Fluid Dynamics

ARTICLE BY JIM BAKER | PHOTOGRAPHS BY DAVID WEAVER

It is the rare business that’s reputation is such that all of their work comes via word of mouth and repeat customers, but it’s true of EZ Flow Plumbing of Pflugerville.

Bill Ward, one of the three master plumbers on his staff of four, started the business in 2009 after starting the trade in the U.S. Navy and spending 20 years working for larger plumbing outfits.

“I didn’t like their structure,” he said of his former employers. “They were too revenue oriented. Larger plumbing companies have a flat-rate book, which means customers have to pay more.” So, instead, Bill set out to take a customer-first approach; to be what he calls “plumbers with a heart.” The reward has been an excellent Yelp rating and a very busy fleet of three trucks.

About 80 percent of EZ Flow’s business is residential and the rest commercial. They are on call for four apartment complexes and pride themselves on being a small company with the equipment and capabilities of a much larger concern. They have a truck-towed hydro-jetter as well as a line locator, two devices usually not found in the arsenal of a mom-and-pop plumbing operation.

With its 3,000 psi of pressure, the hydro- jetter allows EZ Flow to take on big jobs as well as to job out that service to other plumbers who do not have that capability. In addition to responding to the common mainline backups and yard leaks, EZ Flow offers general plumbing services, drain cleaning and video camera service.

Securing more and more of the big jobs has Bill and his wife Maria considering expansion. “We’re looking to buy two or three acres where we’ll have a plumbing shop, storage and four or five garages for the trucks,” said Bill. He also hopes to add two more trucks and two more plumbers to keep up with growing demand.

As he has in the past, Bill and Maria will turn to Amplify Credit Union when it comes time to put his expansion plans into action. It was Amplify who helped him finance the purchase of the hydro-jetter, as well as his trucks.

“Most banks don’t know what a hydro-jetter is and wouldn’t give us the money for it, but Amplify took the time to research its uses and approved the loan,” said Maria.

“When I go into the La Frontera branch of Amplify, they treat me like a king,” added Bill. “They always go above and beyond to serve me.”

EZ Flow Plumbing
(512) 699-0083