Recurring revenue
Plumbing maintenance plan: how to build one, price it, and get it signed
A maintenance plan turns one-off customers into yearly visits you schedule yourself. Here is what to check at each visit (with the official guidance behind it), how to price the plan, the state rules to watch, and a free maintenance agreement to print.
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Most plumbing work arrives on the customer's schedule: something leaks, something stops, and you get the call. A maintenance plan flips part of that. The customer pays once a year (or monthly) for scheduled visits, you book those visits when your calendar is quiet, and you're the first plumber they call when something does break.
Field service software is built for it: ServiceTitan's annual report describes a feature to "create new maintenance memberships" and calls it a source of "consistent and predictable revenue-generating opportunities." You don't need that software to start. You need a clear list of what a visit includes, a price that pays for your time, and a one-page agreement. This guide gives you all three.
What a maintenance visit checks
A good plan visit is short, repeatable and easy to explain. Build it from the checks that official guidance already tells homeowners to do, and that most of them never do:
| Check | How often (official guidance) | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Drain sediment from the water heater | A quart every 3 months | U.S. Department of Energy, Energy Saver Guide |
| Water heater temperature setting | 120°F, "safe for most of the population" | U.S. Department of Energy |
| Test the temperature and pressure relief valve | Every 6 months | DOE water heater fact sheet (2001) |
| Inspect the anode rod | Every 3 to 4 years | DOE water heater fact sheet (2001) |
| Toilet dye test for silent leaks | At least once a year | EPA WaterSense |
| Replace toilet flappers | At least every 5 years | EPA WaterSense |
| Water meter leak test | EPA's method: read the meter before and after 2 hours with no water used | EPA WaterSense |
| Sump pump service, battery backup | Yearly | FEMA, Urban Flooding guidance |
| Backwater valve inspection | Every couple of years, by a plumber | FEMA, Urban Flooding guidance |
| Backflow assembly test | Set by the state or water utility; yearly in Washington State, for example | EPA; Washington WAC 246-290-490 |
Add the checks you'd do anyway on a walkthrough: drips at faucets and under sinks, the condition of supply lines, whether the main and fixture shutoff valves work, water pressure at a hose bib, outdoor faucets before winter, and how the drains run. The DOE puts the case for the water heater items plainly: periodic maintenance "can significantly extend water heater life."
The leak checks matter to the customer's wallet too. EPA WaterSense says the average household's leaks can waste more than 9,300 gallons a year, that nine percent of homes have leaks wasting 50 gallons or more a day, and that fixing easy leaks can save about 10 percent on water bills. Those are good lines for the plan's sales page.
Build two tiers, not five
Keep it simple enough to explain at the door in one breath:
- Basic: one visit a year with the checklist above, priority scheduling, and no service call fee for the plan visit.
- Plus: two visits a year (for example spring and fall, so the second one catches the outdoor faucets before the freeze), plus a member discount on repairs.
Write down what is not included: repairs, parts and replacements are quoted separately and done only when the customer approves. That keeps the plan a maintenance service, not a promise to fix anything that breaks, which matters for the rules in the next section.
How to price a maintenance plan
Price the plan from your time, not from what a big company down the road charges. A worked example, with made-up numbers you should replace with your own:
| Line (example numbers) | Basic | Plus |
|---|---|---|
| Visits per year | 1 | 2 |
| Time per visit, with driving (hours) | 1.25 | 1.25 |
| Your hourly cost to run the truck, from your price book | $110 | $110 |
| Time cost per year | $137.50 | $275.00 |
| Small supplies (dye tablets, washers) | $10 | $20 |
| Profit margin target | 30% | 30% |
| Plan price per year (rounded up) | $219 | $429 |
| Monthly option (price ÷ 12, rounded up) | $19 | $36 |
In the example, the Basic price is ($137.50 + $10) ÷ (1 − 0.30) = $210.71, rounded up to $219; the Plus price is ($275 + $20) ÷ 0.70 = $421.43, rounded up to $429. If your hourly cost isn't in your price book yet, our guide on how to price plumbing jobs walks through it, and our post on the plumbing service call fee covers the fee your plan members skip.
Keep the repair discount modest. Beyond protecting your margin, a large discount can change how some states classify the plan, as the next section shows.
The rules to check before you sell it
Is a maintenance plan a service contract?
It depends on the state, and on what the plan promises. Two examples show how different the rules are:
- Maine defines a "maintenance agreement" as a contract "that provides for scheduled maintenance only and does not include repair or replacement," and exempts those agreements from its service contract rules in the insurance code.
- Florida treats a maintenance service contract of one year or longer as a "service warranty" under its insurance statutes. Its exemption is narrow: maintenance contracts written for less than a year, with no indemnification and no discount over 20 percent. Florida's separate home warranty rules cover contracts that promise to pay for or furnish repair or replacement of a home's components or appliances.
So before you sell plans, check with your state's insurance department or a local attorney. A plan that sells only scheduled visits, with repairs quoted separately and a small repair discount, is the simplest to keep outside these rules, but in some states even that isn't enough.
Automatic renewal
Monthly billing and auto-renewal are where plans earn their keep, and where consumer protection law applies. At the federal level, the FTC's 2024 "click to cancel" rule was vacated by the Eighth Circuit; the FTC restored its older Negative Option Rule on February 12, 2026, and in March 2026 asked for comments on whether to update it. Other federal laws, like the Restore Online Shoppers' Confidence Act, still apply.
Many states have their own automatic renewal laws. Virginia's, for example, requires the renewal terms to be shown "in a clear and conspicuous manner" before the customer is bound, the customer's affirmative consent, and a way to cancel that is at least as easy as the way they signed up. Write all three into your plan from day one: say clearly that it renews, get a signature or checkbox for it, and let customers cancel by the same channel they joined.
This section is general information, not legal or insurance advice. Rules differ by state; check yours before selling plans.
Free plumbing maintenance agreement
Print this agreement or save it as a PDF, and fill in your prices and terms. It lists the checks for up to two visits, the member benefits, the price, and plain terms on renewal and cancellation.
Address · Phone · Email
License #:
MAINTENANCE AGREEMENT
| Included at each visit | Visit 1 (date) | Visit 2 (date) |
|---|---|---|
| Water heater: drain sediment, check relief valve, temperature setting and venting | ☐ | ☐ |
| Toilets: dye test for silent leaks, flapper and fill valve check | ☐ | ☐ |
| Faucets, under sinks and supply lines: drips and leaks | ☐ | ☐ |
| Main and fixture shutoff valves: open and close | ☐ | ☐ |
| Water pressure at a hose bib, and the pressure-reducing valve if present | ☐ | ☐ |
| Water meter leak test | ☐ | ☐ |
| Sump pump and backup: run test | ☐ | ☐ |
| Drains and clean-outs: flow and access | ☐ | ☐ |
| Outdoor faucets: check before winter | ☐ | ☐ |
| Member benefits | Details |
|---|---|
| Priority scheduling | Members are booked first when something breaks |
| Service call fee for plan visits | Included |
| Discount on repairs | % on labor |
| Reminder before each visit | ☐ Text ☐ Email ☐ Phone |
Plan price (per year)
Tax
Total per year
Payment: ☐ Once a year ☐ Monthly, $ per month. We accept: Cash · Check · Card · Zelle · Venmo.
1. What the plan covers. The scheduled maintenance visits and checks listed above. Repairs, parts and replacements are not included. Anything we find is quoted first and done only with your approval.
2. Not a warranty or insurance. This agreement does not promise to repair or replace any part of your plumbing or appliances, or to pay for repairs.
3. Term and renewal. This agreement starts on the start date and lasts months. ☐ It renews automatically at the price above unless you cancel; we will remind you at least days before it renews. ☐ It does not renew automatically.
4. Cancellation. You can cancel at any time by the same way you signed up, or by phone, text or email. Refund for visits not yet made: .
5. Access. You give access to the areas listed above at the scheduled time. Missed visits can be rescheduled once within days.
This template is general information, not legal or insurance advice. Some states regulate service and maintenance contracts and automatic renewals; check yours before use.
How to sell the plan
- At the end of every job. The customer has just seen you work and trusts you. Leave the agreement with the invoice, and mention one thing from the checklist you noticed in their house.
- On the invoice. One line at the bottom: what the plan includes and the yearly price. Our plumbing invoice template has room for it in the notes.
- Before the season. Before winter, it's outdoor faucets and frozen pipes; before the spring rains, it's sump pumps. A short message to past customers at those moments is an easy reason to offer the plan.
- At every visit. The visit itself is a sales call done right: you find the worn flapper or the weeping valve, write it down, and quote it on the spot.
When a plan visit turns up a repair, Plumbo quotes it on the spot from your own price book, and the customer signs on your phone. Plumbo is on the App Store and Google Play. Try the 60-second demo →
Questions plumbers ask
How much should a plumbing maintenance plan cost?
Price it from your own cost per hour, the time a visit really takes with driving, supplies and your margin. In our example that comes to $219 a year for one visit and $429 for two, but your numbers decide it.
What is included in a plumbing maintenance plan?
Scheduled visits that check the water heater (sediment, relief valve, temperature), toilets for silent leaks, faucets and supply lines, shutoff valves, water pressure, the water meter, the sump pump and outdoor faucets, plus member benefits like priority scheduling. Repairs are usually quoted separately.
Is a plumbing maintenance plan the same as a home warranty?
No. A home warranty promises to pay for or provide repairs and replacements, and states regulate it. A maintenance plan sells scheduled service visits. Some states still regulate maintenance contracts, so check yours.
Monthly or yearly billing?
Offer both. Yearly is simpler to manage; monthly is easier to say yes to. If the plan renews automatically, follow your state's automatic renewal law: clear terms, the customer's consent, and easy cancellation.
Sources
- U.S. Department of Energy, Energy Saver Guide (2022) (water heater draining, 120°F setting), checked October 17, 2026.
- U.S. Department of Energy, Water heater fact sheet DOE/GO-102001-0785 (August 2001: relief valve every six months, anode every three to four years), checked October 17, 2026.
- EPA WaterSense, Fix a Leak Week (updated March 13, 2026) and Home Maintenance (updated June 16, 2026), checked October 17, 2026.
- FEMA, Urban Flooding: Guidance for Homeowners and Renters (sump pumps, backwater valves), checked October 17, 2026.
- EPA, Cross-connection control fact sheet (testing rules vary by state), checked October 17, 2026.
- Washington State, WAC 246-290-490 (yearly backflow assembly testing), checked October 17, 2026.
- Maine Legislature, 24-A §7102 and §7101 (maintenance agreements), checked October 17, 2026.
- Florida Statutes 2026, §634.401 (service warranty, maintenance service contracts) and §634.301 (home warranty), checked October 17, 2026.
- Federal Register, Negative Option Rule restored (February 12, 2026), and FTC, Negative option rulemaking (March 24, 2026), checked October 17, 2026.
- Code of Virginia, §59.1-207.46 (automatic renewal offers), checked October 17, 2026.
- ServiceTitan, Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended January 31, 2026 (maintenance memberships), checked October 17, 2026.