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A drain cleaning job may be just the tip of the iceberg.
When a plunger doesn't get the throne room back into operation, homeowners usually turn to their plumber for relief. For some plumbers, these calls are a necessary evil that are more trouble than they're worth, but others find special opportunities in drain cleaning. In the course of customizing pricing books for contractors from coast to coast, I've noticed four major camps in the plumbing and drain cleaning business.
The Drain Dabbler: Some contractors accept drain cleaning calls as a burden they must bear in order to be in the plumbing business. These contractors may pull an "expendable" inexperienced tech from another jobsite just to placate the customer. The tech will be armed with feeble equipment that was mediocre when purchased sometime last century. Once the drain is unclogged, the tech will assume the job is finished without giving a thought to actually cleaning the drain line.
This process may get the customer off your back for the time being, but you can bet his next call will be to another contractor.
Clogs On A Silver Platter: Another strategy is to price drain cleaning work so high that few will use your services. To begin with, the higher pricing implies that your customer is going to get better service, faster response or both.
The reality is that if your service professionals don't want to clean drains, then your customer is most likely going to receive mediocre to lousy service for an exorbitant price. They'll probably find better service elsewhere and may well take their plumbing business with them. If you don't want to do drains, do yourself and your customers a favor and just refuse the work in the first place.
Drain Disdain: Some plumbing contractors have very practical reasons for their drain disdain. To begin with, recruiting plumbers who are willing to clean drains can be a real challenge, especially in companies offering a plumbing/heating...