Got home from running errands a couple of Saturdays ago to find a small lake in my basement, water seeping up from the floor drain. Luckily the drain is located on the unfinished side, where the floor is poured concrete but the sight of all that water was still a shock.
We had had a recent plumbing problem a few weeks earlier, and had contacted another big name in plumbing only to be sorely disappointed in the shoddy service and failure to complete a simple job. So this time we decided to try New Canadian Drain and Plumbing. Best choice we could have made.
We contacted the office and were treated courteously and with great consideration. They advised us that a technician would be arriving at around 6:00.
Malik, the technician, arrived on time and proceeded to start the diagnosis. It took a while, but using his camera equipment he scoped out the condition of the pipes and found that the 50-year old clay pipe leading to the sewer line had collapsed and we were basically getting raw sewage backing up in our basement.
Malik explained our options simply and efficiently, and wrote out the contract, explaining each detail of the work involved and the price, as well as the rebate we would be eligible for because we were installing a back-flow valve to protect against future floods.
The whole deal was arranged very quickly, and Malik's confident assurance that we would have working plumbing by Monday evening made us feel better in a bad situation. We just had to get through the next 48 hours with no plumbing!
Luckily with in-laws and a Tim Horton's just around the corner we came up with a plan, but decided that we could leave the house unoccupied in case things got worse. Which they did.
Sunday morning, in spite of us not using the toilet or running any water, the lake was deeper and larger, and was starting to spread. While I started with the shop-vac to remove what would amount to 300 gallons of water, my wife called Malik to see if he could help.
Although it was his day off, and keep in mind that it was Grey Cup Sunday, Malik came around with a cap for the drain. H explained that our neighbours pipe and ours both joined the city line in the same place and we must be getting their back-flow. I continued to pump for a few more hours, and no more water came in, so the cap worked.
Monday morning the crew showed up on time and started work in sub-zero weather. By the evening they had the pipe repaired, but silt and mud had got in through the broken section and was blocking the flow to the city pipe. This didn't sound like good news.
However, after a couple of phone calls they arranged for Malik to come by with an auger. At 9:00 p.m. he was at the bottom of a 7 foot hole running an auger through the blocked pipe. In no time he had the water flowing through and made good on his promise that we would have working plumbing by Monday evening.
All in all I can say that New Canadian came through on everything they promised, when they promised, and at the price they promised. The service from both the office and field staff was courteous and professional, with frequent call backs to make sure everything was going as planned. Malik was amazing, and at no time did we feel like we were on our own in a bad situation.
I would have no problem contacting this company again for any plumbing job and would also recommend them to any family and friends who need excellent service at a reasonable price.
