Plumbing Services

Water Heater Repair, Replacement & Upgrades

Whether it's a standard tank or a tankless unit, gas or electric, a failing water heater rarely gives much warning. Cesar diagnoses the actual problem on-site — a bad thermocouple, a failing element, sediment buildup, or a tank that's simply reached the end of its life — and gives you a straight answer on repair vs. replacement before any work starts.

Most installs and same-day repairs are completed in a single visit, tested before Cesar leaves, and left clean. Beyond straight repairs and like-for-like swaps, Cesar also handles upgrades for homeowners looking to modernize:

Water heater options

• Standard tank replacement — gas or electric, same-day install
• Tankless (on-demand) upgrade — endless hot water, smaller footprint
• Hybrid heat pump upgrade — lower operating cost, may qualify for utility rebates

Signs you may need service

• No hot water
• Rusty or discolored water
• Tank is leaking
• Unit is 10+ years old
• Popping or rumbling noises
• Pilot light won't stay lit

As of July 2026, Washington's state energy code requires heat pump water heaters in new construction — but if you're simply replacing what's already in your home, you're not required to switch. Cesar can walk you through whether a like-for-like replacement or a hybrid upgrade makes more sense for your house and budget.

Repiping

Older homes were often plumbed with galvanized steel or aging materials that corrode, restrict water pressure, and eventually fail. A full repipe replaces those lines with modern PEX and properly sized ABS drain and vent lines — run clean through the existing framing, not just patched around the worst spots.

This is also the same rough-in work used for new construction and additions: supply, drain, and vent lines run correctly the first time, inspected and ready for drywall.

Signs you may need service

• Low water pressure throughout the house
• Discolored water from galvanized pipe
• Frequent pinhole leaks
• Home older than 50 years with original plumbing
• Remodel or addition in progress

New Construction — Residential & Commercial

Ground-up plumbing for new builds starts with getting the rough-in right the first time — supply, drain-waste-vent (DWV), and gas piping run cleanly through the framing, sized to plan, and ready for inspection before drywall goes up. Cesar works directly from blueprints and stays on the general contractor's schedule, so plumbing never becomes the holdup.

This covers ground-up work on both sides: new single-family homes, additions, and full-home rebuilds residentially; new-build shells and multi-unit projects commercially.

Typical projects

• New single-family home rough-in
• Home additions & full rebuilds
• New commercial shell rough-in
• Multi-unit & townhome plumbing
• Rough-in inspection prep

Gas Piping Installation & Repair

Gas piping is a specialty a lot of plumbers avoid and just hand off to a heating contractor — Cesar's the opposite. It's some of the work he enjoys most, and Elite Plumbing is licensed for fuel gas piping in Washington, not just general plumbing. Every run gets sized correctly, pressure-tested, and permitted before the gas is ever turned on.

New gas lines for ranges, dryers, water heaters, furnaces, fireplaces, and outdoor kitchens or fire pits — plus rerouting existing lines during a remodel and tracking down leaks other contractors couldn't find.

Signs you may need service

• Rotten-egg (sulfur) smell near an appliance or line
• Hissing sound near a gas fitting
• Dead or discolored patch of grass over a buried line
• Pilot light that won't stay lit
• Adding a new gas range, dryer, or fire feature

Fuel gas piping is its own permitted trade in Washington, separate from general plumbing — every job gets pulled, inspected, and pressure-tested before it's put into use.

Sewer & Water Main Repair & Replacement

A sewer backup or a failing water main isn't something to guess at. Cesar runs a sewer camera with a locating transmitter to find the exact break, clog, or root intrusion before any digging starts — so the repair targets the actual problem instead of trenching the whole yard. When a section needs to be dug up and replaced, it's done with our own excavator, not a rented one on someone else's schedule.

This covers both the sewer lateral (the line running from your house to the city's main connection) and the water main bringing water in from the street. In Seattle and most King County cities, everything from the house to the city connection is the homeowner's responsibility to maintain, and a permit is required for actual repair or replacement work — clearing a clog on its own doesn't need one.

Cesar also installs and replaces the equipment that keeps that water service working safely: water meters and meter setters, backflow prevention assemblies, and pressure reducing valves (PRVs).

Also installed & replaced

• Water meters & meter setters
• Backflow prevention assemblies
• Pressure reducing valves (PRVs)

Signs you may need service

• Sewage backing up into tubs or floor drains
• Multiple drains slow or backing up at once
• Gurgling toilets when other fixtures run
• Sewer odor in the yard or basement
• Soggy, sunken, or unusually green patch of lawn
• Low water pressure or a spiking water bill

A backflow prevention assembly protects the public water supply from contamination — once installed, Washington requires it to be tested annually by a certified tester (WAC 246-290-490). And by plumbing code, a pressure reducing valve is required wherever incoming water pressure exceeds 80 psi — left unchecked, that pressure shortens the life of your water heater, appliances, and fixtures throughout the house.

Before any excavation, Washington law requires a utility locate request through 811 (Call Before You Dig) — Cesar handles this as part of the job, not something you need to arrange yourself.

Drain Cleaning & Rooter Services

Most clogs are cleared with a drain snake (rooter) — a cable run through the line to break up and pull out what's blocking it. For grease buildup, scale, or tree roots, Cesar uses a hydro jet machine instead: high-pressure water that scours the full inside of the pipe rather than just punching a hole through the clog, which is why jetting holds up longer against recurring backups.

A sewer camera confirms what's actually going on before and after, so you're not left guessing whether the line's really clear. If there's a bigger issue underneath — a bellied section, root intrusion, or a cracked pipe — it gets caught before it turns into a bigger job.

Signs you may need service

• Slow drains that keep coming back after snaking
• Recurring clogs in the same drain
• Gurgling or bubbling from other fixtures
• Kitchen or floor drain backing up
• Tree roots suspected in an older sewer line

If jetting and camera inspection turn up a real break or collapsed section rather than just a clog, that becomes sewer line repair — see Sewer & Water Main Repair & Replacement above.

Fixture Installs

Sinks, faucets, garbage disposals, and toilets — installed cleanly, sealed properly, and up to code. Whether it's a single fixture swap or a full kitchen or bathroom remodel, Cesar handles the plumbing side so nothing leaks and nothing gets left half-finished.

Common requests

• Kitchen sink & faucet replacement
• Garbage disposal install
• Bathroom fixture upgrades
• Refrigerator water line install
• Toilet install & replacement