Plumbing Johannesburg

25/08/2026

Reservoirs are running on empty right now 💧

An underground cable fire at the Fordsburg substation on Sunday night knocked out power to Rand Water's Eikenhof pump station, and the network is still catching up. As of the latest update, several of Joburg's reservoirs are sitting in single digits - Waterval Tower and Eagles Nest Reservoir 2 both at 1%, Crosby Reservoir and Brixton Tower at 2%. Areas fed by Aeroton, the Commando system (Eagles Nest, Naturena, Lenasia), Hursthill and Linden are affected today.

When supply like this comes back online, it doesn't come back gently. Pressure surges as the network refills are one of the most common causes of split pipes, blown geyser connections and sudden leaks - often in fittings that were already borderline.

If your taps have been dry or running low over the last day or two, it's worth checking your geyser and visible pipework once supply is back to full strength, before a slow drip turns into a bigger job.

Contact us today to check your pipes for leaks and other issues 👇

📞 011 465 0198
✉️ [email protected]
🌐 www.plumbingjohannesburg.co.za

Plumbing Johannesburg is regarded as insurance plumbing specialists with experience in Solar Water Heating, Heat Pumps and Leak Detections.

21/08/2026

Did you know? 💧

Johannesburg loses an estimated 44.7% of the water it treats and pumps before it ever reaches a tap — leaked, burst, or otherwise unaccounted for. That works out to close to R3.8 billion in lost revenue a year, on a network Johannesburg Water itself says is largely more than 50 years old.

Most of that loss doesn't happen on the street where everyone can see it. It happens quietly, underground, on private property, behind walls — exactly the kind of leak that only shows up on your bill.

If your account has crept up and you can't explain why, that's usually where to look first. Contact us to find a hidden leak you may have 👇

📞 011 465 0198
✉️ [email protected]
🌐 www.plumbingjohannesburg.co.za

18/08/2026

A leak on Pretoria Avenue in Ferndale has been running down the road for months. Johannesburg Water confirmed this week it's aware of it - the same stretch of steel pipe they repaired in 2025 after a leak took the area's water supply out for three days. A year on, a new leak has opened in the same spot.

The cause, according to JW: ageing infrastructure and ground vibration wearing through the pipe's corrosion coating. The fix needs a full pipeline replacement, which is waiting on capex funding with no timeline given.

It's not an isolated case. Johannesburg Water's own quarterly figures put the city at 4,336 pipe bursts a month, up from 2,960 the year before - that's roughly 144 bursts a day, or about one for every ward, every day. Their response-time target is 90%; the actual figure is 43.7%.

None of that is a reason to panic about municipal supply. It is a reason to stop assuming a previous repair on your property's connection is the end of the story, especially if the original fix only patched the visible section rather than replacing what's actually failing.

Has a "repaired" leak or burst on your property's line ever come back in the same spot? Let us know in the comments 👇

📞 011 465 0198
✉️ [email protected]
🌐 www.plumbingjohannesburg.co.za

Plumbing Johannesburg is regarded as insurance plumbing specialists with experience in Solar Water Heating, Heat Pumps and Leak Detections.

14/08/2026

Did you know? 💡

Johannesburg is the largest city in the world not built on a river, lake, or coastline.

Gold brought people here in 1886, not water. There was never a natural water source big enough for a city this size — every drop that reaches your tap has been pumped from the Vaal River system, ultimately fed by the Lesotho Highlands Water Project over 200km away.

Sit with that for a second. Nothing here is "just tap water." It's imported, pumped, and pressurised across a huge distance before it reaches your geyser.

Which is exactly why a "small" leak at home is a bigger deal than it looks — and why more Johannesburg households are treating rainwater harvesting as backup, not just an eco-nice-to-have.

📞 011 465 0198
✉️ [email protected]
🌐

Plumbing Johannesburg is regarded as insurance plumbing specialists with experience in Solar Water Heating, Heat Pumps and Leak Detections.

11/08/2026

Johannesburg is losing an estimated 665 million litres of water a day to burst pipes — more than a third of the city's entire supply. Reuters reported today that much of the network is over 50 years old, and repair response times are running at under half the target.

That's the municipal side. But it changes the maths on your side of the meter too.

When the system is this stretched, a slow leak on your own property isn't just a water bill problem — it's added pressure on a supply that's already failing to reach some households for days at a time. Fixing it fast isn't only about saving money. It's about not adding to a crisis your neighbours are already living through.

If you've got a meter that won't stop ticking, a damp patch that won't dry out, or a bill that doesn't add up, get it found and fixed properly.

Contact us today to see how we can help you 👇

📞 011 465 0198
✉️ [email protected]
🌐

Plumbing Johannesburg is regarded as insurance plumbing specialists with experience in Solar Water Heating, Heat Pumps and Leak Detections.

07/08/2026

Johannesburg mornings are still dropping to single digits — 8°C first thing today, climbing to a sunny 23°C by afternoon. 🌤️

That kind of swing is exactly when geysers work hardest: cold incoming water, high overnight demand, then barely a break before the next cold morning. It's also when small problems — a slow leak, a struggling element, an ageing thermostat — turn into a no-hot-water morning with no warning.

If yours has been groaning, taking longer to heat, or you can't remember the last time it was serviced, this is the week to get it looked at rather than the week it decides for you.

📞 011 465 0198
✉️ [email protected]
🌐 www.plumbingjohannesburg.co.za

04/08/2026

Did you know? 💧

A tap dripping once per second wastes over 11,000 litres a year — enough to fill roughly 70 bathtubs.

Most homeowners assume a dripping tap is a minor annoyance. It usually isn't. It's a worn washer or a failing cartridge, and it gets worse, not better, until someone fixes it.

On a metered account, that's money down the drain every month. On a borehole or tank system, it's capacity you don't get back.

Got a tap that's been dripping "for a while now"? That's usually the moment to stop ignoring it.

Contact us today to learn how we can save you money 💰

📞 011 465 0198
✉️ [email protected]
🌐 www.plumbingjohannesburg.co.za

31/07/2026

Friday Flush of Humour 🤪

Customer: "Sorry for calling so late."
Plumber: "It's fine. Burst geysers don't check a calendar either."
Customer: "Fair. Can you come now?"
Plumber: "Already in the bakkie."

That's a wrap on July! Which joke made you groan the loudest this month? 👇

📞 011 465 0198
✉️ [email protected]

28/07/2026

After the water outages earlier this year, more Johannesburg homeowners are asking the same question: what happens next time the taps run dry?

Rainwater harvesting isn't just an eco-friendly upgrade anymore — it's fast becoming a practical backup plan. Paired with the right storage and filtration setup, a well-designed system can carry a household through days of interrupted supply without missing a beat.

Thinking about a backup water solution for your home? Let's talk about what would actually work for your property, contact us today 👇

📞 011 465 0198
✉️ [email protected]
🌐 www.plumbingjohannesburg.co.za

24/07/2026

Friday Flush of Humour 🤪

Customer: "The last plumber said my water pressure was fine."
Plumber: "When was that?"
Customer: "2019."
Plumber: "That's not a professional opinion anymore. That's a fond memory."

Tag someone who's still quoting plumbing advice from before load shedding started 👇

📞 011 465 0198
✉️ [email protected]