What we do
- Talking you through stopping the water, by phone if the leak is active
- Ruptured copper, PEX or rusted galvanized lengths spliced with new pipe
- Pinhole drips on lines you can see: laundry rooms, water heater closets, crawl spaces
- Hidden leaks reached through the wall, fixed, then the opening closed and textured
- Failed rubber laundry hoses swapped for braided stainless, and split outdoor spigots renewed
- Rusted unions where steel meets copper rebuilt with proper dielectric fittings
In Alhambra homes
About 77 percent of Alhambra’s homes were built before 1980, according to a city housing report. Many of them started with galvanized steel water pipe and have since been partly redone in copper or PEX. Galvanized pipe rusts from the inside, and the joints where it meets copper corrode faster still, which is where we see most pinhole leaks and sudden splits.
Get a quote in one text
Tell us whether the water is off yet, and send a photo of the leak or wet area and where it is. Our number for photos is (626) 684-3505, and the price comes back before any work is booked.
Getting the water off
Look for the main valve on the pipe coming up out of the ground beside the house, typically by the front spigot or on a garage wall. A wheel handle turns clockwise to close; a lever turns a quarter turn across the pipe. When it is frozen solid, the meter box at the curb has a valve your water company can shut. After that, crack open the lowest faucet in the house to bleed off pressure, and stay away from wet outlets or the electrical panel.
Our repair
Access comes first: a neat rectangle in the drywall, or a crawl-space hatch, sized so the patch later is small. With the pipe in view we check a foot or two either side of the failure, because rust in galvanized usually runs further than the hole. That stretch comes out, a new length goes in with fittings matched to what is there, and the line is pressurized slowly while each joint stays in sight.
Leaks you cannot see
The EPA’s WaterSense program says the average household’s leaks can waste more than 9,300 gallons of water a year, and nine percent of homes have leaks that waste 50 gallons or more per day. A meter that turns with every tap closed, a warm spot on a floor, or a stain that grows on a wall are worth a call before a pinhole becomes a burst.
Laundry hoses and outdoor spigots
Rubber fill hoses behind a washer age out quietly and then split under pressure, so we fit braided stainless replacements and look at the two laundry valves while we are there. Outdoor spigots usually crack when a hose with a closed nozzle is left on; a new spigot with a vacuum breaker solves it.
Closing the wall
We give the cavity time to dry out, then fit new board or plaster patch, blend the texture and leave it primed for your paint.
Bigger plumbing jobs
Repiping a whole house, leaks under the slab and rerouting around it, breaks between the meter and the house valve on the street side, and sewer or drain failures belong with a plumber, and we tell you so in the first reply.
Sources: City of Alhambra, housing needs report (age of housing stock); U.S. EPA WaterSense, Fix a Leak Week.
Repair guides for this job
- Replacing a toilet without harming a vintage tile floorReplacing a toilet in an Alhambra bath with original 1920s or 1930s tile: measuring the rough-in, repairing the flange and protecting the old floor.
- Low water pressure at one faucet, shower or toiletWhy one faucet, shower or toilet in an older Alhambra house runs weak, the quick checks you can do first, and what a repair visit looks like.
- Replacing a garbage disposal under an older kitchen sinkWhat to check when a disposal hums, leaks or will not turn on, and how we fit a new one under the deep vintage sinks found in older Alhambra kitchens.
- Fitting a new faucet to an old sinkHow to tell which new faucets fit an older sink, why vintage wall-mount and widespread sinks need care, and what our faucet replacement visit involves.
Looking for a handyman in Alhambra for more than one job? Send the whole list and we’ll price it together.
We serve Alhambra first, plus Monterey Park, San Gabriel and other nearby cities. Have a question? See the handyman FAQ.