Most homes in Garland were built between the 1960s and 1980s, and the city's water can be on the hard side. This combination can negatively impact your plumbing and water heater. 1st Class can help with those challenges. We repair stubborn clogs and slow leaks, plus provide answers to common questions from Garland homeowners.
Life in Garland stays busy. Summer afternoons are great for going to the lazy river at Surf and Swim in Audubon Park. Weekends might mean shopping at Firewheel Town Center or catching a show at the Granville Arts Center downtown. After a fun day like that, the last thing you want is to open the sink cabinet and find a puddle. When it happens, a quick call to a plumber in Garland can keep a small leak from turning into a warped cabinet floor.
Plumbing problems can start small, and a slow drip is easy to ignore. Being vigilant and catching it early usually means less damage or even a smaller repair bill. 1st Class has been doing everything from fixing dripping faucets to full water heater replacement for 20 years. During this time, we have become one of the fastest-growing plumbing companies in the area. Our work is backed by a 100% customer satisfaction guarantee.
Dustin Denham founded 1st Class Plumbing in 2006, and it's still a family-owned plumbing business. He's a licensed Texas plumber with decades of experience in the trade. From the start, he wanted customers to see their options and make the call themselves. He’s determined that customers should never be steered toward the most expensive fix if it’s not needed.
Dustin also places a lot of value on his employees who do the day-to-day work. Our mission is to build long-lasting relationships with our employees and help them grow into leaders who serve customers as a team. Every team member gets ongoing training. Our plumbers are also taught to answer your questions and keep you in the loop from start to finish. We handle everything from clogged drain repair to water heater replacement in homes across Garland.
Choosing a plumber usually comes down to trust. You're letting someone into your home and asking them to price and perform a job you can't easily verify yourself.
We make it easy for you to trust us. These are the commitments we make to every customer before we so much as tighten a pipe:
There are two factors in particular that have a significant impact on plumbing work in Garland.
The first factor is the age of the house. According to U.S. Census Bureau estimates, about 65% of Garland's homes were built between 1960 and 1989. The median home dates to 1978. This means many original pipes and fixtures have been in service for close to 50 years.
The second factor is our local water. According to the City of Garland, the water averages about 161 milligrams per liter of hardness. That's roughly 7 to 10.5 grains per gallon, which counts as hard water. Over time, those minerals leave scale inside water heaters and pipes.
Your home might sit near the old-growth trees of Spring Creek Forest Preserve in north Garland. It might be closer to Lake Ray Hubbard on the east side of town. Either way, you may be dealing with old plumbing and hard water. We've worked on homes here long enough to know how to resolve those issues for you.
A slow leak under a sink or behind a wall can run for weeks before anyone notices. Often the first sign is a jump in the water bill. Sometimes it's a soft spot in the drywall. Our leak repairs in Garland cover everything from a pinhole in a water line to a burst pipe. Because our trucks carry a full stock of parts, we can usually find and fix a pipe leak in a single visit.
Toilet repair in Garland is one of our most common calls. A running toilet usually comes down to a worn flapper. A toilet bowl that rocks when you use it points to a loose flange or a failing wax ring. A clog that keeps coming back can mean a blockage deeper in the line. We figure out which one you're dealing with and address the problem.
Dripping faucets and stuck shutoff valves are easy to put off, but you shouldn’t. Local hard water makes them worse because mineral buildup wears out cartridges and seals faster. If you have a few small fixture problems around the house, don’t wait until the damage compounds.
Garland hard water is especially rough on water heaters. Mineral scale settles at the bottom of the tank, and the unit has to work harder to heat the same amount of water. If yours is acting up, 1st Class can repair it or help you pick a replacement.
The U.S. Department of Energy puts the life of a tank water heater at 10 to 15 years. Regular flushing from a plumbing professional helps a tank last, especially with hard water like Garland's. Estimates for new installations are free, so it costs nothing to compare your old water heater with a new system or even a tankless model.
Water heater replacement in Garland makes sense once repairs stop holding. Watch for these signs that your water heater is struggling:
Not every problem means you need a new unit. No hot water or lukewarm water is often fixable. So is a pilot light that won't stay lit. The cause is often a failed heating element or a bad thermocouple. On gas units, sediment buildup can also interfere with the burner. Our water heater repair in Garland starts with finding the real cause. Then we'll let you know whether a repair is likely to hold or whether replacement makes more sense.
Tankless units heat water as you use it instead of storing it in a tank. This means those long showers everyone loves won't drain a tank dry.
According to the Department of Energy, most tankless systems deliver 2 to 5 gallons of hot water per minute. This means running a shower and the dishwasher at the same time can stretch even a large gas model. The payoff is lifespan. The DOE says most tankless units last more than 20 years.
Tankless water heater installation in Garland often means converting from an existing tank. A proper installation depends on local building codes and, for gas models, safe combustion. Our plumbers have been installing these units for years. We are experienced with common tankless brands, including Rinnai, Rheem, Noritz, and Navien.
With Garland's hard water, regular maintenance also matters. Rheem, one of the brands we work with, recommends flushing or descaling a tankless unit every year to clear mineral buildup from the heat exchanger.
One clog is an inconvenience. A clogged drain in Garland that comes back every few weeks points to a bigger problem. Grease and mineral buildup can narrow the pipe over time. In older neighborhoods with mature trees, roots can also work their way into aging sewer lines.
At 1st Class, we start with a camera inspection to find the actual cause. Once we know what's in the line, we pick the right tool. A simple clog gets a drain snake. Heavy grease and scale buildup call for hydro-jetting. If roots or a collapsed section turn up, we do a full sewer line evaluation before recommending a fix.
Treating your water where it enters your home helps head off plumbing damage. When fewer minerals reach your pipes and water heater, scale builds up more slowly. We offer water treatment and filtration options for your home. Call 1st Class at (972) 810-7445 to learn more.
Many expensive plumbing repairs start as small problems that nobody caught. Our Protection Plan is built to catch them. Members get an annual safety inspection and water heater tune-up, and each visit follows a 14-point checklist.
A few of the items on this checklist include:
Members also get priority scheduling and 10% off repairs. If you need emergency service, you won't pay after-hours fees. Certified repairs are covered by an extended warranty for as long as your membership stays active. Ask about plan options and fees by calling (972) 810-7445.
We run seasonal specials on water heater and drain services. Financing is available on approved credit for larger jobs, such as a water heater replacement or a tankless conversion. Ask about current offers when you call, and we'll tell you what's available before any work starts.
Every plumbing job in Collin County is a little different, so we don't guess at prices over the phone. We'd rather see the problem first. Here's how a typical 1st Class visit works:
Garland's older plumbing and hard water put steady wear on pipes and water heaters in the area’s homes. A local plumber who is familiar with these issues can catch problems early. That kind of local knowledge is how 1st Class has been able to help so many Garland customers since 2006.
Not convinced? Your neighbors are. We have over 200 five-star Google reviews. Our customers appreciate our fair prices and plumbers who show up when they say they will.
If your water heater is acting up or a drain won't clear, give us a call at (972) 810-7445. We'll get a licensed plumber to your Garland home shortly.
The installed price depends on tank size, the existing connections, and any venting or code updates your home needs. We inspect the setup and give you an upfront price before work begins.
For many households, yes. Tankless units last longer than tank models, and a long shower won't leave you waiting for a tank to reheat. They can struggle when several fixtures run hot water at once, though. The upfront cost is also higher. With hard water, regular maintenance matters too. If you plan to stay in your home for years, a tankless unit is worth considering.
Repeat clogs usually mean something is narrowing the pipe. Grease and mineral buildup are the most common causes. Tree roots are another, especially in older lines. Store-bought cleaners can push past a blockage without removing it. We run a camera down the line to find the cause, then clear it.
Yes. Our regular hours are Monday through Friday, 8 AM to 5 PM, but emergency service is available 24 hours a day, including weekends and holidays. When you call, we'll set up a time that works around your schedule. Protection Plan members go to the front of the line.
Many repairs, like a faucet or toilet fix, take an hour or two. A standard water heater replacement usually takes a few hours. A tankless conversion can take most of a day, since it often involves gas and venting upgrades. We'll give you a time estimate along with the price before we start.
A water bill that jumps for no clear reason is one sign. Water stains on a ceiling or wall are another. Also watch for a toilet that clogs over and over. A water heater that's getting noisy or running out of hot water faster than it used to is worth a call too.
Yes. The city's water averages 7 to 10.5 grains of hardness per gallon, which counts as hard. Those minerals build up as scale inside water heater tanks and pipes over the years. That's why we recommend flushing your water heater regularly. A water heater flush is part of every Protection Plan visit.