Andrew in High Park

I always knew that I would need to replace the outdoor plumbing in the home we are renovating in High Park, Toronto. I had planned to wait until next spring but my hand was forced when the drain started to back up. I had already had a handful of companies out to give quotes for this work, so I knew how much the job would be. Another company charged me $250 to camera inspect the line and determine that the blockage was just outside the exterior wall. That company, however, would only price clearing that blockage, not the entire job (sewer and w/s replacement out to the property line). Their philosophy was that they don't price work they don't camera inspect. So their plan was to charge me $2000 to clear that one blockage, camera inspect at that point and give me a price for the rest of the work based on what they see from there. I didn't like that because it gave me no cost certainly on what the entire job would be. If you're going to dig, might as replace the entire line and the old water service. Brothers gave me a price to do this $4400 and said they would stick to this price no matter what they encountered during the dig. That's why I went with them. I made sure they gave me a detailed contract that spelled out, line item by line item, what they were going to do. The contract said they would excavate and replace the outside portion of the sewer line up to our property line. They would also replace the water service line (an old metal one) and replace it with a 3/4 copper line right into the water meter in the basement. I asked if there was anything they would encounter during the job that would cause them to increase the price, and they said it would happen only if they hit ground water, which they didn't expect for my neighbourhood. They said the job would take 2-3 days and promised to do all they could to ensure I would get the $2000 drain replacement grant from the city (but made no promises). They started digging early Monday morning with two guys and worked hard all through the week. They were not able to do the job in the time they said they would (they didn't finish until Saturday) but that's because the line made a turn underground they did not expect. This made it a longer job but they stayed true to their word and did not try to get any extra money out of me, which I'm sure other companies would do. I will probably get Brothers to replace the inside portion of my line when I get around to that job. I would just recommend to any home owner getting this work done that they ensure the contact spells out every aspect of the work being performed (right down to the material being used, number of cleanouts, etc). Make sure it specifies that the excavation will go right out to the property line and that the water line is going right in to the meter. Also, make sure the company promises not to up the price once they start digging, no matter what happens during the dig (I've heard this is a common foot-in-the-door practice). This is hard work, and somewhat dangerous (the trenches are 10-feet deep) but it's not complicated. Also, make sure the company promises to do work with the city and do everything they can to maximize your chances of getting that drain rebate. Also, get a guarantee so if there's a problems, they'll come back. Our drains run great now and our water pressure is much better. Thanks Brothers.