When it comes to plumbing and drain cleaning businesses, not everyone believes that bigger is better.

Stephen Sensabaugh is one such person. He has been running Potomac Plumbing in Cumberland, Maryland (population 18,643) for the past 23 years. He is doing his best to keep his company successful but small.

“We have five employees,” Sensabaugh says. “There’s me, my wife Michelle, who is our secretary, and three other workers. That’s it, and that’s the way I want it. By staying small we’re not overwhelmed, which allows us to concentrate more on customer satisfaction and doing a Grade A job.”

Sensabaugh’s decision to stay small is due to a friend’s experience owning a big plumbing firm in Frederick, Maryland.

“He told me that running it was a nightmare,” Sensabaugh says. “He said that he had too much on his plate, and he wound up filing for bankruptcy and closing his business. When I was opening up Potomac Plumbing, I asked him for advice and he replied, ‘Stay small and do service work only. Don’t do new houses or commercial work. You’ll be a lot less stressed and much more happy.’ So that’s what I did.”

Indeed he did. Today Potomac Plumbing is focused on residential customers in Maryland and West Virginia. Its business load is split 50/50 between residential plumbing and residential sewer and water main cleaning and repairs.

“By keeping things small, I don’t have to worry about finding new help, which is really difficult these days,” Sensabaugh says. “At the same time, we have more than enough work to keep us busy and viable — and unstressed.”

Origin story

Sensabaugh got into plumbing in 1989. He joined the union in Virginia Beach, Virginia, and served a five-year apprenticeship there while also taking night courses. Unfortunately, journeyman jobs were in short supply at the time, which led to Sensabaugh moving around the country to find work. 

Sensabaugh finally caught a break when he was hired by Leisure World, a retirement community in Washington, D.C. He worked there for almost three years, gaining significant experience in sewer/drain cleaning, water heaters and garbage disposals while working toward his master’s license in Virginia, Maryland and West Virginia. Once Sensabaugh had these qualifications under his belt, he returned home.

“I decided to come back home to Cumberland and start my own business,” he says. “That was Potomac Plumbing, and it’s been going strong for 22 years.”

Trusted tools

To serve customers, Sensabaugh has two Ford 350 box trucks (used for service work) and a third box truck dedicated to excavation jobs such as collapsed sewer lines and waterline replacements.

“If we need to bring a backhoe in, then I’m able to hop in that truck because it has all the dig-up tools, jackhammers, shovels, a wheelbarrow, plus the pipes and fittings we need for sewer and waterline replacements,” he says. “Having this third truck has been a real blessing because I don’t have to send my other trucks out and get them all messy.”

To see what is happening underground, Potomac Plumbing has six inspection camera systems made by General Pipe Cleaners, RIDGID and Trojan Technologies.

“Usually what happens is that people call about a backed-up sewer line,” Sensabaugh says. “Once I snake it out for them and get it open, I’ll say, ‘For an additional hundred dollars while we’re here, I can run the camera and that way we’ll see what’s in there.’ Most of the time they go for it, since I’m already there.”

Sensabaugh recently purchased a small electric MyTana jetter — his first jetter — which he uses for cleaning out grease, muck, sand and sediment.

“I really like the jetting work,” he says. “I have been impressed by what it can do for me. I am thinking of getting a gas-powered one with more power so that we can do even more.”

On the people side of the business, Sensabaugh is always interested in motivated employees during the rare times that he needs new ones. One such person is plumber’s helper Leslie. She works part time with Potomac Plumbing three days per week when not raising her family.

“Leslie came to us almost three years ago, after needing a change from her career in assisting disabled people,” Sensabaugh says. “She is a hard worker, a fast learner and a real go-getter. When I first met her, Leslie said, ‘I have three kids and I ain’t scared of nothing.’ To which I said, ‘Well, I can tell.’ She has just been a wonderful blessing.”

The price is right

Sensabaugh’s decision to keep Potomac Plumbing small is a business lesson he learned from a friend. A second lesson he has learned is not to underprice his services. In the past, Potomac Plumbing charged $110/hour for service. Today that rate is $225/hour.

“I would talk to my wife and say, ‘I’m working long days and long hours and I feel like I’m just kind of making ends meet some days,’” Sensabaugh says. “So I emailed Randy Hilton, who is with Plumbing & Mechanical magazine, and told him about what I was charging customers. He emailed me back. ‘Double your prices and quit fooling around.’”

After some trepidation, Sensabaugh decided to take Hilton’s advice and start charging $225/hour. The price hike was accepted by his customers with few complaints.

“I attribute this to the fact that we have somebody who answers our phone 24 hours a day, and that we send help out fast and do good work,” he says. “People are always happy to see us.”

A third lesson that Sensabaugh has learned is to proudly back his work with a one-year warranty on everything except sewer and drain cleaning.

“There is no warranty on pipe cleaning because as soon as I leave, they can dump whatever they want down the toilet,” he says. “Everything else comes with a one-year warranty head to toee, and if we can’t fix it, you get a brand-new one. This gives our customers a sense of comfort and security, and keeps them coming back.”

No desire to retire

Over two decades in, Sensabaugh enjoys running Potomac Plumbing. Although he knows that some day he’ll be hanging up his tools, he has no desire to quit any time soon.

“I’m 57 years old, so I guess I have about 10 more years before I retire,” Sensabaugh says. “I’m still trying to keep moving and stay busy. And besides, we have so many wonderful customers out there. We get five-star ratings all the time. We get a lot of tips, and we get many compliments. I really enjoy helping people. We had one lady who could not use her toilet for two days until we augered it out. Once the toilet was cleared, she just started crying, gave me a big hug and just thanked me over and over again. That made my whole day.

“The fact is that I love being a plumber. I really do. I love finishing up a nice job, looking back and being proud to say that I did that or someone in my business did that. Plus, we get thank-you notes in the mail all the time that say things like, ‘Thank you for coming in our time of need and doing a good job.’ It is such a nice pat on the back, and I think we all need that now and then. So I’ve been blessed to be in the plumbing business. I thoroughly, thoroughly enjoy it.”