Patriot Plumbing...

When you've been a consumer for as many years as I have, you know that you need to remember and cherish a vendor who delivers good service and good products at a fair price. When you find a vendor like that, you tell your friends about him.

That's what I'm doing here. We've used Patriot Plumbing several times over the past few years. They've fixed a leaking shower fixture, unclogged our sewer line (twice!), and (most recently) replaced our water heater after it sprang a leak.

Each time they've been out here, they did everything right: they were fast (especially refreshing for us, as we live a long way from town), they fixed the problem right the first time, they made smart suggestions (such as replacing the shower valve while repairing the leak in the wall) but didn't try to sell us things we didn't want or need, they installed quality parts, their people were very pleasant to work with, and the price was very fair, without even a hint of taking that extra pound of flesh from you when you're desparate.

One thing that I particularly appreciated: on the first occasion we used Patriot, I wasn't at home, and my wife (who knows absolutely nothing about plumbing) had to handle it. The plumber who came out here could easily have taken advantage of her ignorance to sell us all manner of things we didn't need – but he didn't.

So my recommendation for a plumber (if you live anywhere in San Diego County) is, without reservation, Patriot Plumbing. Their little refrigerator magnet is on our microwave. You can call them at 619/579-8929.