Serra Mesa Plumbing Repairs: Who Fixes What?
Serra Mesa started out as military housing after World War II, and single-family homes, apartments and condos filled in around it. Navy family housing is still part of the community today. Because of it, the first question after a leak is often whose repair it is. The table answers it for each kind of home.
| Your home | Who maintains the plumbing inside | Who to call first |
| House you own | You | A plumber (that’s us) |
| Condo or townhome you own | You, for lines serving only your unit; the HOA, for shared lines (your CC&Rs decide) | Us for in-unit work; the HOA’s management company for shared pipes |
| Rental | Your landlord, under California Civil Code 1941.1 | Your landlord or property manager, in writing |
| Navy family housing | The housing office | The housing office’s maintenance request system |
Houses
Everything on your side of the water meter is yours, and so is the sewer lateral that runs from the house to the City’s main. The City of San Diego treats that lateral as the owner’s responsibility, roots and grease included. If your house is one of the older ones on the mesa, the original shutoff valves and supply pipe are where problems usually start. Our Linda Vista page, written for a postwar neighborhood just across the freeway, covers how that older pipe ages. We handle leaks, water heaters, shutoff valves, pressure regulators, repiping and gas lines. Drain clogs and backups go to Drain Mob, our partner.Condos and Townhomes
Read your CC&Rs first, because they draw the line between your pipes and the association’s. A common split puts fixtures, the water heater, shutoff valves and the lines feeding them on the owner, and shared risers and mains on the HOA. Yours may differ. Water coming through your ceiling usually starts in the unit above or in a shared line, so call the upstairs neighbor and the HOA’s management company right away. Someone has to shut off the source, and the faster that happens, the less ceiling you replace. If it turns out the leak is in your own unit’s lines, close your unit’s shutoff and call us.Rentals
California puts working plumbing on the landlord. Under Civil Code Section 1941.1, a home counts as untenantable if it substantially lacks plumbing and gas facilities kept in good working order, or hot and cold running water connected to an approved sewer. Tell your landlord or property manager about a leak, a dead water heater or a toilet that won’t flush, in writing, with photos and the date. Read your lease before hiring a plumber yourself, since who pays for that repair depends on it. Landlords and property managers can call us directly.Find Your Main Shutoff Now
In a house, it’s usually where the water line enters, often near a front hose bib or in the garage. In a condo, look in a closet, under a sink, or in a shared utility room the HOA may have to open for you. Find it before something breaks, and turn it once a year so it doesn’t seize. Call Courtesy Plumbing at (858) 567-0544, weekdays 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., or use the contact form. Our California contractor license, #910268, is on file with the CSLB.
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