a more sensible spot (e.g. moving from a roof cavity to an external wall) which makes future servicing far easier. We’ll quote both the same-spot and relocate options if relevant.

For Queensland government and federal STC rebates that apply to heat-pump and solar hot water, we’ll do the paperwork and pass the rebate through as a discount on your invoice. We register the unit with the manufacturer for warranty purposes and give you the registration confirmation email. You don’t need to chase anyone.