Who you are actually calling

Why there is no phone number to call

There is. It is on this page and in the footer. But it is not a button, and that is deliberate.

We are two people. When your call comes in, one of us is usually underneath a sink with both hands full, and the other is driving. A phone that rings out does not tell you anything useful - it just makes you try the next plumber on the list.

So the form comes first. You tell us what is happening, send a photo if you can, and we ring you back. Usually inside fifteen minutes during the day. If it is urgent, say so in the first line and we will come to it before anything else.

That is not us being difficult. It is the only way two people can answer properly.

Dave

Drains, blockages, toilets, showers.

He can usually tell from a photograph whether a job needs rods, a wet vac or a pressure flush, which is why we ask for one before we set off. If you have had a plumber turn up, look at the blockage and say he will come back Thursday with the right part, that is what we are trying to avoid.

Rob

Boilers, water heaters, installations.

Electric, mostly - this coast runs on electric water heaters and very little gas. Ariston above all, because that is what is in most of the apartments here. If a tank is corroded he will tell you to replace it rather than sell you an element that will not fix anything.

What we will not do

• New-build first fix
• Pool plant
• Gas installation
• Commercial kitchens
• Anything that needs scaffolding

Saying no to those is not modesty. It is the reason we are usually free when you need us.

Where we work

Calahonda is home. From there, ten kilometres: Riviera del Sol, Miraflores, Cabopino, Artola, La Cala de Mijas, La Cala Golf, Elviria, Las Chapas, Torrenueva. Fuengirola at a push.

Beyond that we say no, and we say it plainly rather than taking the booking and disappointing you on the day.

What the coast does to plumbing

Three things, and they cause most of what we get called to.

The water is hard. Calcium comes out of it as it heats and coats the element in an electric water heater. In soft water that element lasts fifteen years. Here it lasts five to eight. The same limescale seizes thermostatic shower cartridges long before they wear out.

August drops the pressure. Everyone fills a pool at the same moment and the urbanisations above the coast road lose pressure. Anything relying on a minimum pressure starts to complain, then settles down in October. If your hot water is only unreliable in high summer, that is why, and it is worth knowing before you spend money on a new unit.

Half the properties stand empty for months. A dried-out trap lets sewer gas back into a bathroom. People report a smell and assume a blockage. It is usually the trap, and the fix is much cheaper.

How we price

We give you a number on the message or the phone before anyone drives out. It does not change afterwards. If we open something up and find the job is not what it looked like, we stop and talk to you before doing anything further.

No call-out fee for a job we then do. No charge for telling you it is not worth repairing.