Plumbing · Tooting, London
Plumber in Furzedown: Edwardian and Interwar Streets, Moyser Road and a Postcode Split (SW16, SW17)
Furzedown is one of those places that straddles a line without anyone quite noticing. It sits in the Furzedown ward of the London Borough of Wandsworth, yet it spans old Streatham parish and old Tooting parish, and its postcodes are split between SW16 and SW17. The 2011 census counted 15,504 residents. For a plumber the split has one practical effect: you have to say which side of the line you are on before anyone can tell you where the nearest help is.
Ring 07861 936716 and Honest Plumber Tooting picks up at any hour. Furzedown is roughly 0.6 miles south-east of our base, so it is one of the closest patches we cover. We match your job to an independently owned local plumbing company that suits the fault. It quotes in writing, does the work, invoices you and takes payment itself, and we text you its name before it arrives.
Most of what you see was laid out between 1900 and 1930. That makes it Edwardian and interwar houses rather than the older Victorian terraces of Balham, and the plumbing reflects it: pipework a little more modern than the 1860s, but old enough that lead supply pipes, tired cylinders and scale-choked boilers are still on the list of suspects.
Thames Water supplies the hard water, about 262 mg/l of calcium carbonate across the Tooting supply area, so limescale is the quiet cost in every house here. Our job is to tell you what the fault is, what it costs in published London terms and whether it is worth fixing, in that order.
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Nearby Areas
Edwardian and Interwar Houses, Honestly Assessed
Newer than Balham, older than you think, and rarely as simple as it looks.
Roads Laid Out Between 1900 and 1930
Furzedown's streets went down over three decades, so two neighbouring houses can differ in layout and in pipe age. We have not found a source with house-type percentages, so we do not pretend to know how many are semi-detached. What we do know is that a house from this period has probably been through at least one boiler change and one bathroom refit, which is where mixed pipework comes from.
Hard Water in Every Cylinder
A hot water cylinder in an airing cupboard in a house this age may have been there for decades. At 262 mg/l, scale shortens the life of immersion elements and coil surfaces. A published London range for an element swap on a vented cylinder is about £150 to £300, and a replacement cylinder runs £500 to £1,200, more for an unvented one. See hot water cylinder repair.
Heating Systems That Have Been Added To
Radiators get added, a loft conversion adds a bathroom, and an extension pushes a kitchen out. Each change can leave the heating circuit unbalanced, with cold upstairs radiators and a boiler that struggles. A balanced system with a magnetic filter and inhibitor will outlast a patched one. Look at central heating repair and power flushing for what that involves.
Nearby Areas
Local Landmarks That Help Us Find You
A plumber is only useful once they can find the right door.
Moyser Road and Welham Road
Moyser Road, Tooting Bec Road and Welham Road mark the edges of the patch we think of as Furzedown. Moyser Road has a small parade of local shops, a good landmark when you tell us how to get there. If you are on a corner, give us both road names, because that is the quickest way to the right door.
Furzedown Recreation Ground and the Commons
Furzedown Recreation Ground hosts the Big Day Out festival, and Tooting Graveney Common, with Furzedown Lodge, sits next to the neighbourhood. Event days fill the nearby roads with parked cars. If your call coincides with one, we say so, so that the partner company can plan its approach.
Schools and Mornings
Graveney Secondary, Furzedown Primary, Goldfinch Primary and Penwortham Primary all serve the area, and school-run traffic changes how long a visit takes. Early morning calls are common because a cold shower or a dead boiler is noticed as the house wakes. We never promise a time, and we tell you if the morning rush will matter.
Nearby Areas
Old Ground, New Pipes
The land has changed hands and uses more than once.
Tom Dunn's Golf Course by the Station
A Tom Dunn golf course occupied land near Tooting Junction station from 1892 until the club left for Mitcham Common in 1906, and the surrounding roads were laid out afterwards. We hold no ground survey for these streets, so we do not guess at settlement. What we can say is that a drain that keeps blocking in the same spot is worth looking at with a camera, published at roughly £90 to £250, before anyone digs. The picture shows whether the fault is a crack, a dip or just a build-up of grease and wipes.
Furzedown House and the Halls of Residence
Furzedown House dates from 1794, was enlarged in the early 1860s and became a teacher training college in 1915. Today the site hosts University of the Arts London halls of residence. Large shared buildings and student lets mean unfamiliar boilers and no one sure who owns the stopcock, so we start by finding out who is responsible.
Streatham Park and Tooting Graveney
The district names Streatham Park and Tooting Graveney still turn up on envelopes and estate agents' boards, and they hint at the two parishes that met here. For us they mean one thing: tell us your postcode, SW16 or SW17, so the right partner company comes from the right direction. See emergency plumbing.
Furzedown at a Glance
A quiet residential area beside Tooting's commons, with its own habits.
What the Streets Tell Us
Laid out from 1900 to 1930, the roads are newer than Balham's terraces. The plumbing is rarely original, but it is often old enough to need attention, and a house that has had its bathroom redone twice may hide three eras of pipe behind one tiled wall.
What We Don't Know
We have no verified house-type percentages for Furzedown, and no vegetation survey. Where the facts run out, we say so rather than guess, because a plumber who pretends to know the street before seeing the pipes is guessing at your expense. The honest approach is to look first, then quote, then explain what is yours to decide.
Heating and Hot Water Costs in SW16 and SW17
Published Ranges
An annual boiler service is published at £70 to £120, a pump replacement at £150 to £280, a circuit board at £200 to £450 and a heat exchanger at £350 to £650. A new combi installed is roughly £2,000 to £3,500.
The Written Quote
Those are published guides rather than our quotes. The partner company gives its own number in writing before starting, and a figure far outside these ranges should come with an explanation on paper. See services for every job we cover.
Neighbouring Areas
Next door are Tooting Bec and Balham. To see how a call becomes a visit, read how we work, or return to the home page.
Where We Cover
Serving Furzedown, Moyser Road & Welham Road
Your Questions Answered
Which postcodes in Furzedown do you cover?
Both of them, SW16 and SW17. Furzedown straddles old Streatham and Tooting parishes, so the postcodes are split, but the call goes to the same number either way. We cover the roads between Moyser Road, Tooting Bec Road and Welham Road, and the Streatham Park and Tooting Graveney sides. Give us your street and we will confirm.
How far is Furzedown from your base?
Roughly 0.6 miles south-east of our base in Tooting Bec, as a straight-line estimate rather than a measured driving route. That makes it one of the nearest areas we cover, which often helps us find a partner company quickly. It does not mean we can promise an arrival time, because that depends on who is free and on traffic.
Are Furzedown houses likely to have lead pipes?
Possibly. Lead supply pipes were standard until about 1970, and Furzedown's houses date from 1900 to 1930, so some may still have lead on the supply. Lead is dull grey and soft and shows silver when lightly scraped. Thames Water replaces its side of the supply free of charge if you replace the private side, and new work uses copper or plastic.
Why does my shower keep losing pressure or temperature?
In this area, scale is the usual suspect. Water at about 262 mg/l of calcium carbonate furs up shower valves, cartridges and electric shower elements, and a blocked head does the rest. A shower pump repair is published at roughly £150 to £300. The partner company checks the cheap causes first, and tells you if a descale will do. See shower repair.
How much does an emergency call-out cost in Furzedown?
We do not set prices. Published London guides put a plumber's call-out at roughly £90 to £120, with hourly rates of £75 to £95, and an engineer's boiler call-out at £40 to £90. Out-of-hours boiler repairs run higher, about £150 to £280 at a weekend. The partner company gives you its own figure in writing first.
My boiler has stopped on a cold night. What should I check?
Check the pressure gauge, which usually wants to sit around 1 to 1.5 bar, and check whether the display shows a fault code. Make sure the thermostat is calling for heat and that the condensate pipe has not frozen. If those do not help, do not take the casing off. Ring us, and see emergency boiler repair.
Do you work in rented homes and student lets?
Yes. In a rented home the landlord or agent is usually responsible for the boiler and the main plumbing, so tell them as soon as a fault appears. We can still arrange emergency help if you cannot reach them, and the partner company will say who should be invoiced. Keep the quote and any photographs. Large shared lets near the old Furzedown House site raise the same question.
Is it worth repairing an old cylinder or replacing it?
Candidly, it depends on age and on what failed. An element swap is a modest job, published at roughly £150 to £300. If the cylinder itself is leaking or heavily scaled, replacement at £500 to £1,200, or more for an unvented one, is usually the sensible route. Unvented cylinders fall under Building Regulations Part G3, so the work is not a casual one.
What do I do about a blocked toilet at night?
If you have only one toilet, treat it as urgent. Stop flushing, and put a towel round the base if water is rising. A published London range for a blocked or overflowing toilet is about £175 in total. The partner company clears it, and if the blockage is deeper it will say so before quoting more. See toilet repair.
My drain keeps blocking in the same place. Why?
A drain that blocks repeatedly in the same place often points to a defect rather than bad luck, such as a dip, a crack or a joint pushed out of line. A camera survey, published at roughly £90 to £250, shows which. The partner company then quotes for a repair or a clearance, and you decide with the picture in front of you.
Can you find a hidden leak in my Furzedown house?
Yes, and it is worth doing before the plasterwork comes down. Published London figures put hidden leak detection at roughly £200 to £600 and a survey with a report at £250 to £750. A rising water bill, a damp patch or a hissing sound with the taps off are the usual signs. See leak detection & repair for what is involved.
Do I need a power flush?
Only if the symptoms fit. Radiators cold at the bottom, rust-brown water when bled and a noisy boiler suggest sludge, and a flush to BS 7593 cleans the system. Published London prices are about £300 to £600 for a full system. If the radiators are mostly sound, a cheaper clean-and-filter job may be enough, and the partner company will say so before it quotes. Ask whether the water has been tested first.
Who do I ring if I smell gas?
Ring the National Gas Emergency number on 0800 111 999. Leave the property, keep windows open and avoid switches, flames and phones indoors. That call comes before any plumber. After the gas supplier has made it safe, ring us on 07861 936716 if you need the appliance or pipework checked, and we will find a partner company to attend.
Do you handle the payment?
No. The independently owned partner company quotes in writing, does the work, invoices you and takes payment directly. We handle no invoices or money. We text you the company's name before it arrives, so you know who should be at your door, and if anything goes wrong afterwards you ring us and we chase it.
What if the job turns out bigger than the quote?
The partner company should stop and tell you before doing anything outside the written quote, and you decide whether to go ahead. If a hidden fault shows up behind a wall or under a floor, you get a revised figure in writing. If you feel the process was not fair, ring us and we will take it up with them.
Leak, Block or Cold Shower in Furzedown? Call Now
SW16 and SW17, 0.6 miles from our base, written quote first. 07861 936716.
07861 936716