When you're running a small plumbing business, your schedule is your business. A missed appointment costs you money. A double-booked day costs you a customer. And a poorly routed day burns fuel and hours you'll never get back.
Yet most small plumbing operations still run on a mix of memory, text messages, and maybe a wall calendar. It works — until it doesn't.
You don't need expensive software to get organized. You need a system that's simple enough to actually use. Here's how to build one.
Why Scheduling Breaks Down for Small Plumbing Shops
The typical small plumbing business has 1-5 trucks. The owner is usually on a truck too, which means you're trying to manage the schedule while also doing the work.
Common problems:
- Double bookings when two people (or one forgetful person) schedule the same time slot
- Wasted drive time from zigzagging across town instead of grouping jobs by area
- No buffer time between jobs, so one late job dominoes the whole day
- Emergency calls that blow up a carefully planned schedule
- No record of what was scheduled vs. what actually happened
The Daily Dispatch Template
This is the backbone. One sheet per day, per truck. Here's what it looks like:
Daily Schedule — [Truck/Tech Name] — [Date]
| Time | Customer | Job Type | Est. Duration | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8:00 AM | Johnson | Water heater install | 3 hrs | 50-gal, parts on truck |
| 11:30 AM | — | Drive + lunch buffer | 30 min | — |
| 12:00 PM | Martinez | Faucet repair | 1 hr | Kitchen sink, drip |
| 1:30 PM | — | Buffer | 30 min | — |
| 2:00 PM | Open | Emergency slot | 2 hrs | Hold for same-day calls |
| 4:00 PM | Chen | Drain cleaning | 1.5 hrs | Main line, camera inspect |
Key principles:
- 30-minute buffers between jobs. Every plumber knows a "quick fix" can turn into a two-hour ordeal. Buffers keep your whole day from falling apart.
- One open emergency slot. If you do residential plumbing, emergency calls are part of your life. Block time for them instead of scrambling.
- Drive time matters. Group jobs by area when possible. Note drive time so your estimates are realistic.
The Weekly Overview Template
The daily template handles execution. The weekly template handles planning. Fill this out Friday afternoon or Sunday evening.
| Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AM Jobs | 2 booked | 1 booked | 3 booked | 2 booked | 1 booked |
| PM Jobs | 1 + emergency | 2 booked | 1 + emergency | 2 booked | Office/admin |
| Area Focus | North side | Downtown | North side | South side | — |
| Open Slots | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | All day |
Pro tip: Designate one half-day per week for admin — invoicing, follow-ups, parts ordering, vehicle maintenance. Plumbing businesses that skip admin time end up doing it at 10 PM, which leads to burnout fast.
The On-Call Rotation Template
Once you have 2+ plumbers, on-call scheduling becomes important. Keep it simple and fair:
| Week | Primary On-Call | Backup | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 2-8 | Mike | Carlos | Mike off Friday — Carlos covers |
| Feb 9-15 | Carlos | Mike | — |
| Feb 16-22 | Mike | Carlos | — |
| Feb 23-29 | Carlos | Mike | Carlos vacation — need sub |
How to Handle Emergency Calls Without Wrecking Your Schedule
Emergency calls are high-margin work, but they destroy schedules if you don't plan for them. Here's a system:
- Block 1-2 hours daily as an open emergency slot
- If no emergency comes in, use that slot for follow-up visits, estimates, or leave early
- If an emergency comes during a booked slot, call the next scheduled customer immediately and offer them a specific new time
- Charge appropriately for emergency/same-day service — this is premium work and should be priced as such
Get Scheduling Templates That Work
The ProTradeOps toolkit includes daily dispatch, weekly planning, and on-call rotation templates ready to use.
Get the free toolkit →Choosing Your Format: Paper, Spreadsheet, or App
Paper/whiteboard works for solo operators. It's fast, it's visible, and there's no login. Downside: it can't send reminders or sync between people.
Spreadsheets (Google Sheets, Excel) work well for 1-3 trucks. You can share them, access from your phone, and they're free.
Dedicated tools make sense when you have 3+ trucks, need customer reminders, or want scheduling tied to your invoicing and job tracking.
The best system is the one you'll actually use every day. Start simple, upgrade when the pain of the current system outweighs the effort of switching.
Setting Up Your Schedule in 30 Minutes
- Copy the daily dispatch template into whatever format works for you
- Fill in tomorrow's schedule using the template. Include buffers and an emergency slot.
- At the end of the day, note what actually happened vs. the plan
- After 5 days, look at the patterns. Adjust your time estimates based on reality, not optimism.
- Build your weekly overview for next week on Friday afternoon.
The Real Payoff
Good scheduling isn't about being rigid. It's about making decisions in advance — when you're calm and thinking clearly — instead of on the fly when you're stressed and behind.
Plumbing businesses that schedule well serve more customers per day, waste less time driving, and have fewer angry phone calls about late arrivals. That translates directly to more revenue and less stress.
You already know how to do the work. Now give yourself a system to do it efficiently.
When spreadsheets stop cutting it: If you have more than two or three techs, scheduling on paper or in a spreadsheet breaks down fast. Jobber handles drag-and-drop scheduling, route optimization, and sends automatic appointment reminders to customers. Saves a lot of phone calls.
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