Where We Work in Markham

East Markham: Cedarwood, Armadale, Middlefield (home base)

Our shop is in the plaza at 7595 Markham Rd, in Cedarwood, a short drive from every street between Steeles and the 407. Most homes here are two-storey brick detached houses and semis built from the 1980s to around 2010, with townhouses and newer condos along Markham Road. Typical calls: original water heaters, sump pumps on their second replacement, and main drains slowed by basement-suite fixtures added later. Homes built or renovated between 1995 and 2007 fall in the Kitec window; see leak detection.

Milliken Mills

Built mostly from the 1970s to the late 1980s, from Steeles up to the 407 between Warden and the Rouge Valley. The oldest streets here overlap the era of drainage the City's Flood Control Program is upgrading, so a camera look at the sewer lateral and a backwater valve are worth pricing, especially if a basement suite has been added.

Box Grove, Legacy, Rouge Fairways

Developed from the late 1990s, partly on the former IBM golf course, with the Rouge River running through and along the edges. Big brick detached homes with double garages and finished basements, which means any leak lands on drywall and flooring. These streets fall in the 1995 to 2007 Kitec window, and many are on their first or second water heater.

Cornell and Markham Village

Cornell has been built since 1997 as a New Urbanist community, with rear lanes and coach-house units over garages, next to Markham Stouffville Hospital. Coach houses and basement units mean more plumbing on one lot, and Markham's second-suite rules require each unit to have its own water shut-off.

Markham Village is the opposite: a heritage district settled in the 1820s, with ranch bungalows, split-levels and infill around it. Most of the area was developed before 1978, and it flooded in the July 2017 storms; the City has since disconnected downspouts here and offers a rebate for private flood protection.

Mount Joy, Wismer, Greensborough

North of 16th Avenue around Mount Joy GO. Mount Joy expanded in the 1980s; Wismer and Greensborough are newer, mostly built after 2005, with Swan Lake Park in Greensborough. The modern drainage is good. The common calls are original water heaters and sump pumps reaching the end of their lives at the same time across a street.

Raymerville and Sherwood-Amberglen

Mostly three- and four-bedroom detached homes around Markville Mall and Centennial GO, largely from the 1980s. Mid-life copper, tired shut-off valves and hot water tanks are the usual work. Some homes here are two-unit houses, which brings shared drains and the second-suite rules into play.

Unionville, Berczy, Angus Glen, Cathedraltown

Unionville's heritage Main Street goes back to the 1790s, with 1970s and 1980s subdivisions around it; like Markham Village, it is on older drainage and flooded in July 2017. Berczy Village and Angus Glen were built from the mid-1990s to the early 2000s, with rear-lane garages in Angus Glen; Cathedraltown from 2006. Expect older-drainage problems near Main Street and Kitec-era supply lines in the newer streets.

Thornhill (Markham side) and Buttonville

Thornhill's Markham side grew from the 1960s to the 1980s around a heritage core on Yonge, including Bayview Glen and Royal Orchard. West Thornhill was hit hard by the August 19, 2005 storm, and the City has spent years upgrading its storm sewers. Older laterals, cast iron and backwater valves are the work here. Thornhill is the far side of Markham from our shop, so we give you an honest arrival time when you call.

Stouffville

About 13 km north on Markham Road, with very hard water and a housing boom after 2005. It has its own page.

Not on the list

We do not cover Scarborough from this shop. We would rather be fast in Markham than slow everywhere.