Category: Stories

Well, it was always on the cards. You get older, and things start going wrong. You get aches, you find lumpy bits, the downstairs’ plumbing becomes sporadic… things just generally begin to decay. In such times, there’s only one thing you can do – take action! That’s why I’ve decided to run. A proper run. I’m training for a marathon. It’ll be in Winchester. If it goes well, I might even do the Amsterdam marathon Read More…

As a plumber, I often get asked: “Where do half my socks go, once they’ve been put in the wash?” As far as I know, they get caught up in the back of the washing machine, or simply go missing from the washing line. But my young daughter told me it was something much more magical than that. Here’s her story: There was a girl, called Isabel. She was 8-years old, and lived in a Read More…

My last working day before Christmas was turning out to be a relatively peaceful one. My final job was to pop round to Mrs Tiggin’s – an elderly, regular customer of ours – and tighten her Lock Nut. A simple job. She’s always very grateful. I finished up, wished her Merry Christmas, and began to make my way home. I thought I’d get into the spirit of things by listening to something festive, so I Read More…

A new kind of customer complaint Here at The Italian Plumber, we’re experiencing a bit of a new phenomenon that I thought would be interesting to talk about. Dealing with customer complaints is just part and parcel of running a business. It doesn’t matter how good your intentions are, there will always be times when a customer is unhappy with your service, product or offer. Luckily, they are few and far between and we have Read More…

Me and the team here at the Italian Plumber always do our very best to make our customers happy, and ensure that they are truly satisfied with the services we provide. But like any job, there are always going to be times when customers can become – shall we say – ‘challenging’. A few months back, I wrote the 7 deadly sins of a cowboy plumber, so I thought it only fair to take a Read More…

There’s no doubt about it, over the past 10 years or so, the plumbing trade has really upped its game on the customer service stakes. The main reason being the rise of the online review. With platforms such as Check A Trade, Trust-a-trader, and Google My Business, there’s no hiding a poor customer experience. So with all that in mind, I thought I’d reflect on how the industry very much used to be. Sadly though, Read More…

As regular readers of The Italian Plumber blog will know, I normally just write about light-hearted stuff… funny stories, tips, the odd review… those kinds of things. But I recently attended a refresher course that focussed on the safety and maintenance of ‘unvented hot water storage systems’. More commonly known as, Megaflo. Naturally, I’ve always been aware of the dangers, and as a fully qualified heating engineer and plumber, I am certified to deal with Read More…

If you’re anything like me, you might be starting to think a bit more about the energy you consume. Or more to the point, the cost of consuming it. Unless you’ve been living on Mars these past few months, you’ll know that energy bills are going up significantly this year. That’s all we need! If you’re interested, here are some tips on making your heating more efficient, plus another cost-saving tip here. With all this Read More…

Many of you will know that I do like to mess about on the water. I’ve always loved boats, and over the last couple of years I’ve managed to spend more and more time on the ocean – all be it locally. And although some of those experiences have proved to be rather awful; in the main, I’ve really enjoyed them. So, recently I’ve been thinking about doing something new. Like taking a course or Read More…

The leaves are turning crisp and falling from the trees. The days are swiftly becoming colder. And, of course, we’re now approaching that time of year again – Christmas… The season of goodwill. I question that last bit, but that’s another story. For me, this now means that I have two very excitable children running around the house. Cassia is just over a year old and kind of aware that something magical is about to Read More…