Nic’s Plumbing is a Seattle plumbing company founded in 2026 with one idea behind it: the city’s old houses deserve a plumber who treats them as old houses. Foursquares on Queen Anne, bungalows in Ballard, craftsman homes in Wallingford and Fremont, brick and lath-and-plaster on Magnolia. We started this company to work in those homes properly, with three priced options you approve before anything begins, floors and finishes protected while we work, and photos of every repair when we leave.
- Founded2026, in Seattle, WA
- FocusHistoric and older homes, plus everyday plumbing for any Seattle household
- How we quoteGood / Better / Best digital pricing, approved before work starts
- WhereQueen Anne, Magnolia, Fremont, Ballard, Wallingford, South Lake Union, Belltown, Downtown
Why this company exists
Seattle has a lot of houses that were built before anyone alive was born, and most of them are still full of their original plumbing or a century of patches on top of it. Galvanized supply lines that have narrowed to a pencil’s width. Cast-iron drain stacks with a hundred years of scale. Clay side sewers with roots in every joint. Water heaters wedged into closets that were never meant to hold one. Basements that take on water the first week of the rainy season.
None of that is a mystery to a plumber who works in old houses every week. But the industry tends to treat an old house as a regular job with extra surprises, and the surprises tend to land on the invoice. Owners of these homes told us the same things over and over: the quote grew, the tech arrived “sometime between eight and five,” the fir floor got a boot print, the fix turned out to be a patch, and nobody explained what was actually done.
We built Nic’s Plumbing around the opposite of that list. The surprises are our job to find and plan for. Your job is to read three clear options and pick one.
What “historic-home specialist” means in practice
It is easy to put the phrase on a van. Here is what it means when we are standing in your basement.
Galvanized and knob-and-tube-era supply lines
Homes from the early 1900s through the 1950s usually have galvanized steel supply pipe, often spliced to copper or plastic by later remodels. We know how it fails (from the inside, at the joints, upstairs first), how to find the mixed-metal splices, and how to route new copper or PEX through existing chases in balloon-framed walls without turning a repipe into an electrical or plaster problem. This is our flagship work; see old-home repiping.
Cast-iron stacks and clay side sewers
Old drain systems are heavy, brittle and buried. A cast-iron stack can look fine and be paper-thin at the bottom; a clay side sewer can run for decades and then collapse at one joint. In Seattle the side sewer from the house to the main is the owner’s to maintain, repairs and replacements need a permit from Seattle Public Utilities, and work in the street needs an SDOT permit as well. We camera-inspect before we recommend anything, pull the side sewer card from the city’s viewer, and explain trenchless options plainly. See side sewer repair and trenchless replacement.
Plaster, fir, tile and trim
Original finishes are the reason these houses are worth so much and the reason plumbing in them is slow. We plan every opening before we cut it, keep openings as small as the job allows, and photograph each one before and after so your finisher (or you) knows exactly what was touched. Canvas runners go down before a toolbag does.
Seattle permits, handled
Different work goes through different desks here. Repipes and water heater replacements are permitted and inspected through Public Health – Seattle & King County. Side sewer repairs go through Seattle Public Utilities, and right-of-way work adds an SDOT permit. We handle the applications and inspections as part of the job, and the inspection record joins your photo set as part of the house’s paper trail.
Old-house note: the combined-sewer neighborhoods
Sewage and stormwater from Ballard, Fremont, Wallingford and the northern part of Queen Anne share one combined sewer system. That matters when a basement floods in heavy rain, because the fix ladder in those neighborhoods often looks different from a house on a separated system. We explain which situation you are in before we recommend a sump pump, a backwater valve or a drainage change. Read more in why Seattle basements flood in heavy rain.
Six commitments on every job
We do not have years of reviews to point to yet. What we have is a set of commitments that apply to every job, from a dripping fixture in a Belltown condo to a whole-house repipe on Magnolia, and a process built so you can see each one happening.
- Historic-home specialists
- Good / Better / Best pricing before work
- Zero-trace cleanliness protocol
- Real-time technician tracking
- Before-and-after photos of every repair
- Honest options, no upsell pressure
1. We specialize in old houses
Everything above. We also work happily in newer homes, townhouses and condos across the service map; the same care applies, the walls are just easier.
2. You approve a written price first
After we look, you receive a digital quote with three tiers: Good, Better and Best. Each one says what it includes and what it costs. You approve one on your phone, and that number is the number on the invoice. No “we found something” phone call halfway through, because finding things is what the first visit is for. See how the free quote works.
3. We leave no trace
Floor runners from the door to the work area, shoe covers, covered surfaces, and a full sanitization of the workspace before we go. It exists to protect original finishes, and it applies in a 2010 townhouse just the same.
4. You can watch us on the way
When your technician is heading over you get a live tracking link. Tech en route · live map You see the truck on a map the way you would see a ride or a delivery, so you plan your morning around an arrival time instead of a window.
5. We prove the work with photos
Every repair is photographed before and after, side by side, and sent to you. Inside a wall, under a slab, at the bottom of a sewer trench: you get to see what was actually there and what replaced it. It is useful when you sell the house and reassuring the day after we leave.
6. We tell you the truth about fixes and patches
Some problems deserve a patch; a slow drain in a sound line is not a reason to dig up the yard. Some problems deserve a permanent fix, and a patch would just move the next leak. We will tell you which is which, explain why in plain words, and put both on the quote where it makes sense. We do not sell the cheapest thing and disappear, and we do not push the most expensive thing either.
We are new. Here is how we plan to earn it.
You will not find a wall of five-star widgets on this site, a “since 19-something” badge, or a count of homes we have repiped. Nic’s Plumbing opened in 2026 and we would rather say that plainly than dress it up. What we can offer instead is a process you can check at every step: a written three-tier price you hold before work starts, a live map while we drive over, runners on the floor when we arrive, and photos in your inbox when we are done. If we do those things on every job, the reviews will come on their own. Until then, judge us on the first visit, which is free to quote and costs you nothing to walk away from.
| What homeowners tell us they have run into | What we do instead |
|---|---|
| A quote that grows once the walls are open | Three written tiers, approved before the first cut; the approved price is the invoice |
| An arrival window of “sometime today” | A live tracking link when the technician is en route |
| Boot prints on a hundred-year-old fir floor | Canvas runners, shoe covers, covered surfaces, sanitized workspace |
| “It’s fixed,” with nothing to show for it | Side-by-side before-and-after photos of every repair |
| A patch sold as a fix, or a fix sold when a patch would do | Both options explained honestly, with our recommendation and the reason |
| A plumber who has never seen a cast-iron stack or clay side sewer | Old-house work is the point of the company |
Want to see how we work before you commit to anything?
Tell us what is going on with the house. We will look, explain it plainly, and send Good, Better and Best options you can approve or ignore.
Where we work
We serve a tight footprint on purpose: the neighborhoods north and west of downtown where the housing stock is oldest, plus the condo and townhouse core along the water. Each neighborhood page covers the housing eras and the plumbing issues we see there most.
Not sure if your address is covered? See the full service areas map or just call; if we are not the right fit we will say so.
Keep reading
Our process
Look, Options, Protect, Fix, Prove: the five steps every job follows, from the first call to the last photo.
Free Good / Better / Best quote
What the three tiers mean, how the digital quote arrives, and why the approved price is the invoice.
Old-home repiping
Our flagship work: galvanized out, copper or PEX in, with the plaster and fir protected throughout.
Service areas
Every neighborhood we cover, with what we typically find in that neighborhood’s homes.
Questions people ask about Nic’s Plumbing
How long has Nic’s Plumbing been in business?
We opened in 2026, so we are new. We are not going to claim otherwise or invent a history. What you can evaluate right now is the process: a written three-tier quote before any work, live tracking while we drive over, runners and a sanitized workspace, and before-and-after photos of every repair. The first visit is a free quote, so the risk of finding out is low.
Do you only work on historic homes?
No. Old houses are our specialty and the reason the company exists, but we handle leaks, fixtures, clogs, water heaters and drainage in any home within our service area, including newer townhouses and condos in South Lake Union, Belltown and Downtown. The same pricing, tracking, cleanliness and photo standards apply to a small repair as to a whole-house repipe.
What does “Good / Better / Best” pricing actually mean?
After we look at the problem, you get a digital quote with three written options. Good is usually the targeted fix, Better addresses the underlying cause, and Best is the do-it-once permanent answer. Each lists what it includes and its price. You approve one before we start and that price is what you pay. There is no obligation to pick the most expensive tier, and we will tell you which one we would choose for your house.
Do you handle permits and inspections?
Yes. In Seattle, repipes and water heater replacements are permitted through Public Health – Seattle & King County, while side sewer repairs go through Seattle Public Utilities, with an SDOT permit added when work is in the street. We prepare the applications, schedule the inspections and include the records with your photo documentation. Simple unclogging and root removal do not require a side sewer permit.
What happens on a first visit?
You get a tracking link when the technician is on the way. On arrival, runners go down before tools come in. We look at the problem and, in an older house, at the pipe around it, explain what we find in plain language, and then send the three-tier quote to your phone. You can approve on the spot, think about it, or decline. Our guide to what to expect on a first visit walks through it in detail.