Turn Water Into Profit

The tide of public interest in water quality is still rising, but many plumbers have yet to take advantage of the sales opportunities presented by home water treatment systems. No other professionals are as aware of a community's potential water-quality problems—and a homeowner's potential hazards. And, in many jurisdictions, no other professionals have the qualifications necessary to install the equipment that best addresses particular concerns.

Market Opportunities
The market for in-house drinking water treatment systems is far from saturated. One telling statistic: The amount of bottled water sold in the United States rose 8.6 percent in 2004 and is anticipated to rise another 8.1 percent in 2005, according to the Beverage Marketing Corp. However, despite this obvious interest in quality drinking water, few U.S. households have a water-treatment system, according to recent studies.

And revenue potential doesn't end with treatment-equipment installation. Most water-treatment systems require ongoing maintenance to ensure optimal operation, industry watchers say.

"There's no piece of equipment that keeps running forever," says Joe Harrison, WQA technical director. "We always say, ‘Don't leave water treatment equipment out there without being maintained.'"

The experience of plumbers already providing water-treatment services illustrates the profit potential. A January 2005 reader survey conducted by Plumbing & Mechanical (P&M) magazine found that about one-third of respondents offering water-treatment options reported related annual revenues between $10,000 and $25,000, and 72 percent of respondents predict the market will expand significantly in the next five years.

"Our magazine has been on a crusade encouraging our readers to take advantage of [new-business] opportunities," says P&M editorial director Jim Olsztynski. "We see water treatment as an ideal opportunity."

Consumer concern over invisible, tasteless bacteria and contaminants certainly is one of the drivers, but experts say most customers call for help to treat obvious taste and odor problems. Respondents to the P&M survey say 75 percent of their customers want to treat hard water. Chlorine, added by many municipalities to treat bacteria, is an issue for 64 percent of respondents' customers.

"People are not taking for granted what's coming out of their pipes," says Joe Huemann, owner of McHenry, Ill.-based Huemann Water Conditioning.

Know Your Water
Huemann adds that understanding your community's particular water issues is a key first step in understanding potential customer needs. His 43-year-old business serves one of the rapidly growing counties of suburban Chicago, where local well water includes calcium carbonate, a hardening ingredient. In other areas, he notes, aging—and leaching—lead pipe could be a concern.

In addition, though, water-treatment specialists always need to keep in mind that individual plumbing systems may have different or additional treatment needs. Plumbers can gain a first-hand understanding of what these needs during service calls for other issues. The WQA's Harrison says he urges his son, a plumber, to carry a water-test kit with him when making customer calls.

"One basic thing about water is that it's the universal solvent," Harrison says, noting the variety of potential problems that could need addressing. "There's a chance that just about every contaminant out there can be found in water."