CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — CC Plumbing on McArdle Rd. has seen an unusually high volume of people line up at their doors this week. The manager said business has been booming since Tuesday. With busted pipes all over the place, people are taking the repair jobs into their own hands. And now their is a shortage of plumbing supplies.
"Probably, this weekend I’ll probably be doing a whole reroute job, for the whole house, so," Marcus Pantoja said, waiting in line to get into CC Plumbing. "I have galvanized underneath, they all busted."
"We’re just doing the best we can to help customers and just get them going," said Vince Deleon, CC Plumbing manager. "Get everybody going. So, like I said my guys here, they’ve done a terrific job here. They’re working straight through trying to eat as quickly as we can."
Deleon said he was getting low on supplies. They provide to local plumbers and are trying to keep them and the public happy. They've been on the phone for days trying to get vendors to deliver as soon as possible.
Those local plumbers are why people line up outside CC Plumbing. Many are now booked weeks to a month in advance. Some contractors that buy as they go, aren't able to help as they face the shortage as well. One company in particular is getting 20 to 30 calls a day, but said it's crazy they can't help them.
"I guess next time just be precautious and insulate your pipes, your exposed pipes and everything else," Deleon said. "The week before this stuff started we were crazy with pipe insulation sales."
Pantoja traveled around the city to have no luck finding CPVC. That's what brought him to CC Plumbing.
"And I bought insulation one day at five bucks," Pantoja said. "After the freeze, now it’s like $8. So, yeah, it’s hurricane prices, but winter prices I guess you could say."
Deleon is advising everyone to be patient. The main thing to take care of first is stop the leak if you have one. Then go from there.
