Plumbers in Norcross, GA

Where Norcross sits

John J. Thrasher laid out Norcross as a railroad town in 1870, and it became the second city in Gwinnett County. Its downtown still centers on a town square, while I-85, Peachtree Industrial Boulevard and Buford Highway carry traffic through the southwest corner of the county. The city counted 17,209 people in 2020 and lies about 17 miles northeast of downtown Atlanta in a straight line. The Western Gwinnett Bikeway runs through town, and Waffle House keeps its headquarters here.

A county water system since 2013

Norcross used to run its own water and sewer. In 2013 Gwinnett County took the system over, moved billing to the county and swapped the old city meters for county meters. Drinking water now comes from Lake Lanier, filtered at the county's Shoal Creek and Lanier plants and disinfected with chlorine. Gwinnett lists average hardness at about 1.34 grains per gallon, which is soft, so a water softener is rarely the fix for spotty fixtures here. Gwinnett's annual water quality report has the full test results.

The county's line of responsibility is worth knowing before you call anyone. Gwinnett maintains the meter and the short pipe from the main to it. The private water line on your side of the meter, the whole sewer lateral and any backflow device belong to the property owner, so a wet spot in the yard between meter and foundation is a plumbing job. For a break on the county side, Gwinnett's emergency line is 678.376.7000.

Homes, permits and gas

The median Norcross home dates to 1990, and about 18% were built before 1980. Most calls involve the parts that wear out on a schedule: water heaters, supply valves, toilet flappers and fill valves, and drains that slow down with age.

The City of Norcross Community Development Department handles trade permits, and its checklist says a permit is needed to replace a water heater, run gas piping or do fixture work that changes the piping. A straight faucet or toilet swap with no piping change does not appear to need one. Plans and documents go through the city's ePlan portal.

Atlanta Gas Light owns the gas pipes in the area even if your bill comes from a marketer. If you smell gas, get everyone outside first, then call 911 and AGL at 877.427.4321 from a safe distance.

How Norcross differs from the city of Atlanta

An Atlanta homeowner deals with the city's Department of Watershed Management and Chattahoochee River water. In Norcross the utility is Gwinnett County, the water is from Lake Lanier, and the permit desk is the city's Community Development office on Lawrenceville Street rather than Atlanta's Office of Buildings. A plumber who works Gwinnett regularly will know those differences.

Making the call

Tell the person who answers what you are seeing, where in the house it is, and whether you have shut off the water. You will be put through to an independent plumber who serves Norcross, and the two of you settle the price and the timing directly.