He taught a Plumbing Repair course for homeowners through a local Community College Services program. He told me that his company policy is to advise a customer to replace a faucet if it appears likely the faucet is going to require additional repairs within the year, or when the faucet is over 15 years old. Another example of a professional plumbing firm actively trying to help homeowners help themselves came from a former student of my plumbing clinics, who called to share with me her experience with a local plumbing company. It's not easy to pick a plumbing firm that does bad work. Our raters found that you are much more likely to have a job done well than not.
Terry is a professional plumber in Washington state.
There are dozens and dozens of questions posted with answers on his board. As in every industry, there are no doubt plumbers ready to take advantage of a homeowner. But there are far more who are respectible business people, doing their jobs in a professional way.