A railroad downtown.
Wikipedia says the North Shore Railroad reached Great Neck in 1866, turning a farming area into a commuter town, and the village incorporated on May 3, 1930. Its 0.3 square miles hold the Great Neck LIRR station, over 250 stores and service businesses, almost 90 multiple-family apartment buildings and 148 single-family homes, plus about 40 office buildings.
The Census Bureau's latest five-year survey counts about 4,200 homes, with a median year built of 1960. 22% went up in the 1950s, 15% before 1940, and 21% after 1980. 2% are single-family detached houses, 95% are in buildings of five or more units, and 56% are owner-occupied.
So a typical house here has drain and water lines around 66 years old unless they've been replaced. Slow drains in several fixtures, a gurgling floor drain or rusty water from one tap are signs to have the main line and supply piping checked.
Oil to gas means new gas piping.
The ACS shows 50% of homes heat with utility gas and 19% with fuel oil. Switching means properly sized gas piping to the new equipment, and often to the water heater, range and dryer. We do the gas line work. We don't sell or deliver oil.
On the sewer.
Nassau County's health department lists Great Neck Plaza under the Great Neck Water Pollution Control District (236 East Shore Rd., 516-482-0238), with part of the village under the Belgrave Water Pollution Control District (516-487-2759). A backup that stops at your house is usually in your own line to the street; we clear it and repair or replace the line. If neighbors are backed up too, call the Great Neck Water Pollution Control District (516-482-0238) or, for the part it serves, the Belgrave district (516-487-2759).
Little mapped flood risk.
FEMA's current flood map puts under 2% of Great Neck Plaza in the high-risk flood zone. A backwater (sewer check) valve is still worth considering for a finished basement on a sewered street: it closes if the street sewer backs up. We install them.
Apartment and co-op buildings.
With most homes in larger buildings, a lot of plumbing here is inside one unit: a leaking supply line under a sink, a running toilet, a slow tub drain, a water heater in a townhouse or house. In a co-op or condo, shared risers and stacks are usually the building's responsibility, so check with your managing agent or board before work that opens walls.
Water: Water Authority of Great Neck North.
EPA's service-area map puts about 60% of residents on the Water Authority of Great Neck North, with about 40% on the Manhasset-Lakeville Water District; your bill is the final word. The main supplier's most recent 90th-percentile lead result was 3 ppb, under the 15 ppb action level; lead usually comes from a home's own pipes and fixtures, so results vary house to house. In EPA's UCMR 5 testing, the main supplier reported no PFOA or PFOS. For a leak at the curb or in the street, call your water supplier. For anything on your side of the meter, call us.
Permits.
Great Neck Plaza is an incorporated village, so plumbing permits go through the Village of Great Neck Plaza's building department, not the town.
