Plumber in Union Gap

Union Gap at a glance

Union Gap is a city just south of Yakima with 6,568 people at the 2020 census and about 5.6 square miles of land. It takes its name from the water gap the Yakima River cuts between the Rattlesnake Hills and Ahtanum Ridge.

What that means for your plumbing

Union Gap is the retail hub of the Yakima Valley, with Valley Mall and many businesses alongside its homes. Restaurants and shops push a lot of water and grease through their drains, which makes regular cleaning and grease trap service important. See drain cleaning.

Along the river

The gap is crossed by U.S. Route 97, Interstate 82 and the railway, and the Yakima River runs right through it. Low ground near a river can mean damp crawl spaces and a higher water table. If your crawl space stays wet, have a plumber check for supply leaks before blaming groundwater.

The town that stayed put

Union Gap was the original Yakima City, incorporated in 1883. When the Northern Pacific Railroad bypassed it in 1884, more than 100 buildings were rolled four miles north on logs and horse teams to the new depot, and business reportedly carried on during the move. The new town became North Yakima, and in 1918 the original site took the name Union Gap. Today it mixes long-standing homes with busy retail streets. In a place with buildings of many ages, the pipes under the floor are often older than the fixtures above them. If your water looks rusty or pressure drops, ask a plumber to look at the supply lines as a whole.