Lower North Shore
Plumber in Willoughby
Blocked drains, sewer repairs, hot water and bathrooms across Willoughby, where Federation bungalows and interwar houses sit on their original sewer lines.
- Since 2007 on the North Shore
- No charge for a site visit
- Upfront pricing, agreed before we start
- Our own licenced team, not subbies
What we get called out to in Willoughby
- Original clay sewer. Houses still on the line they were built with, and roots in the joints.
- Street and garden trees. The most common cause of a blocked drain around here.
- Older bathrooms. Renovations with the waterproofing done properly behind the tiles.
- Hot water replacements. The right size and type, including heat pumps.
- Roofs and gutters. Terracotta roofs, valleys and gutters on older houses.
Willoughby is between Chatswood and Crows Nest, and a normal day's work for us.
In more detail
The three we get called about most
Original clay sewer
Most Willoughby bungalows are still on the sewer line they were built with. Short lengths of clay pipe, a joint every metre, and a street tree looking for water.
We jet the line then camera it so you can see what was in there and what condition the pipe is in. If the pipe is sound, jetting is the whole job. If a joint has gone, you will see it before anyone talks about digging.
Blocked drainsBathrooms
An original bathroom in a Federation or interwar house usually has original plumbing and no waterproofing at all behind the tiles.
We run the plumbing side of a renovation start to finish, bring the pipework up to standard while the walls are open, and get the waterproofing done properly and certified before anything is tiled over.
Bathroom renovationsHot water
Tanks in Willoughby houses are often older than the people living there, and they tend to fail on the coldest morning of the year.
We repair where a repair makes sense and replace where it does not, and we say which one plainly. Gas, electric and heat pump, sized for the house, with the old unit taken away.
Hot waterIt’s an emergency! I’d better ring STS.
Old fashioned service. Modern day plumbing.
Since 2007
How we work with you
What happens from the first phone call
-
You get in touch
Ring the office, send the form or email us. For anything urgent, ring — we will tell you what it usually means and what to do while we are on the way, like where your water meter is.
-
We come and look
For anything bigger than a straightforward repair we come and look at it properly first, and there is no charge for that visit. Guessing at a price over the phone helps nobody.
-
You get the price in writing
The job priced, not an hourly rate ticking over. If there is more than one sensible way to do it, you get both options and the difference between them explained.
-
We do the work
Our own licenced plumbers, on the day we said. Drop sheets down, the mess taken away, and a phone call rather than silence if we are running behind.
-
You see what we found
Photos, camera footage where we used it, and a plain explanation of what was actually wrong. If something is not right afterwards, ring us and we come back and put it right at our cost.
A job we did here
A leak under a Willoughby kitchen floor
The problem
A Willoughby family found a major water leak under their kitchen floor. Water under a floor does its damage quietly, so the priority was finding it exactly rather than lifting the whole floor looking for it.
What we did
We located the leak before opening anything and gave them a clear price before we started. The damaged section was replaced and the line pressure tested. The repair itself took a few hours once we knew exactly where to go.
The result
Fixed the same day with the floor opened in one place rather than several. Because the leak was found early the subfloor dried out rather than having to be replaced.
Out of the van
What the work actually looks like
Our photos, off our own jobs. Not a stock library.
Not a claim, a count
The work we have actually done in Willoughby
Our job records run from 2016. Since then we have completed 381 jobs in Willoughby.
That is the figure out of our job management system, not a number we made up for the website. It is also why we can usually tell you on the phone what a problem probably is before anyone gets in a ute.
The most common of them
- 183 taps, toilets and everyday repairs
- 101 blocked drains cleared
- 82 roofing and guttering
- 79 sewer and stormwater repairs
- 31 hot water repairs and replacements
Plenty of jobs cover more than one of these, so the numbers overlap rather than add up.
About the suburb
Plumbing in Willoughby
Willoughby, postcode 2068, sits between Chatswood and Crows Nest, with Willoughby Road and Penshurst Street running through it and the shops around the Willoughby Road and High Street corner. It's one of the oldest suburbs on the North Shore, with Federation and interwar houses on streets like Mowbray Road, Edinburgh Road, Laurel Street and Frenchs Road, and unit blocks from the 1960s onwards in between.
Old houses have old plumbing. Earthenware sewers with roots in the joints, galvanised water services that have rusted inside, and stormwater that was run wherever it would go. Roots are the reason most Willoughby drains block, and with mature gardens and street trees on every block, clearing only lasts until next spring. We camera the line to find where they're getting in, jet it, and reline it so they stay out.
Galvanised water services show up as poor pressure, a shower that goes cold when a tap is turned on elsewhere, and brown water after a day away. We replace the service from the meter in new copper, and we check the main stop tap, which in these houses is often seized.
The businesses along Willoughby Road and Penshurst Street ring us for the things that stop trade: a blocked grease trap, a hot water unit that's given up, a tap that won't shut off in the customer toilet. We plan those jobs so they're done between services rather than during one. The unit blocks share their sewer stacks, stormwater and hot water between all the units, and that's strata work, done with the strata manager in the loop and a written finding the committee can act on.
Willoughby slopes towards Flat Rock Gully on one side and Artarmon Reserve on the other, and a summer storm finds every gutter and downpipe that's been left too long. Roof plumbing and box gutters on the older houses are part of what we do. A lot of the houses have been extended or had bathrooms added over the years, and where a drain was tied in badly is usually where the trouble is now.
Willoughby is next door to Crows Nest, where STS was based from 2010 to 2016, and a short run from Lane Cove, where we are now. It's a normal day's work for us. Ring us for anything urgent, or ask us to come and look at a bigger job. There's no charge for the site visit.
The STS Guarantee
Five things we promise on every job
- Licenced and insured. Plumbing, gas fitting and drainage, to the Australian Standards. NSW licence 227192C.
- You get the price before we start. Agreed upfront and in writing. No hourly rate ticking over while you wonder what it is going to come to.
- We turn up when we said we would. And if we are running behind, you get a phone call rather than silence.
- We clean up after ourselves. Drop sheets down, mess taken away, and the ground or brickwork put back the way we found it.
- Our workmanship is warranted. If something is not right after we have left, ring us and we will come back and put it right at our cost.
Who we work for in Willoughby
- Homeowners. Everything from a leaking tap to a full bathroom, with the price agreed before we start.
- Strata and building managers. Stacks, common drains and hot water plant, with photos and a written finding you can take to a committee.
- Builders and renovators. Rough-in and fit-off booked to your programme, and we turn up on the day we said.
- Agents and landlords. Repairs organised with the tenant directly and reported back to you.
What our customers say
Simon has fantastic knowledge and a great team working with him. Kai did a great job at our home.
Melanie Cairns, Google reviewQuestions we get asked in Willoughby
What does a plumber in Willoughby cost?
It depends on the job, which is why we price the job rather than run an hourly rate. For anything bigger than a straightforward repair we come and look at it first, at no charge, and you get the price in writing before we start.
Are your plumbers licenced and insured?
Yes. STS Plumbing Co Pty Ltd holds NSW licence 227192C and carries insurance, and the blokes who turn up are our own team, not subcontracted labour.
How quickly can you get here?
Our office is open Monday to Friday, 7am to 5pm, and we call back within 24 hours, guaranteed. For anything urgent, ring rather than fill in the form and we will tell you what it usually means and when we can be there.
Do you work on units and commercial buildings?
Yes. A good share of our work is strata and commercial across the North Shore, and it comes with photos and a written finding a building manager or committee can act on.
Can you renovate a bathroom in an old Willoughby house without surprises?
There are almost always surprises behind the tiles of a house that age, so the honest answer is that we plan for them. We look at what we can before quoting, tell you what we expect to find, and price the likely extras up front rather than presenting them as a variation halfway through.
Do you warrant your work?
Yes. If something is not right after we have left, ring us and we will come back and put it right at our cost. That is part of the STS Guarantee above.
Where we work around Willoughby
Willoughby is between Chatswood and Crows Nest, and a normal day's work for us.
Need a plumber in Willoughby?
Ring us for anything urgent and we will tell you what it usually means before we get there. For a bathroom, a roof or a sewer repair, ask us to come and look at it properly. There is no charge for the visit.
Office hours: Monday to Friday, 7am to 5pm.