Plumbing in Boston, MA

The local picture in Boston

Boston requires owners to register rental units every year, and most rentals are selected for a city inspection once every five years. Nor'easters bring heavy snow and coastal flooding, and the Blizzard of 1978 is still the storm locals measure others against.

Triple-deckers, three-family wood houses with stacked porches, are a signature of Dorchester, Roslindale and South Boston. In stacked apartments and row homes, drain lines are often shared, so a clog upstairs can surface as a backup downstairs. Mention the layout of the building when you call.

When temperatures sink well below freezing, keep cabinet doors open on outside walls and know where your shutoff is. A frozen line that bursts can flood a room fast. West Roxbury and Hyde Park have more single-family houses on larger lots than the inner neighborhoods.

What usually goes wrong

Here is what Boston callers mention most:

• Running toilet
• Low water pressure
• Water stains on a ceiling or wall

What happens after you call

1. Share your ZIP code and what you are seeing.
2. Your details go to a plumber with availability in your part of Boston.
3. They confirm timing, price and any fees with you directly.

Permits, licenses and your utility

Ask a plumber who finds an old lead or galvanized service line to point it out, then check with the Boston Water and Sewer Commission about its service line inventory and any replacement program. Massachusetts licenses plumbers and gas fitters through the Board of State Examiners of Plumbers and Gas Fitters, and licenses can be checked online.

What to have ready

Write down when the problem started and anything that changed, like new fixtures or recent work on the building.