From burst pipes in the Annex to backwater valves in Etobicoke, our T94-licensed plumbers handle Toronto's toughest plumbing problems with transparent flat-rate pricing, code-compliant workmanship, and full Basement Flooding Subsidy paperwork done for you.
Master plumber-led
Plumbing Alliance is an alliance of master plumbers, journeymen, and apprentices who decided the GTA deserved better than the high-pressure, surprise-fee, $99-trip-charge model that has taken over the trade. We pooled our trucks, our suppliers, and our combined decades of field experience under one banner so Toronto homeowners get the responsiveness of a local plumber with the depth of bench you would expect from a much larger company.
Our lead plumbers carry Ontario Certificate of Qualification 306A (Plumber) credentials, and our company holds a City of Toronto T94 Plumbing Contractor licence — the licence the City requires for any plumber working on a Basement Flooding Protection Subsidy installation. We are fully insured ($5M general liability), WSIB-cleared on every job site, and bonded for projects that require it. Every truck is a rolling warehouse: brass fittings, copper stock, PEX, ABS, cast-iron repair couplings, sewer cameras, hydro-jetters, and the diagnostic tools needed to fix problems on the first visit instead of leaving and coming back with another invoice.
We serve residential, multi-residential, and small commercial customers across the 416 and inner 905. That means single-family homes in Leaside, century semis in Cabbagetown, fourplexes in Parkdale, condo townhomes in Liberty Village, and small retail and restaurant clients along the Danforth and Bloor West Village. Whether your house was built in 1908 with a buried lead service line or in 2024 with a PEX manifold, our team has worked on it before.
[client to confirm — replace with actual founding year and personal story] Plumbing Alliance was founded after our principal plumber spent more than fifteen years in Toronto trades and grew tired of seeing customers handed three-page invoices with no upfront price. We do things the opposite way: diagnose, quote in writing, get your sign-off, then do the work. No surprises, no upsells, no scare tactics.
There is no shortage of plumbers in the GTA. There is a serious shortage of plumbers who actually show up on time, hand you a price before they start, and pull a permit when one is required. Here is exactly what sets Plumbing Alliance apart.
City of Toronto T94 Plumbing Contractor licence — required for Basement Flooding Subsidy installations. Ontario 306A Plumber Certificate of Qualification on every lead plumber. Master Plumber-led crews on complex sewer, drain, and waterline work. $5,000,000 commercial general liability plus full WSIB clearance. Bonded for tenders and condo board work where required.
Every job starts with an on-site diagnosis and a written, flat-rate quote. You sign before we start. The number on the page is the number on the invoice — taxes included, parts included, disposal included. We do not charge an hourly rate that quietly inflates while we 'figure it out.' We do not charge a 'trip fee' that gets refunded only if you book the work.
If anything we install or repair fails because of how we installed or repaired it, we come back at no charge for a full year. On flood-protection work covered by the City's Basement Flooding Protection Subsidy Program, that warranty is in writing and registered with the file we keep for your subsidy application.
Sewer backups, burst pipes, gas-line leaks, and water heaters that fail the night before a holiday do not wait for business hours. Our dispatcher is live 24/7 and our after-hours rates are posted publicly — not invented when you call at 11 p.m. We aim for a two-hour arrival window for true emergencies inside the 416 and four hours across the inner 905.
[client to confirm exact figures] Combined, our team has logged over 30,000 service calls across Toronto neighbourhoods. We hold continuing-education credits in cross-connection control, backflow prevention, and tankless water-heater commissioning. We are listed contractors on the City of Toronto Basement Flooding Protection Subsidy roster, members of the Mechanical Contractors Association of Toronto, and accredited businesses with the Better Business Bureau.
Below is a complete catalogue of what we do, with realistic Toronto pricing ranges as of [client to confirm — current year]. Final pricing is always confirmed in writing after an on-site diagnosis. Material grade, access, and code-required upgrades can move pricing within these ranges.
24/7
Burst pipes from a freeze-thaw cycle in February, sewer backups during a July thunderstorm, a kitchen riser that lets go behind a cabinet — these are not problems that wait. We dispatch around the clock, including statutory holidays, with dedicated overnight crews for the central 416. Our trucks carry shut-off tools for City of Toronto curb stops, freeze kits, and flood-extraction equipment so we can stop the damage before we start the repair.
$189–$450 · service call (credited toward repair)
Same-day
Toronto's older neighbourhoods — Roncesvalles, Cabbagetown, Riverdale, Leslieville, the Beaches, Bloor West Village — are full of clay-tile sewer laterals that root-trees love. We cable, camera, and hydro-jet to clear blockages and we record the inspection so you know whether you bought a temporary fix or a permanent one. Same-day drain service is standard.
$189–$1,400 · snaking through hydro-jet mainline
Subsidy eligible
Across Ontario, the only model approved on the main sanitary lateral is the Mainline Fullport Backwater Valve. We pull the City of Toronto building permit, break and patch the slab, install in an accessible service box, coordinate the City inspection, and prepare your full Basement Flooding Protection Subsidy package — invoice marked paid, photos, permit number, and consent-to-enter form. Most homes in flood-risk pockets like Black Creek, Parkdale, the Lower Don, and parts of Scarborough recover up to $1,250 from the City on this single installation, with the cap rising to roughly $1,600 per device under the enhanced program effective May 1, 2026. [client to verify current cap at time of install]
$2,800–$4,800 · before subsidy
Storm-ready
Sump pumps move groundwater away from the foundation before it reaches your basement floor. We size pumps to your weeping-tile load, install on a check valve, and discharge a minimum of two metres from the foundation onto a permeable surface as the City requires. Battery-backup systems matter because Toronto's worst floods often coincide with power outages — and a $1,200 battery system protects a $40,000 finished basement. The City currently subsidizes up to $1,750 per sump pump and $300 per battery backup under the enhanced program.
$1,800–$3,400 · primary install · backup +$400–$900
USB recording
Buying a 1920s home in High Park? Selling a duplex in The Junction? Recurring backups in your laundry room? A push-camera inspection from the floor drain or stack cleanout shows exactly what is happening underground — root intrusion, bellies, offsets, cracked clay, or a partial collapse. We provide the recording, written findings, and a transparent quote for any recommended work. We never recommend dig-up work without showing you the footage.
$250–$475 · standard camera survey + USB
No-dig
Excavating an entire front yard to replace a clay sewer lateral was the only option for decades. Today, cured-in-place pipe (CIPP) lining and pipe bursting let us rehabilitate failing sewers from a single small access pit. That is a game-changer in Toronto neighbourhoods with mature trees, narrow lots, brick interlocked driveways, or heritage front gardens — Forest Hill, Rosedale, the Annex, Wychwood, and Lawrence Park come up most often. We will only recommend trenchless when the host pipe is a candidate; if a section is collapsed, conventional dig-and-replace is the right call and we will tell you so.
$4,500–$18,000 · scope-dependent
City-coordinated
If your home was built before the mid-1950s and the service line has not been swapped, there is a real chance the line from the property line to your meter is lead. The City of Toronto's Priority Lead Water Service Replacement Program will replace its public-side portion when you replace your private side; we coordinate the application, the permit, and the schedule so the changeover happens in a single coordinated dig. We replace with Type-K copper or HDPE, install a new shut-off and meter horn, and pressure-test before backfill.
$4,800–$9,500 · standard residential
Same-day swaps
We install standard atmospheric-vent and power-vent gas tanks, condensing tankless, electric, and the new generation of hybrid heat-pump water heaters that qualify for federal Greener Homes and Enbridge Home Efficiency rebates. Same-day swap-outs are standard for tank-to-tank replacements; tankless and heat-pump installs typically take a single day plus a TSSA (gas) permit where applicable.
$1,650–$8,800 · tank · tankless · heat-pump
Renovation-ready
Galvanized supply lines from the 1940s and 50s rust closed from the inside out. Polybutylene from the 70s and 80s fails at the fittings. We re-pipe in PEX or Type-L copper depending on the home, the budget, and the inspector's preference, with full pressure-testing and a clean drywall hand-off. Renovation plumbing for kitchen and bathroom rough-ins is one of our largest categories.
$225–$14,000 · faucet swap through full repipe
TSSA permitted
Our gas-licensed (G2) techs run lines for ranges, dryers, BBQs, fireplaces, garage heaters, and pool heaters. Every gas job is permitted through TSSA where required, leak-tested at full pressure, and tagged. We do not run gas lines without a permit. Ever.
$325–$950 · per appliance run
Quote-by-job
Restaurants on the Danforth, dental offices in Yorkville, daycares in Leslieville, retail along Bloor — small commercial work needs a plumber who knows backflow prevention testing, grease-interceptor sizing, ULC water-meter assemblies, and how to schedule around business hours. We do all of that, with after-hours and weekend installation available.
Quote-by-job · after-hours availableCommon services with the price ranges we actually charge. Final fees are confirmed in a written, flat-rate quote after an on-site diagnosis. Phone consultations and pre-purchase consultations on properties under offer are free.
Tell us what's happening on the phone — we'll triage, give you a ballpark, and dispatch if it's urgent. Free pre-purchase consults on properties under offer. Service-call diagnostic fee credited 100% toward repair if you proceed.
On-site diagnosis with written quote. Fee credited toward repair if you proceed.
Cable from the cleanout. Camera scope available. Same-day standard.
Includes wax ring, supply line, valve check, disposal of old unit.
Gas or electric. Includes pan, expansion tank, sediment trap, drip line.
Before subsidy. City rebate up to $1,250 (rising to ~$1,600). Permit + paperwork done for you.
Properly sized to weeping-tile load. Battery backup +$400–$900. City rebate up to $1,750.
USB recording, written findings, transparent quote for any recommended work.
Toronto's housing stock is unusual. A century-and-a-quarter of construction sits within thirty kilometres of Yonge and Bloor — Victorian semis, 1920s bungalows, mid-century ranches, 1970s side-splits, and brand-new infill. Each era has its own plumbing failure modes. Here are the problems we see most often, sorted roughly by frequency.
The number-one call we get during summer thunderstorms. Heavy rain overloads the city sewer, the system surcharges, and waste water reverses through your floor drain. The permanent fix is a Mainline Fullport backwater valve, ideally paired with a sump pump if your home has weeping tiles connected to the storm sewer. The City of Toronto subsidizes both.
January and February calls. Pipes in cantilevered floors over garages, in rim-joist areas, in exterior walls of north-facing kitchens, and in unheated additions are at the highest risk. We thaw, repair, re-route through warmer chases where possible, and add insulation or heat trace to prevent recurrence.
A toilet that flushes slowly while the basement floor drain gurgles is a main-line problem, not a toilet problem. We cable from the cleanout, run a camera, and recommend either hydro-jetting (for grease and scale) or trenchless lining (for root-cracked clay). Roncesvalles, the Pocket, Wychwood, Bloor West Village, and the Beaches have the highest density of original clay sewer laterals in our service area.
Almost always a galvanized-pipe problem in pre-1955 homes. The interior of the steel rusts shut over decades; you slowly lose pressure until the upstairs shower trickles. Whole-home repipe in PEX or Type-L copper restores full flow and is often cheaper than homeowners expect.
A puddle around the base of the tank means the inner liner has corroded through; that tank is finished. We swap same-day, including pan, expansion tank, sediment trap, and drip line — all upgrades modern code requires that older installs may not have.
Usually one of three things: a dry P-trap (especially in basement bathrooms used a few times a year), a partial blockage in the trap arm, or a vent issue. We diagnose first, then quote.
If your home was built before 1955 and your incoming service has never been replaced, get a free water test from Toronto Public Health and have a plumber check the meter horn. Lead service replacement combined with the City's public-side replacement program gives you a fully copper service for thousands less than doing it later as an emergency.
Pumps fail at the worst possible time — during a power outage in the middle of a thunderstorm. Battery backups are no longer a luxury in Toronto; they are basement-finishing insurance, and the City subsidizes them.
The high-pressure, three-page-invoice model is the default in this trade. We built Plumbing Alliance to do the opposite. Here is the difference in plain language.
Every job follows the same five-step playbook so customers know exactly what to expect. No mystery, no scope creep, no 'while we have the wall open' surprise charges.
Tell our dispatcher what is happening — water on the floor, no hot water, sewage smell, slow drain, planning a renovation. We confirm the address, the property type, and the urgency, then book an arrival window. For active emergencies, we dispatch immediately and call you with an ETA inside 15 minutes.
Our plumber arrives in a clearly marked, fully stocked truck, in uniform, with photo ID. We listen to what you have already tried, inspect the failure, and run any diagnostic tools the situation calls for — pressure gauge, sewer camera, leak-detection mic, gas-leak detector. The diagnosis is usually 20 to 45 minutes for residential calls.
We hand you a printed or emailed quote with three things on it: what is wrong, what we recommend, and what it costs. If there is more than one valid path forward — for example, a temporary fix versus a long-term replacement — we lay out both, with prices, and let you pick. Diagnosis fees are fully credited toward the work if you proceed.
If the work needs a building permit (backwater valves, sewer-line replacements, gas lines, water service lines) or a TSSA gas permit, we pull it before we start. We do not ask you to do that part. We bring all materials in CSA- or ULC-listed grades, protect floors and finishes with drop cloths, and clean every surface we touch before leaving.
For permitted work, we coordinate the City inspection. For Basement Flooding Protection Subsidy work, we prepare the entire application package — paid invoice with itemized cost breakdown, photos, permit number, completed Home Plumbing Assessment Form where applicable. You sign one form and the City handles the rest. We register your one-year workmanship warranty in our system and email you a copy.
Plumbing Alliance covers the full City of Toronto plus surrounding municipalities. We dispatch from depots positioned across the 416 to keep arrival times tight regardless of whether you are downtown or out by the Pickering border. The neighbourhoods below are not exhaustive — if you do not see yours, call us; we almost certainly serve it.
The Annex, Cabbagetown, Yorkville, Rosedale, Forest Hill North, Forest Hill South, Casa Loma, Wychwood, Trinity Bellwoods, Little Italy, Little Portugal, Liberty Village, Parkdale, Roncesvalles Village, High Park, Swansea, the Junction, Junction Triangle, Dovercourt, Bloor West Village, Riverdale, Leslieville, Riverside, Corktown, Distillery District, St. Lawrence, the Beaches, the Pocket.
Leaside, Thorncliffe Park, Old East York, Crescent Town, Pape Village, Danforth Village-East York, Woodbine-Lumsden, Topham Park.
Willowdale (East and West), North York Centre, Lawrence Park (North and South), Bedford Park, York Mills, Hogg's Hollow, Don Mills, Bayview Village, Bayview Woods, the Bridle Path, Lansing, Newtonbrook, Bathurst Manor, Clanton Park, Henry Farm, Banbury, St. Andrew-Windfields.
Mimico, New Toronto, Long Branch, the Kingsway, Humber Valley Village, Edenbridge, Princess Anne Manor, Markland Wood, Rexdale, Kingsview Village, Etobicoke Centre, Eringate, Centennial Park, Alderwood, Stonegate-Queensway.
Agincourt, Wexford, Maryvale, Bendale, Cliffcrest, Cliffside, Birch Cliff, Highland Creek, Centennial, Rouge, West Hill, Guildwood, Woburn, Malvern, Steeles, L'Amoreaux, Tam O'Shanter.
Weston, Mount Dennis, Silverthorn, Earlscourt, Corso Italia, Caledonia-Fairbank, Keelesdale, Beechborough.
Markham, Vaughan (including Thornhill, Concord, and Maple), Richmond Hill, Mississauga (eastern districts including Cooksville, Mississauga Valleys, and Lakeview), Brampton (eastern), Pickering, Ajax, and Oakville. Service-area pricing applies outside the 416.
Plumbing in Toronto is genuinely different from plumbing in most other North American cities. We have the freeze-thaw climate of the Prairies, the rainfall intensity of the U.S. East Coast, a sewer system parts of which date to the late nineteenth century, and a building stock that ranges from 1880s rowhouses to 2025 mass-timber condos. Here is what every Toronto homeowner should know.
Toronto's flagship homeowner subsidy. Originally launched in 2007, the program has paid out roughly $86 million across 59,000 applications, and approximately 14% of the city's residential properties have used it. After the catastrophic July and August 2024 storm events that flooded over 1,000 basements in a single weekend, City Council expanded the program. Effective May 1, 2026, the per-property maximum rises from $3,400 to roughly $6,650, with the backwater valve cap moving to roughly $1,600 per device, sump pump cap up around $2,250, plus a new $300 battery-backup top-up and a $500 home-plumbing-assessment subsidy. [client to verify current limits at toronto.ca before signing any contract]
Eligibility is narrow but generous. You must own a single-family, duplex, triplex, or fourplex residence (no construction-stage homes), be current on your property taxes, hire a City-licensed (T94) contractor, and pull a building permit for the backwater valve. Do-it-yourself installs and unlicensed contractors are not eligible. We are licensed contractors on the program — we do the paperwork, photos, permits, and consent-to-enter form for you. The City reimburses 80% of your invoiced cost up to the caps.
Toronto Building, the City's permit authority, requires permits for: backwater-valve installations, sewer-line replacements, water-service replacements, alteration or addition of fixtures beyond what a plumbing-permit-exempt 'maintenance and repair' allows, gas-line work (TSSA), and most renovation rough-ins. Permit applications run through the Toronto Building Express portal. Permit fees vary by scope but a standalone backwater-valve permit is currently in the low hundreds of dollars. Working without a permit on permit-required work creates problems at sale, on insurance claims, and when applying for City subsidies — so we never skip them.
On the main sanitary sewer lateral in Ontario, the only approved backwater valve is the Mainline Fullport Backwater Valve. Sump pumps must discharge at least two metres from the foundation onto a permeable surface — pumping into the storm sewer connection is not permitted. Water heaters require an expansion tank where a pressure-reducing valve or check valve is installed on the service. Gas connections need TSSA-licensed installers. We only install code-compliant equipment from CSA- or ULC-listed manufacturers.
Large sections of the City's sewer system were built in the 1950s and earlier, with portions of the original combined sewer in older neighbourhoods like the Beaches, Riverdale, and the West End predating the First World War. The City has invested over $1.15 billion in basement-flooding-related infrastructure projects since 2006, but homeowner-side protection still matters because sewer surcharge during 50-year and 100-year storm events overwhelms even upgraded infrastructure. A backwater valve is the single most cost-effective protection a Toronto homeowner can install.
If your home was built before 1955 and the water service has not been replaced, your incoming line may still be lead. Toronto's Priority Lead Water Service Replacement Program coordinates the City-side replacement when a homeowner replaces the private-side service. Free lead testing is available through Toronto Public Health. We replace lead services with Type-K copper or HDPE.
Toronto sits in USDA Zone 6b / Canadian Zone 7a. January overnight lows regularly hit -20°C and the freeze-thaw cycle from late December through early March is brutal on partially insulated pipes. The vulnerable pipe locations in Toronto homes are: cantilevered floors over unheated garages, rim joists and band boards in unheated crawlspaces, exterior-wall kitchen sink risers (especially in north-facing semis), and main shutoffs in unheated stairwell closets. Outdoor hose bibs need frost-free designs and disconnected hoses every November.
If your home is in a Heritage Conservation District (Cabbagetown, the Annex, parts of Yorkville and Rosedale), exterior plumbing work — including front-yard sewer or water-service excavation and trench restoration — may have additional review requirements. We are familiar with the Toronto Preservation Board process and coordinate accordingly.
The four pillars Google's quality raters look for, and the four pillars Toronto homeowners deserve from any contractor working on their home. Here is how we earn each one — measurably.
Combined, our team has logged over 30,000 service calls across Toronto neighbourhoods — Victorian semis, 1920s bungalows, mid-century ranches, modern condos. [client to confirm exact figures]
Master Plumber-led crews. Ontario 306A Certificate of Qualification on every lead plumber. Continuing-education credits in cross-connection control, backflow prevention, and tankless commissioning.
Listed contractor on the City of Toronto Basement Flooding Protection Subsidy roster. Member of the Mechanical Contractors Association of Toronto. T94 contractor licence on file with the City.
BBB-accredited. $5M general liability insurance. Written, flat-rate quotes. One-year workmanship warranty in writing. Marked trucks, uniforms, and photo ID on every call.
Real Toronto stories from real Toronto neighbourhoods — sewer backups in the Annex, tank failures in Leaside, post-2024-flood recoveries in Roncesvalles. Below is a sample.
[client to confirm — all testimonials below are illustrative placeholders pending replacement with real customer reviews. Star ratings are placeholder.]
"Our 1912 semi had been having basement backups every spring for three years. Two other plumbers tried to upsell us on a $20K excavation. Plumbing Alliance ran a camera, showed us exactly where the roots were, did a hydro-jet, and installed a backwater valve with the City permit and the subsidy paperwork. We got a $1,200 cheque from Toronto two months later. Total professionalism, no theatre, no scare tactics."Sarah K. The Annex
"Hot water tank let go on a Sunday morning before family was arriving for Christmas dinner. They picked up at 8:15 a.m., were here by 10:30, swapped the tank, installed an expansion tank, and were gone by 1 p.m. with the basement cleaner than when they arrived. Price matched the phone quote to the dollar."Michael T. Leaside
"After the August 2024 flooding, our basement was destroyed. Plumbing Alliance came out, recommended a sump pump and a backwater valve, did the install in two days, and walked me through the City subsidy application personally. Zero pressure, zero drama. We are completely covered now if it happens again."Priya S. Roncesvalles
"Buying a 1947 bungalow with original galvanized supply pipes. The home inspector flagged it. Plumbing Alliance gave me an honest quote for a full repipe in PEX, did it in three days, patched the drywall, and the pressure throughout the house went from a trickle to actual normal. Single best money we spent on the home."David L. Etobicoke (Mimico)
"Slow drain in the basement bathroom for years. Three other plumbers told me different stories — one said replace the toilet, another said snake it, another said dig up the yard. Plumbing Alliance ran the camera and showed me on the screen: a small belly in the line, no roots, easily managed with periodic jetting. They gave me an honest 'don't excavate' answer. That is rare."Jennifer M. Scarborough (Bendale)
"Renovated our master bath. They handled the rough-in, the rough-in inspection, the finish plumbing, and coordinated with the tile and cabinet trades like a project manager. One contact, one number, one invoice. Will use again for the kitchen."Ahmed R. North York (Willowdale)
"Honest pricing, written quote before they touched anything, finished on time. The plumber explained what he was doing as he went. Very different from our last plumbing experience."Lauren W. Riverdale
"Condo board needed a backflow preventer test and the building's plumber was booked out three weeks. Plumbing Alliance came in, did the certification, filed it with the City, and the cost was less than half of what the building was being quoted by the previous vendor. Highly recommend for anyone managing small commercial or condo plumbing."Trevor B. Yorkville (Condo)
A selection of installations, finishes, and trade craft from across the GTA. Hover any image for context.
Direct answers to the questions Toronto homeowners ask most often. If your question is not here, call us — we are happy to answer it on the phone at no charge.
Tell us what's going on. We'll triage on the phone, give you a ballpark, and dispatch a licensed plumber if it's urgent. Phone consults and pre-purchase consults on properties under offer are always free.