OODesigns concept Copperline Plumbing is a fictional business created to demonstrate design work Back to gallery

On the night phone tonight: Marcus

Pipe burst at 3am? $195 gets a van to your door.

Copperline Plumbing, Newton, Kansas. Dale Voth here. Me and Marcus Unruh, two vans, all of Harvey County. Water heaters, drains, old farmhouse repipes. You call at 3am, one of us answers. Half awake, sure. Still knows which valve you need to find.

Call (316) 555-0128 now Book a daytime visit
Night trip charge
$195
Gas water heater, installed
from $1,690
Farmhouses repiped
140 since 2011
Copperline Plumbing1100 block of W 1st St, Newton KS 67114, (316) 555-0128
Work orderNo 4417
Date

Sept 29, 2026

Van and tech

Van 1, Dale

Job address

Section road east of Walton. Farmhouse, built 1912

Work done

Galvanized supply out, copper in basement, PEX up the walls. New main shutoff where a person can reach it

  • Copper, basement runs$1,940
  • PEX risers, 2 floors$2,860
  • Fixture tie-ins, 9$1,620
  • New 1" main shutoff$385
  • Pressure test, 100 psiheld
  • Permit, Harvey Co.$95

Total, 4 days$6,900

D. VothLicensed master plumber

Customer copy

The price is the price

Same numbers as the back of my ticket book. Job runs over what's printed here? I tell you why first, standing in your basement. Don't like it, you send me home and pay the trip charge. That's all.

Price listUpdated September 2026

Trip charge

Service call, weekdays 7am to 5pm$89Comes off the bill if we do the work.
Night, weekend or holiday trip$195Plus time, $120 an hour. 9pm or 3am, same price. Christmas morning, same as a Tuesday night.

Water heaters

40-gallon gas, replaced$1,690Installed, permitted, old tank hauled off. 50-gallon is $1,840.
Anode rod swap$185Heads up: Newton water is hard. New rod every three or four years, the tank lasts about twice as long.
TanklessBy quoteSure, I'll put one in. Heads up: on our water it needs a softener, and the softener costs more than the heater.

Drains

One drain, cleared at a cleanout$165$225 if the toilet has to come up to get at it.
Main line to the street$325Old clay line and elm roots, mostly. Camera look after is $140. I show you the video on my phone.

Old houses

Farmhouse repipe, whole house$6,400 to $11,500Three to five days, most two-story houses built before 1930. Quote is free. Written number.
Frozen pipe, thawed and checked$195Trip charge plus time. Split? The repair goes on the same ticket.

Copper where you can see it. PEX inside the walls. PEX gives a little when a 1912 house moves in August. Somebody tells you one of them is always right? He hasn't crawled under enough of these.

Not on our vans

Push-fit fittings inside a wall. Fine to get your water back on a Saturday night. Monday I come back and solder it right. No charge.

Plaster. We open the wall small and leave the hole square and clean. Ken Friesen patches plaster best in the county. I give you his number.

Septic pumping, wells, sprinklers. I tell you who does.

Farmhouse repipe, on one sheet

Most houses north of town got galvanized steel, 1905 to 1950. It rusts shut from the inside. So the upstairs tub takes ten minutes to fill. Same house, before and after. This is how I draw it for you on the job.

Before

Galvanized, about 110 years old
Second floor First floor Basement Tub Bath sink Kitchen sink Tank Main, hand valve, rusted open Rust choking the riser

Galvanized steelWhere it's rusted shut

After

Copper below, PEX above
Second floor First floor Basement Tub Bath sink Kitchen sink New tank Ball-valve shutoff, at arm height PEX through the old chases Copper you can see

CopperPEX, coldPEX, hot

3 to 5 days

Days without water

Overnight, never. Every evening we tie the house back in before we leave. Even if it's only the kitchen and one toilet.

One visit

For the quote

I walk the basement with a flashlight. I write a number on the spot. Can't see enough? I say so, and we open one wall first.

Spring and fall

Book it early

Repipes fill up March through May, and again in October. Pipes failing in January? We keep you running and schedule the rest.

Two vans. That's the whole company.

Two vans, two jobs at a time. Heads up: first hard freeze in January, the wait can run four or five hours. I tell you that on the phone. I don't promise an hour I don't have.

Van 1

Dale Voth, owner, licensed master plumber

  • Most daysRepipes and remodels
  • CarriesCopper stock, press tool, torch
  • Night phoneSun, Tue, Thu

Van 2

Marcus Unruh, journeyman plumber

  • Most daysDrains, water heaters, service calls
  • CarriesJetter, sewer camera, two spare tanks
  • Night phoneMon, Wed, Fri, Sat

Calling at night? Don't say sorry. A drip under the sink at eleven, cheap job. Same drip at seven next morning, that's a kitchen ceiling.

Anything leaking, call. Somebody picks up.

From your phone, at midnight

This used to be me reading a serial number off a tank, over the phone, at midnight. Now you do it here. My phone buzzes, I see it.

copperlineplumbing.com/night

Water where it shouldn't be

Marcus has the phone tonight. He calls back inside 10 minutes.

Is water running right now?
Yes, it's sprayingDrippingStopped
Have you found the main shutoff?
Yes, it's offNo, can't find it

In most Newton houses built before 1950 it's in the basement on the street side, a round handle about knee high. Turn it clockwise until it stops. If it won't move, open an outside spigot to drop the pressure.

copperlineplumbing.com/heater-age

How old is your water heater?

Type the serial number off the sticker on the tank.

Serial number

G1408 662913

Made August 201412 years old
On hard water, typical life
10 to 13 years
What Dale would do
Replace it this fall, before it picks the day
Replacement, 40-gal gas
$1,690 installed

Tanks around here tend to quit in January, the week it hits zero. If yours is under eight, an anode rod swap at $185 usually buys it years.

copperlineplumbing.com/book

Pick a two-hour window

Daytime service call, $89, comes off the bill if we do the work.

Tuesday, October 6
8 to 10Booked
10 to 12Van 2
1 to 3Van 2
3 to 5Booked
Wednesday, October 7
8 to 10Van 1
10 to 12Booked
1 to 3Van 2
3 to 5Van 2
What's going on?

Basement floor drain backs up when the washer drains

Copperline: Marcus is on his way, about 15 min out. Van 2, the green one with the ladder rack.

Text sent when the van leaves the job before yours
copperlineplumbing.com/repipe

Ask for a repipe quote

Photos of the basement help me bring the right fittings to the walkthrough.

Year the house was built

1912, two stories, one bath up

Photos you've added
  • basement-main.jpg2.1 MB
  • riser-by-chimney.jpg1.8 MB
  • old-tank-label.jpg0.9 MB
Houses like this have run$6,400 to $8,200

Mileage, town by town

Shop's on West 1st in Newton. Farther out, the drive adds. Here's how much, so it's no surprise on the ticket.

HARVEY COUNTY Little Arkansas Sand Creek 135 50 50 Hesston North Newton Walton Halstead Sedgwick Whitewater Burrton Newton 12-mile line Wichita, 25 mi 06 mi N
  • Newton and North NewtonInside town, no drive charge$0
  • Out to 12 milesHesston, Walton, Halstead, Sedgwick, Whitewater+$35
  • Past the 12-mile lineBurrton, Moundridge, Peabody. Call first, repipes yes, drains maybe+$60
Daytime calls
Mon to Fri, 7am to 5pm
Night phone
Every night, every holiday
Shop
1100 block of W 1st St. Usually locked, we're out on calls

Call (316) 555-0128