From Port Orchard we run Highway 3 to Belfair and 106 along the South Shore, about 50 minutes, and we schedule Union with our other canal calls so the window is firm. Washington Plumbing & Drain handles the pumps, wells, freeze repairs, water heaters and repipes this shore needs, with flat-rate pricing before any work begins.
Veteran-owned and family-run, with more than 200 five-star Google reviews. We coordinate with owners who are not at the house, and we send photos when the job is done.
Union at a glance for plumbing
Water
Mason PUD 1 runs several community water systems in the Union area, including Vuecrest and systems tied to Union Ridge, and other shoreline communities have small association systems. Outlying properties are on private wells. No city water.
Sewer or septic
Septic. There is no public sewer in Union or along the South Shore; the Alderbrook area has its own on-site treatment. Shoreline lots along Highway 106 typically pump effluent uphill across the road to a drainfield.
Homes
Canal-front homes along Highway 106 from 1940s cabins to substantial 1990s and 2000s rebuilds, hillside homes in Union Ridge and Vuecrest from the 1970s onward, and a mix of manufactured and custom homes on the uplands. A high share of second homes and retirees.
Ground and weather
The south shore of the Great Bend, with a narrow shoreline bench, Highway 106 running along it, and steep bluffs and benches rising behind. Thin soil over glacial deposits on the slopes, and a water table at the surface along the shoreline in winter. Union faces north across the canal toward the Olympics and takes the wind that comes down from them. The December 2022 and January 2024 freezes split pipes in shoreline cabins and froze exposed lines on the hillside systems, and winter power outages stop every pump on the shore.
Pumping across the highway
Most Union waterfront homes sit between the canal and Highway 106, with the drainfield up the slope on the other side of the road. The pump chamber in the yard lifts effluent under the highway and up the hill, and when the pump, a float or the check valve fails, the chamber fills and the house backs up within a day. We replace Liberty effluent pumps, floats, check valves and alarm panels, and we test the alarm so you hear it next time.
The force main under the road is the other weak point. A pump that runs long and never catches up, or a wet spot on the uphill shoulder, means the line has failed, and locating it takes care near a state highway. We find it and repair it. Tank pumping and drainfield repair go to a septic company, and we will tell you when that is the real problem.
Community water, Union Ridge and the hill
Mason PUD 1 runs several community systems around Union, including Vuecrest, which was recently rebuilt with emergency power and a tie to Union Ridge. Other shoreline communities have small association systems. Pressure on these lines drops at the top of the hill and at the far end, and a DAB booster pump at the house gives a steady shower without any change to the utility.
Upland properties on private wells see the usual list: a pressure tank that lost its charge, a pressure switch with burned contacts, a well house that froze. We carry the tank and switch and we fix the building; a control box or pump that took a hit when the power came back goes to a well pump company. Groundwater on this shore carries enough minerals to scale a tankless heater and spot fixtures, and we descale tankless units on a schedule and install filtration only after a test says it is needed.
The north-facing freeze
Union's shoreline faces north across the canal, and the wind off the Olympics in a cold snap pulls heat out of a crawlspace in a night. The December 2022 and January 2024 freezes split copper under cabins along 106, cracked fittings on exposed hillside lines, and froze pump houses on the upland systems. We repaired a lot of it, and we would rather prevent the next round.
That means insulated crawlspace lines, closed vents in a cold snap, frost-free hose bibs, heat tape on pump houses and exposed runs, and a main shutoff you can reach. For second homes, a proper winterization or a Flo by Moen shutoff that closes the main when it senses a leak keeps a split pipe from running until the next visit.
Waterfront homes with more plumbing than most
The larger properties along the South Shore have irrigation with backflow preventers, outdoor showers, boathouse and dock water, hot tubs and multiple water heaters. We service all of it: replacing and winterizing backflow assemblies, running and repairing lines to outbuildings, installing recirculation on long hot-water runs, and replacing tank heaters with Bradford White, A. O. Smith or Rinnai tankless on propane.
Older cabins on the same shore have the opposite problem, with seventy years of patched galvanized, copper and polybutylene under the floor. A PEX repipe in a small cabin is a one-day job that ends the yearly leak call, and we route it to leave the finishes alone.
Plumbing problems we see most in Union
Local patterns
- Septic effluent pumps and alarms on shoreline lots pumping across the highway
- Freeze damage in seasonal cabins and exposed hillside lines
- Weak pressure at the high end of community water systems
- Well pressure tanks and switches on upland properties
- Long service lines crossing or running beside Highway 106
- Scale on tankless and tank heaters from mineral-rich groundwater
- Backflow preventers and irrigation on the larger waterfront properties
Neighborhoods and areas in Union we serve
We work throughout Union, including Union townsite and the Country Store, Alderbrook and the resort area, Union Ridge, Vuecrest, South Shore Road east toward Twanoh, Skokomish Valley edge and Highway 106 canal frontage, and around Alderbrook Resort and golf course, The Great Bend of Hood Canal, Dalby Waterwheel, Union Country Store, Twanoh State Park, Skokomish River delta. Population is around 700 year-round, several times that when the resort and the canal cabins are full; ZIP codes include 98592.
Union plumbing questions
Do you serve Union and the South Shore of Hood Canal?
Yes. Union is about 50 minutes from Port Orchard along Highway 3 and 106. We schedule it with our other canal calls, and flat-rate pricing means no travel charge.
My septic alarm is going off at my canal house. What do I do?
Stop running water, silence the alarm and call us. It is usually the effluent pump, a float or the check valve, which we replace. If the tank needs pumping first we will say so.
Who supplies water in Union?
Mason PUD 1 runs several community systems in the area, other shoreline communities have small association systems, and upland properties are on private wells. There is no city water or sewer.
Water pressure is weak at our house up on Union Ridge. Can that be fixed?
Usually with a booster pump and a small tank where the line enters the house. It gives steady pressure regardless of what the community line is doing.
Can you winterize a second home on the South Shore?
Yes. We drain and protect the system in fall, reopen it in spring, and can install a smart shutoff for homes that keep water on through winter.
Do you work on propane water heaters and tankless units in Union?
Yes. We install and service propane tank and Rinnai tankless heaters, descale tankless units on this mineral-rich water, and run gas lines from the tank.
