Hunters Hill and the river
Plumber in Woolwich
Sewer repairs, drains, roofing and bathrooms across Woolwich, at the tip of the peninsula, where heritage houses sit on sandstone above the water.
- 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 Woolwich
- Old sewer lines under heritage homes. Clay and earthenware that has been in the ground for generations.
- Sandstone and slope. Repairs planned carefully, with the garden and paving put back the way they were.
- Relining instead of digging. A new pipe inside the old one when a trench is the last thing you want.
- Waterfront roofs. Flashings, gutters and valleys that face the weather.
- Bathrooms in period houses. Renovated with the waterproofing done properly.
Woolwich is a short run across the river from Lane Cove.
In more detail
The three we get called about most
Old sewer under heritage homes
Woolwich has pipework that has been in the ground for generations. Earthenware and clay, laid by hand, under sandstone and established gardens.
We camera the line and locate the fault to the metre before quoting, and tell you the condition of the rest of the run while we are down there. On a property like this that is the only honest way to price a repair.
Sewer repairsRelining instead of digging
A trench through a Woolwich garden costs more to put back than the pipe costs to fix, particularly where there is sandstone paving or mature planting over it.
Relining puts a new pipe inside the old one with nothing to reinstate. Where the pipe has collapsed we will say plainly that digging is the only real answer, and we put the ground back the way we found it.
Pipe reliningBathrooms in period houses
In a Federation house the bathroom is usually the room with the oldest plumbing and the least waterproofing, and it is all behind the tiles.
We run the plumbing side start to finish, work in with your builder and designer, and get the waterproofing certified before anything goes over it.
Bathroom renovationsIt’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
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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 Woolwich bathroom and the drainage behind it
The problem
A couple were renovating the bathroom in their 1940s Federation home. The existing plumbing was original, and water had been pooling around the house in heavy rain. They wanted the bathroom modernised without the house losing its character.
What we did
We worked with their designer and builder and did both jobs together rather than separately. New water lines and a modern hot water system went in, the corroded copper was replaced, and around the outside we put in new ag lines and a sump to take the stormwater away from the house properly.
The result
A finished bathroom with new plumbing behind it, and a dry perimeter in heavy rain for the first time. Done to the programme and the price agreed, with the character of the house left alone.
Out of the van
What the work actually looks like
Our photos, off our own jobs. Not a stock library.
About the suburb
Plumbing in Woolwich
Woolwich, postcode 2110, is the tip of the Hunters Hill peninsula, running out between the Lane Cove River and the Parramatta River to Clarkes Point and the old Woolwich Dock. It's a small suburb of Federation and Victorian houses along Gale Street, Woolwich Road and the streets off them, with big waterfront homes on the bays, a few older flat blocks, and the whole suburb under heritage rules.
The houses are old and so is their plumbing. Earthenware sewers with roots in every joint, galvanised water services that have rusted inside, cast iron stacks in the two-storey homes, and stormwater that was run wherever it would go. A drain that blocks every few months in Woolwich is nearly always roots. We put the camera down to find where they're getting in, jet the line, and reline it so they stay out and the garden and paving stay where they are.
Working in a heritage house means working carefully. Sandstone walls, original floorboards, plaster ceilings and gardens that have been there a century have to be left as we found them. We plan the route before we start, keep the holes to the ones that are needed, and put things back properly.
The peninsula is narrow and steep, and the sewer lines run a long way downhill to the main on both sides, often through rock. A break can be a fair way from the house. Finding it with the camera before anyone digs matters more here than almost anywhere else we work. Stormwater off a slate or iron roof in a storm has to be got away properly, and the box gutters and downpipes on these houses are often original.
Galvanised water services show up as poor pressure to an upstairs bathroom and brown water after a day away. We replace the service from the meter in copper, and we check the main stop tap, which in these houses is often seized. A lot of Woolwich houses have been extended or had bathrooms added over the years, and where a drain was tied in badly is where the trouble is now.
Woolwich is a short run across the river from Lane Cove, where STS has been based since 2016. 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 Woolwich
- 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 Woolwich locals say
The STS team were professional, clean, and truly expert. They respected our home and delivered beyond what we imagined. Highly recommend to anyone in Woolwich.
Claire M., WoolwichQuestions we get asked in Woolwich
What does a plumber in Woolwich 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 reline a pipe under a sandstone path?
Usually yes, and that is exactly the situation relining is for. It goes in through an existing access point, so the path stays where it is. What decides it is the condition of the old pipe, not what is sitting on top of it, which is why the camera survey comes first.
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 Woolwich
Woolwich is a short run across the river from Lane Cove.
Need a plumber in Woolwich?
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.