On June 19th, 1972, Hurricane Agnes provided a perfect storm of emergency calls for flooded basements. I was a new plumbing apprentice at F. W. Behler and, fortunately for our customers, Herb and Scott Behler had the foresight to purchase every sump pump our local suppliers had in inventory a week earlier in anticipation there would be emergency calls. Back then, pedestal sump pumps were the norm where submersible sump pumps, due to the cost disparity, were rarely purchased, much less stocked in advance. It wasn’t until we had exhausted all pedestal pump inventory, scoured all suppliers for any remaining pedestal sump pumps that submersible models were even considered! Property owners, by then, were desperate enough that the added cost was no longer an obstacle.

Weather emergencies have steadily increased in frequency and severity over the past six decades. In addition to a gasoline-powered high-volume dewatering pump, we maintained an inventory of submersible sump pumps and if it looked like severe weather was potentially headed our way, I increased our inventory. We also stocked battery-backup sump pumps, but waited to purchase deep-cycle marine batteries, other than one we kept in stock for after hours emergency calls. Local fire companies will also respond to dewater basements and they often referred customers who were seeking a more permanent resolution.

Like almost everything else these days, today’s sump pumps are available in WiFi connected models. If sensitive records are stored where flooding could occur, that represents an excellent opportunity for you to provide protection by installing two (primary/secondary) WiFi sump pumps that either alternate via a control panel or with floats installed a different levels, a separate WiFi cloud connected backup alarm, and a backup battery-powered WiFi sump pump with at least six-hours continuous pumping capacity. Medical and legal record storage rooms (often in basements) offer great sales opportunities.

Lots of water alarm sensor systems are available for detecting leaks before they become floods and more than a few with inline potable water shut off valves with flow sensing capabilities to disable the water flow if an unusual flow is sensed. There was a local county park where all sewage from their public restrooms drained into large multi-thousand-gallon tanks. On occasion, someone or something was causing massive water flows filling their holding tanks. They were charged the same amount for pumping/disposal no matter if it was water or sewage and had become frustrated by the frequency and that the remote location had prevented them from catching either the person or plumbing fixture causing this problem. Installation of a flow sensing valve that both turned off the water when an unusual volume of water was used and tied into the building’s burglar alarm system resolved the problem. The individual causing the issue was never caught, but stopped sabotaging the plumbing once they realized they were triggering the very loud burglar alarm and rapid response by police and parks personnel.

If you have the room in your shop, or warehouse, stocking water heaters provides the ability to resolve after hours emergency replacement calls. There were times when local wholesalers ran out of inventory but we had the size required in our inventory. At one point, a savvy wholesaler negotiated better-than-average pricing and placed multiple sizes/fuels water heaters in our warehouse: no cost to us until one was used and no outlay of operating capital on our end and our sales representative took inventory and automatically ordered replacements: a win/win for both parties.

Winter is fast approaching and now is a great time to check your inventory and take advantage of pre-season sales offered by wholesalers. Every so often, we will have a brutally cold spell and as old timers know, anytime you experience more than three days with outdoor ambient air temperatures well below 32F - both day and night - frozen pipe calls begin to rear their ugly head.

Winter is fast approaching and now is a great time to check your inventory and take advantage of pre-season sales offered by wholesalers.

On rare occasions, severe and unusually colder weather rapidly cascades over a geographical area causing sudden emergency calls. In 1976, on a Sunday evening, our ambient air temperature fell below -15F with windchills below -50F. Overnight all hell broke loose as did heating and potable water lines, and more than a few hot water cast iron radiators exploded, driving end sections through walls - even with the heat on and working! It turned out both the supply and return hydronic piping had frozen and the expanding ice plugs, with the water-filled cast iron radiators effectively trapped between ice plugs, generated an extreme increase in water pressure until the end sections blew-out. Customers said it sounded like a shotgun blast!

For three weeks the bitter cold weather clung like a wet blanket and we had to deal with frozen water service lines, some more than 5-feet below grade. Entire blocks of row homes whose sidewalks were in shadow all day were without water while their neighbors on the sunny side of the street continued to enjoy full use of their plumbing.

Heat guns for removing paint can be used for thawing pipes, rather than using an open-flame torch! Hair dryers too, but in both cases be alert to the potential for sudden water leaks where ice plugs may have split piping and/or fittings. Keep your wet/dry shop vacs ready in winter for sucking up water. Customers will sing your praises if you go the extra mile by not just locating and fixing the problem, but helping in the restoration/cleanup effort. Keep some extra ice-thaw crystals on each service truck along with a snow shovel. Your elderly customers will surely appreciate the extra help clearing off their steps and that only takes a few minutes to generate goodwill that lasts.

Portable electric heaters became something we stocked as furnaces, boilers, and heat pumps began incorporating advanced electronics. While we stocked everything possibly needed for the brands we sold, we serviced every brand on the market. On occasion, restoring heat required ordering parts no one stocked and having the 10-amp cube fan-assisted heaters, or oil-filled radiator types, kept our customers comfortable until required parts could be obtained, installed, and heating restored.

As pros, keeping your customers safe, secure, and dry helps build loyalty. The plumber most assuredly protects the health of the nation.