Who owns which pipe
Many townhouse rows in Malvern, Agincourt and L'Amoreaux are condominium corporations. The declaration says what the owner maintains versus what counts as common element. Generally, fixtures, traps and branch lines inside your unit are yours, and the mains and laterals serving several units belong to the corporation. We ask for the management contact before any work past your own shut-off.
Common townhouse calls
- Stacked units where an upper unit's tub drain leaks into the lower unit's kitchen
- Main shut-off located in a shared utility room or a neighbour's basement
- Kitchen drains on a long common line, clogging in more than one unit
- Original 1970s and 1980s water heaters in a tight closet
How we handle a stacked-unit leak
- Confirm where the water appears and which unit sits above.
- Fill the upstairs tub and shower separately while watching the ceiling below.
- Open the access panel behind the tub, or the ceiling below, to reach the waste and overflow.
- Replace the gaskets or the drain shoe, then flood-test before closing.
Townhouse tip: Ask management where your unit's isolation valve is and test it once a year. Many are stiff from never being turned.
Water heaters in townhouse closets
We check the vent, the condensate path and the floor drain before a swap. Some complexes have rental tanks owned by a third party; if yours is a rental, the rental company handles replacement, and we can still repair the plumbing around it.