Non-Textbook Plumbing: The ‘Basics’ West Vancouver Plumbers Learn from Experience

UA plumbing apprentice Ben Wagner had been inspecting pipes and getting his hands dirty for years before he got his papers as a full-fledged plumber. The man who wears the crown of North American Plumber of the Year now has a wallet full of licenses, from installing water heaters to gas fitting. All in a day's work, he told The Record.




Plumbers in West Vancouver, Richmond and other places in Canada, such as those from Milani, have a bright future ahead of them. As long as there are leaky pipes to fix and heaters to install, plumbers will always be in demand. But Wagner remembers that the “three basics of plumbing” most useful to him are those that his dad, a retired plumber, taught him-and which homeowners should also note.

Poop rolls downhill

It's not just poop. Anything you throw up will ultimately roll down, even grenades. That's why soldiers are taught never to throw a grenade uphill. Put simply, this refers to accountability. Plumbers are held responsible for what they do. A situation is like a hill. The problem begins at the top and gets passed on downhill because the person who could have fixed it did not do his work well. If plumbers perform a mediocre job on a small problem, that problem can turn into a major one. A plumbing hitch must, therefore, be resolved right the first time.

Payday is Friday

A bit self-explanatory, but for plumbing professionals, payday doesn't always come on a Friday. Only a portion of the amount you pay to a plumber goes to his wallet or bank account. He's just like you-trying to pay the bills and feed the family. So it's rewarding when someone pays a plumber handsomely for his services. If a plumber is exceptionally skillful, homeowners show their appreciation.

Don't chew your fingernails

This is the most important of all-and it does make sense. It's an old but common joke within the plumbing community. A plumber's hands work with liquid waste, fecal matter, and other dirty stuff, so chewing nails is out. Plumbing codes can be forgotten, but they take this one to heart. After all, plumbers need to be healthy to handle filth.



Plumbers like Wagner have worked their way up learning the nuts and bolts of plumbing in Richmond and other cities. But some lessons aren't taught in books. Nothing beats experience.