Plumber in Durham, NC
Water heaters, drains, toilets and faucets, sewer and water lines, and whole-house repiping across the City of Durham — from the 1920s bungalows in Trinity Park and Forest Hills to the subdivisions still going up south of I-40. A licensed plumber on every job, and the price in writing before any work starts.
Free in-home quotes during business hours — no trip charge, no estimate fee, no obligation to buy. Sending the form requests a visit — our dispatcher will call you to set the time. Submitting does not book an appointment.
What we do in Durham
Pick the problem, and we'll take it from there
Every service below is handled by ARC's own licensed plumbers — no subcontractors, no mystery vans. Each link goes to the full page for that service, with details on how the work is done.
Water Heaters
Cold shower this morning? Repair and same-visit diagnosis for tank water heaters, and replacement with posted flat-rate prices and a 5-year ARC warranty. Tank brands we install: Bradford White, Rheem, State, A.O. Smith, Essency and Rinnai.
Emergency Plumbing
Burst pipes don't check the clock. Our emergency line is answered 24/7 by an answering service and passed straight to the on-call plumber, who calls you back. The after-hours fee is quoted before anyone is dispatched — details below.
Drain Cleaning
Slow or blocked drains cleared, with a camera inspection when the same drain keeps clogging, so you find out why instead of paying to clear it again.
Sewer Lines
Camera inspections, repairs and full replacements by conventional excavation. Not sure whether a backup is yours or the utility's to fix? See who owns what in Durham.
Water Lines
Repair and replacement of the water service line between the meter and your house (new lines in PEX-A), plus pressure problems, yard leaks and leaks inside the house.
Repiping & Polybutylene
Whole-house repiping with PEX-A, and polybutylene identification for homes from the 1980s and '90s — see the housing note below for how much of Durham that covers.
Toilets, Faucets & Fixtures
Running or clogged toilets, dripping faucets, garbage disposals and shower valves. A toilet that runs all night is pouring money down itself — try our free 30-minute toilet leak test first, then we repair what's worth repairing and replace what isn't.
Tankless Water Heaters
Rinnai and Navien tankless units installed and repaired, including tank-to-tankless conversions. Outdoor units need working freeze protection in a cold snap — ask us why.
Gas Lines
Gas piping for ranges, water heaters, grills, fireplaces and standby generators, plus customer-side leak repairs once the gas utility has made the scene safe. Tell us the appliance and where it's going.
Commercial Plumbing
Service and maintenance for Durham businesses, restaurants, churches and property managers, coordinated around your access and hours. Backflow-certified.
Worth knowing in Durham
Durham has the biggest, oldest housing stock we work in
Durham has about 137,000 homes, and they come from every era. About 30% were built before 1980 — roughly 19,000 of them before 1960, in the mill-village and streetcar neighborhoods — another 28% between 1980 and 1999, the years gray polybutylene (PB) water pipe was installed across the country, and about 43% in 2000 or later.
That mix tells a plumber a lot before the van pulls up. Not every home from the '80s and '90s has PB, and having it doesn't mean yours is failing today. But PB degrades from the inside, where you can't see it, so it's worth knowing what's in your walls.
Pre-1960 homes
Galvanized steel supply lines that rust shut from the inside — Durham Water Management is still inventorying private-side service lines in pre-1988 homes and plans to replace some galvanized lines on its side — plus cast-iron and clay drains, and add-on bathrooms plumbed three different ways. We put a camera in before anyone talks about digging.
1980s–'90s homes: check for PB
PB is usually gray, stamped “PB2110”. The repiping page shows how to check at your water heater or under a sink — or we'll check during any visit, free. We repair PB leaks, and we'll put spot repair and repipe side by side in writing. A PEX-A repipe typically takes 2–4 days for a 3-bed/2-bath home with a working bathroom every night; we cut drywall cleanly but don't patch or paint.
2000s and newer
Four in ten Durham homes. First water heaters give out in the 10–15-year window, builder-grade toilets and shutoffs sooner. We repair what's worth repairing, replace what isn't, and say which is which in writing.
Housing figures: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024, table B25034, city of Durham (136,837 housing units).
Durham-specific
Sewer backup in Durham? Call the City first — then us
Durham runs its own utility — the City of Durham Department of Water Management, about 1,200 miles of water line and 1,100 miles of sewer — and it has one rule most people don't learn until it costs them: for a sewer backup, the City wants the call first. If you call a plumber first and the blockage turns out to be in the City's main, the City won't reimburse you. So here's the order of operations, and the split. One wrinkle first: a few Durham addresses are on Durham County's sewer system rather than the City's — your bill says which — and the County's rule is different.
| The pipe | Whose it is |
|---|---|
| Water mains, hydrants, the meter, and the utility side of the service line | City of Durham Water Management |
| The private side of the water service line, from the meter to the house | You (the property owner) — the City's own service-line inventory calls it “privately-owned” |
| The sewer main in the street | City of Durham Water Management |
| The sewer lateral from your house to the property line or right-of-way | You (the property owner) |
| The sewer lateral from the property line or right-of-way to the City's main | Typically the City — Durham's utility ordinance puts that stretch on the City, but its crews clear it through a properly placed cleanout; without one, the clearing comes back to you |
| If your sewer account is with Durham County (Triangle wastewater system), not the City | The County clears from its main to the cleanout at the edge of your property; you clear from the cleanout to the house — and with no cleanout, the whole lateral is yours. County line: 919-560-9033, 24/7 |
| Septic tank and drain field (no public sewer) | You — permitted and inspected by Durham County Environmental Health |
Sources: City of Durham, Report Sewer Overflows & Backups (call the City first; no reimbursement if a plumber is called first and the blockage was the City's), Water Service Line Inventory and Verification (utility side is Water Management's; private side is privately owned) and Collection & Distribution; City Code of Ordinances Chapter 70 (lateral maintenance to the property or right-of-way line); Durham County, Collection System (County sewer customers). Checked October 6, 2026.
Order of operations for a backup. Call Durham Water & Sewer Maintenance first at 919-560-4344 — it's answered 7 to 3:30 on weekdays, and after hours the same number goes to an answering service that dispatches the on-call crew. They check the main. If the main is clear, the problem is in your line, and that's us: (919) 888-3500. We put a camera in first so you see where the blockage actually is and whose side it's on. Water-side leak between the meter and the house, or anything inside the house: us, no need to call the City first. On Durham County sewer instead? Call the County at 919-560-9033 (24/7) first; it clears to the cleanout at your property edge, you clear from there to the house. Fixed a leak on your side? Keep our invoice and write down the repair date: the City takes bill-adjustment requests through an online form on durhamnc.gov with your repair details and paperwork attached. It doesn't publish a fixed credit, so we won't promise one.
If the problem turns out to be on your side, our drain cleaning, sewer line and water line pages explain how we handle it — including a camera inspection so you see what's in the pipe before deciding anything.
What to expect
How a visit works
You call, a person answers
During business hours — Monday to Friday, 8 to 5 — our own dispatcher answers every call: a real person, in our office, who knows exactly where Durham is. Tell them what the plumbing is doing and they'll set up your visit.
We look before we quote
A licensed plumber comes out, checks the actual problem, and explains what they found. In-home quotes during business hours are free — no trip charge, no estimate fee.
The price, in writing, first
You get the recommendation, the reason and the price in writing before any work starts. Ask questions, think it over, compare — there's no countdown clock.
Nights, weekends and holidays
Plumbing emergencies have a real talent for Saturday nights. Our emergency line is answered 24/7 by an answering service, which sends your information straight to the on-call technician — they call you back.
After-hours, weekend and holiday emergencies carry a flat $365 dispatch fee. It covers sending a technician to your property, it's confirmed with you before anyone is dispatched, and it's additional to any repair charges — the repair itself is priced before work starts. During normal business hours there's no emergency fee.
Permits and inspections
ARC can pull all permits and call in inspections when needed. In Durham that's City-County Building & Safety at 101 City Hall Plaza (919-560-4144) — one office issues the trade permits and does the inspections for both the City and Durham County, so there's no guessing which one you're in. We'll tell you up front whether your job needs one.
Already holding another plumber's quote? We'll give you a free second opinion on site.
Where we work
All of the City of Durham, from Fuquay-Varina
Our shop is at 2406 Waco Commercial Court in Fuquay-Varina, so Durham is the far end of our map — up NC-55 through Apex and in on NC-147, or around on I-40. We come anyway, and we'll give you an honest arrival window rather than a hopeful one. We cover the whole City of Durham — Forest Hills to Trinity Park, downtown to Woodcroft, Hope Valley to the subdivisions off NC-54 and NC-55 on the south side — but it's the city limits, not the whole county. If your address is just outside, call anyway: the dispatcher will tell you in about ten seconds. Customers request on-site service; there's no walk-in counter (the trucks are the showroom).
Rich's electric crews have worked the Bull City since 2011; the plumbing side has covered it since 2017. We also cover the neighbors: the Town of Chapel Hill, Cary, Apex, Raleigh, Holly Springs and Fuquay-Varina (home base), and the rest of Wake County.
If you smell gas, don't stay to troubleshoot. Leave immediately and warn others to stay away. From a safe place, call 911 and Enbridge Gas North Carolina at 877-776-2427. Don't flip light switches, use phones, garage door openers or flashlights inside, don't try to turn gas valves on or off, and don't start nearby vehicles — sparks can ignite gas. (Steps per Enbridge Gas North Carolina, checked September 2026.)
Once the utility has made the scene safe, we repair customer-side gas line leaks — call (919) 888-3500.
Questions Durham customers ask
Frequently asked questions
Do you charge to come out and give a price?
No. In-home quotes during business hours are free — no trip charge, no estimate fee, no obligation to buy. The only call-out fee we charge is the flat $365 dispatch fee for after-hours, weekend and holiday emergencies, and that's confirmed with you before anyone is sent out.
My sewer is backing up in Durham. Who do I call first?
The City — Durham Water & Sewer Maintenance at 919-560-4344, any hour (after hours an answering service dispatches the on-call crew). That's Durham's own rule: if you call a plumber first and the blockage turns out to be in the City's main, the City won't reimburse you. If their crew finds the main clear, the problem is in your line, and that's when you call us. We put a camera in first so you see exactly where it is. (On Durham County sewer rather than the City's? The County's number is 919-560-9033, and it clears to the cleanout at your property edge.) The table above lays out the split, with the City's sources.
Do you cover all of Durham County, or just the city?
The City of Durham — all of it, from the old neighborhoods near downtown to the newest subdivisions on the south side — plus the Town of Chapel Hill next door. If you're just outside the city limits, call and the dispatcher will confirm your spot on the map in about ten seconds.
Will I have water during a repipe?
You'll have at least one working bathroom every night — we know, it's the first thing everyone asks. A typical 3-bed/2-bath whole-house repipe takes 2–4 days of plumbing work, depending on levels and crawlspace access. The repiping page walks through the whole process, including how drywall is handled.
Do I get the price before you start?
Yes — in writing, after the technician has actually looked at the problem. If anything changes mid-job, you approve the change before the work continues. Our technicians aren't paid based on how much you spend.
Do you handle the permit?
ARC can pull all permits and call in inspections when needed. In Durham that's City-County Building & Safety, which covers both the City and Durham County from one office. We'll tell you up front whether your job needs one, and you won't have to coordinate with the inspections office yourself. One exception worth knowing: North Carolina law doesn't require a plumbing permit for a straight like-for-like water heater replacement in a one- or two-family home when a licensed plumbing contractor does the work and checks it at completion — same fuel, same location, same capacity, same venting and piping, no higher energy input. Change any of those (a tank-to-tankless conversion, a move, a bigger unit, electric to gas) and a permit is back on the table; we'll tell you which case yours is.
Talk to us
Need a plumber in Durham?
Tell us what the plumbing is doing and we'll tell you what it usually means — yes, even the mystery gurgle. Free in-home quotes, the price in writing before we start, and a licensed plumber on every job.
ARC Plumbing · 2406 Waco Commercial Ct, Fuquay-Varina, NC 27526 · NC Plumbing Contractor License #36473 · Office Mon–Fri 8–5 · Emergency line answered 24/7 · Serving the City of Durham, the Town of Chapel Hill and all of Wake County
2406 Waco Commercial Ct
Fuquay-Varina, NC 27526
(919) 888-3500
Serving Wake County, Durham, Chapel Hill & the Clayton area