Plumbing in Parkwoods

Parkwoods housing and pipes

Most of Parkwoods went up through the 1960s. The semi-detached and detached homes were built with copper water lines and a mix of cast-iron and early plastic drains, and the sewer connection to the street is often clay or early concrete. Townhouse complexes here are usually condominium corporations, which changes who owns which pipe.

Copper from that era holds up well, though we do see pinhole leaks on hot lines and corroded fittings near old water heaters. Shut-off valves under sinks are often seized after sixty years without being turned.

Common calls here

• Kitchen drains clogged by decades of grease buildup. Our kitchen drain cleaning clears it properly.
• Water heater swaps in tight utility rooms of semis, see water heater replacement.
• Leaking or running toilets in original bathrooms.

In a townhouse complex, talk to the property manager before anyone touches common stacks. Units often own the fixtures but not the risers. Our note on who is responsible for condo leaks covers the usual split.

Flooding and sewers

Parkwoods slopes toward the East Don ravine, and some streets sit lower than others. Floor drains in older semis rarely have backflow protection. Mature trees along the boulevards also send roots into clay laterals, which can produce a backup that looks like flooding but is really a blocked line.

What the semis tell us

Semi-detached houses share a party wall, and in Parkwoods some pairs also share a portion of drain or a single sewer connection to the street. When a blockage forms past the point where the two lines join, both households notice at once. Before any digging, we confirm with a camera exactly where each line runs and who owns which length.

Original bathrooms here often have a recessed steel tub with a two-handle shower valve behind tile. Those valves lack pressure balancing, so a flushing toilet sends a jolt of hot water through the shower. Swapping in a modern balanced valve fixes the scald risk, though it usually means opening some tile or working through an access panel from the closet behind.

Rental towers in the neighbourhood are serviced by building staff, but tenants still deal with the small things: a dripping tap, a toilet flapper that no longer seals. Those are worth reporting early, since a constant drip wastes water around the clock and a running toilet can quietly add to the building's bill.

The ravine trees that make Parkwoods pleasant are also why we carry cutting heads for root work on most visits east of the Don.

Getting to Parkwoods

We reach Parkwoods by York Mills Road or Lawrence, and the neighbourhood is part of our usual daily range. Tell us about visitor parking or building access codes when you book. Other areas are listed under our enclaves.