Cities We Serve
Austin Area:
San Antonio Area:
Not seeing your area? Give us a call at (833) 656-4056
Why Faucets Fail Here
Hard Water Is Hard on Faucets
Inside every faucet is a small valve, a cartridge, a ball or a pair of ceramic discs, that opens and closes thousands of times a year. In Austin and San Antonio, the water carrying through it is some of the hardest in the country, and every cycle leaves a little more calcium on the seals and seats. That is why faucets here drip, grind and stiffen years before the same model would elsewhere, and why the aerator on the spout clogs with grit no matter how often you clean it.
Radiant’s plumbers carry the common cartridges and seat kits on the truck, so most repairs finish in one visit. When a faucet is old enough that parts are hard to find, or the body itself is corroded, we tell you plainly that a new faucet is the better money and install it with fresh supply lines and quarter-turn shutoffs. You choose; the price for each option is in writing before we touch anything.
If you are replacing faucets every few years, the fix is upstream. Ask about a water softener; it protects every fixture and appliance in the house, not just the one dripping today.
- Parts on the truck Common cartridges, stems, seats, aerators and supply lines ride with the plumber, so most repairs are one trip.
- Repair or replace, your call We price both and tell you which one we would choose for our own house. No pressure either way.
- Home Comfort Guarantee If we cannot resolve the problem, you receive a 10% inconvenience refund, up to $1,000.
What to Watch For
Faucet Problems and What They Usually Mean
Each symptom points to a specific worn part. The sooner it is replaced, the less the faucet body and the cabinet below suffer.
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Drips from the spout when off
A worn cartridge, washer or valve seat. One drip a second adds up to real water over a year, and hot-side drips run up the water heater bill too.
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Water at the base of the handle or spout
O-rings or the cartridge body seal have gone. Water runs down inside the faucet and into the cabinet, which is where the real damage happens.
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Stiff, grinding or loose handle
Scale in the cartridge or a stripped stem. Forcing it usually breaks something else. A new cartridge makes it feel new again.
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Sprays sideways or the flow is weak
A scaled or damaged aerator, or grit in the cartridge from a recent water main repair. Cheap fix, but if it keeps returning the water needs treating.
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Cannot get hot, or cannot get cold
A supply stop that is closed or failed, a blocked supply line or a cartridge installed backwards after a DIY repair.
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The outdoor hose bib drips or will not close
Freeze damage from a hard winter or a worn washer. A running spigot against the foundation can soak the soil and move the slab.
What We Handle
Every Faucet and Fixture in the House
Kitchen, bath, laundry, outdoors and the valves behind them.
- Cartridge and valve repair Single-handle cartridges, two-handle stems and seats, ceramic disc valves and the O-rings that keep water out of the cabinet.
- Faucet replacement Kitchen, bath, bar and laundry faucets, including pull-down, touchless and widespread styles, installed with new supplies and stops.
- Shower heads and tub spouts Scaled heads, leaking diverter spouts and handheld conversions, plus the valve behind the wall when that is the real problem.
- Shutoff valves and supply lines Seized multi-turn stops replaced with quarter-turn valves, and aging supply lines swapped before they burst.
- Outdoor hose bibs Repairing or replacing leaking spigots and adding frost-resistant or vacuum-breaker bibs where they make sense.
- Filtered and instant-hot taps Dedicated drinking-water faucets for reverse osmosis systems and under-sink filters, plumbed with their own shutoff.
How It Works
Faucet Repair Without the Runaround
Most faucet calls are finished in a single visit, with the price agreed before the first part comes out.
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Tell us which faucet and what it is doing
If you know the brand or can send a photo, that helps us bring the right cartridge. If not, no problem.
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We open it up and check the body
A cartridge is an easy fix. A corroded body or a discontinued part changes the math, and we tell you before you pay for a repair that will not hold.
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You pick repair or replacement
Both priced in writing. If you already bought a faucet you like, we will install it.
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We finish, test and check below
Hot and cold run, handle checked, and the supply connections under the sink inspected dry before we pack up.
Current Specials
Save on the work your home needs most.
Tired of Listening to That Drip?
Book a licensed plumber in Austin or San Antonio. Upfront pricing, no surprise fees, even on weekends.
What Our Customers Say
Don't just take our word for it — hear from our satisfied customers
★★★★★
I had Radiant Plumbing replace my tankless water heater, damaged in the Feb. 2021 snowmageddon storm with a new unit. The process was smooth and professional from start to finish. The plumber, James, was extremely knowledgeable and thoroughly explained my options to me. The cost and time to perform the installation were just as estimated. When he was done, James explained how to maintain the system, what service would be needed and how to perform it, and answered all of my engineering geek questions. It was a thoroughly positive experience. I have used several different plumbers in Austin over the past 15 yrs, but my search is over - I will not hesitate to call Radiant next time and would recommend them unreservedly.
8/9/23 Update: I have subsequently used Radiant for a toilet repair, faucet installation (Danny), and drain work (Ezekiel) and they have continued to impress with knowledgeable, friendly plumbers and quality work.
8/9/23 Update: I have subsequently used Radiant for a toilet repair, faucet installation (Danny), and drain work (Ezekiel) and they have continued to impress with knowledgeable, friendly plumbers and quality work.
★★★★★
We called Radiant Plumbing after we noticed a water leak in our kitchen. We were in a time crunch and they were able to schedule us quickly, before we left for vacation. They sent their representative, Preston Nichols, and he was excellent to deal with! He was on time, skillful, friendly, and very professional. It turned out to be a problem with our dishwasher but Preston was quick to diagnose it and set our minds at ease. While he was here, we mentioned that our one year-old water heater needed to be flushed. Preston was quick to take care of that, as well, saving us time and money in the process. Radiant charged us almost half the price another plumber quoted us for that service! While Radiant Plumbing isn’t our usual plumber, they gained a new customer. We won’t hesitate to call Radiant again in the future based on our VERY positive experience with them.
★★★★★
Had 3 different systems installed by them approx. 3 years ago for a total of approx $20k. I was quite happy with the install until the year later when they came for a maintenance call and started finding deficiencies in their own install. they wanted extra money to address those deficiencies. Now I am in the process of selling my home and an inspector has found a few items that need to be addressed and they will not even look at the report unless I schedule a $139.00 service call. Very poor customer service.. This company does not stand by their work and would not recommend.
I am revising my review of this business from 1 to 5 stars. After my original review I was contacted by the company's service manager and he made sure that I was taken care off. I had a team of 3 technicians coming to my house to double check the system and make the necessary adjustments. I was very satisfied by their attention to details and professionalism.
I am revising my review of this business from 1 to 5 stars. After my original review I was contacted by the company's service manager and he made sure that I was taken care off. I had a team of 3 technicians coming to my house to double check the system and make the necessary adjustments. I was very satisfied by their attention to details and professionalism.
Maintenance Membership
Join the Care Club
Home maintenance for $9.99 a month.
Care Club members get two HVAC tune-ups and a plumbing safety inspection every year, priority scheduling, no dispatch fees — ever — and 5% off every repair.
- Priority scheduling
- Seasonal HVAC tune-ups
- Annual safety inspection
- Exclusive member discounts
- Free dispatch on repairs
- No long-term contracts
Faucet Questions
Is it worth fixing a dripping faucet, or should I just replace it?
Fix it if the faucet body is in good shape and the part is available. A cartridge, a set of seats and springs or new O-rings restores most name-brand faucets for a fraction of the cost of a new one, and our trucks carry the common ones. Replace it if the finish is pitted, the body is corroded at the base, the handle is loose because the threads are stripped, or the manufacturer no longer makes the cartridge. Discontinued parts are the usual dealbreaker on faucets more than about fifteen years old. We give you both prices in writing and an honest recommendation, and we are happy to install a faucet you have already purchased.
Does hard water really damage faucets?
Yes, and in Central Texas it is the main reason faucets wear out early. Water in Austin and San Antonio carries a lot of dissolved calcium and magnesium. Every time the faucet runs, a little of it deposits on the aerator screen, on the cartridge seals and inside the valve body. The aerator clogs and sprays, the handle gets stiff, the seals stop sealing and the drip starts. Cleaning the aerator with vinegar helps for a while. The lasting fix is a whole-home water softener or conditioner, which also protects your water heater, dishwasher and shower valves.
Why does only one faucet in the house have low pressure?
When one faucet is weak and the rest of the house is fine, the cause is at that faucet. Start with the aerator: unscrew it from the tip of the spout and look for scale or grit. Next is the cartridge, which can pack with mineral debris, especially after a water main repair in the neighborhood sends sediment through the lines. Then the supply stops under the sink; old multi-turn valves do not always open all the way. A kinked flexible supply line is the last common one. All of these are quick for a plumber. If every faucet in the house is weak, that is a whole-house pressure issue and we approach it differently.
Do you repair or replace outdoor faucets and hose bibs?
We do, and it is a more important repair than it looks. A hose bib that drips against the foundation keeps the soil there wet, and in our expansive clay soils that uneven moisture is one of the things that shifts a slab. We replace worn washers and packing, swap out bibs that were split by a hard freeze, add a vacuum breaker so hose water cannot siphon back into your drinking water, and install frost-free bibs where the pipe run allows. If the bib is fed by a line that also runs your irrigation, we check the backflow protection on that system too.
*Offers cannot be combined with other promotions or applied to dispatch fees. No cash value. Must present offer at time of service. Call for details.
