Plumber in Ocean Shores, NSW
Working across Ocean Shores, from the flat north by the canal to the hills in the south
Ocean Shores is a planned estate town, not a village. It was laid out from 1969 on curving roads instead of a grid. The north is flat and runs to the beach, the Capricornia Canal and the Billinudgel Nature Reserve. The south is hilly, with raised ground and sea views. The golf course sits near the middle, and Marshalls Creek, the north arm of the Brunswick River, winds along the northern side. We work in all of it, so the first thing to settle is which part of town you are in.
The roads curve and loop rather than run in a grid, so an address can be hard to find. Give us the street and the nearest cross street. The estate was laid out with generous front and side setbacks and no front fences, so the water meter can be a long way from the house. In heavy local rain some low streets, including Balemo Drive and Rajah Road, can close, so tell us if the road in is wet.
Most Ocean Shores houses date from the late 1970s to the 1990s. The population grew from 255 in 1976 to 2,797 in 1991, and the developers built the roads, the underground power and a sewage treatment plant that still serves the town. Each lot was meant for one dwelling. A house that age has probably been through a second or third hot water unit, and original taps, mixers and cisterns have had thirty years or more of daily use.
What we do here most
What a planned estate of 1980s houses keeps needing
Most Ocean Shores houses are thirty to fifty years old and set well back on their lots, and the flat north takes its water from the weather. The four jobs below follow from age and distance.
Sewer and Stormwater Drainage
Water standing in a flat North Ocean Shores yard
North Ocean Shores is flat, with the canal, Marshalls Creek and the nature reserve close by, and heavy local rain can leave water backed up at the low points. Roof water that cannot get away sits in the pipe or comes up at the nearest pit. We follow the downpipes to the first pit, check the fall of the pipe, and trace it to where it leaves your lot. Where it ends decides what we can change.
Hot Water System Repairs and Installation
Replacing a hot water unit in a 1980s house
A house built in the 1980s has probably been through two or three hot water units, and the valves and pipework around each one were fitted at different times. When the old unit comes out, we look at the isolation tap, the relief valve and the pipes it was joined to, because they may be older than the unit. Some can be reused. Some come out with it, and we tell you which.
Leak Detection and Repairs
Buried leak between the meter and a set-back house
Ocean Shores houses were set well back from the road, so the pipe from the meter to the house can be a long buried run. We close the tap where that pipe reaches the house and watch the meter. If the dial still moves, the leak is in the buried run, and we listen along the line to find where. The wet patch on the lawn may be some distance from the break.
Bathroom and Kitchen Plumbing
Renovating the original bathroom in a 1980s house
Behind the original tiles of a 1980s bathroom are the original tap set, the shower mixer and the waste pipe, and they have not been seen since the house was built. We isolate the water, take the fittings out one at a time, and look at what the pipes behind them are made of and what shape they are in. Both are visible once the first fitting is out, and you hear about it then.
If it is urgent
If a pipe lets go in an Ocean Shores house set back from the street
- 1Close the stop tap at the water meter. In Ocean Shores the meter can be a long way down the front of the lot from the house, so take a torch and keep clear of wet ground near any power cable.
- 2Do not dig in the lawn to chase a wet patch. The estate has underground power, and a wet patch is often not where the pipe has split. Leave the hot water unit and the switchboard alone if water has reached them.
- 3When you ring, give us your street and the nearest cross street, because the roads here curve and loop. Tell us whether you are in the flat north or the hilly south, where the meter is, and whether the road to your house is open.
Common questions
Frequently Asked Questions
Which areas do you cover?
We work across Byron Bay and the Northern Rivers, from Ewingsdale and Bangalow through to Tweed Heads and Murwillumbah. There are sixteen places on the service areas page. If your town is not on the list, give us a call and ask.
How do I get in touch?
Use the call and email buttons on any page, or the contact form. There are two phone numbers and two email addresses, and you choose which one to use. For anything urgent, call rather than write.
What should I have ready when I call?
Your town, what is happening and when it started. If you can, take a photo or a short video of the problem, and note the age of the house and where the water main is. It helps us bring the right parts.
Do you do small jobs?
Yes. A dripping tap, a running toilet or a slow drain is a normal job for us. Describe what you can see when you call.
Can you clear a blocked drain without digging?
Often the first step is to clear it from the nearest access point, then run a camera through to see what caused it. If the pipe is cracked, roots have grown in or a section has dropped, clearing only buys time, and the footage shows you what is going on.
What should I do if a pipe bursts?
Close the main tap, open a tap at the lowest point to drain the line, and switch off a leaking hot water system at the wall. Move anything electrical out of the water's path, then call us.
Can you find a leak I cannot see?
Hidden leaks often show up as damp patches, a water meter that moves when everything is turned off, or a bill that suddenly jumps. We trace the pipework to find the source before anything is opened up.
Do you repair hot water systems as well as replace them?
Yes, we do both. Whether a repair or a replacement makes sense depends on what has failed, and we explain what we find so you can decide.
What should I do if I smell gas?
Leave the area straight away and do not switch anything on or off, including lights. Ring 000 from outside, then call us once you are safe.
Do you do gas fitting?
Yes. Gas fitting and gas plumbing is one of our services, from connecting appliances to running pipework. Describe the job when you call.
Do you install septic systems?
Yes, septic system installation is one of our services. The job depends on the block, so tell us about your property and what you have now when you call.
Do you do bathroom and kitchen plumbing for renovations?
Yes, the plumbing side: moving and connecting taps, basins, toilets, showers, sinks and waste. Tiling and building are for other trades.
Everything we do here
Services in Ocean Shores, NSW
The services below follow what Ocean Shores asks of its plumbing, from tired original fittings to water that cannot get away on the flat ground in the north.
Also nearby
We work in these towns too
Local, and on the phone
Tell us where in Ocean Shores you are
Tell us roughly how far your water meter is from your front door, in steps. In Ocean Shores the houses sit well back from the road, and that distance decides where we start and how we plan the visit.
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