Most plumbing advice online ends with “it depends” or “call a plumber.” These tools give you the missing number instead – the exact part, the honest cost range, the real water-waste figure – in under a minute, with no email and no account. Each one is built on cited sources (manufacturer part data, EPA WaterSense figures, national-average labor and material costs) and shows its work, so you can sanity-check it against your own situation before you spend a dollar.
Pick the tool that matches the question you walked in with.
Cartridge and Valve Finder
What it does: Identifies the exact replacement cartridge or valve for your Delta, Moen, Kohler, or Pfister faucet or shower, by brand and series. It returns a specific OEM part number – not a “this should fit” guess that sends you back to the store twice.
Use it when: Your single-handle faucet drips, the handle is loose or hard to turn, or the shower temperature wanders, and you have figured out it is the cartridge but have no idea which one your model takes.
Who it is for: DIYers about to order a part online or stand in the aisle at the hardware store, where buying the wrong cartridge is the single most common, most frustrating mistake.
Open the Cartridge and Valve Finder ->
Plumbing Repair Cost Estimator
What it does: Shows the honest cost range for a common plumbing job – doing it yourself (parts only) versus hiring a pro – for faucets, toilets, drains, water heaters, pipes, and more. It explains what moves the price and includes a straight “when to call a pro” line for jobs that are not worth the DIY risk.
Use it when: You have a quote in hand and want to know if it is fair, or you are deciding whether a repair is a Saturday project or a phone call.
Who it is for: Homeowners weighing DIY against hiring out, and anyone who wants a reality check on a contractor’s estimate before saying yes.
Open the Plumbing Repair Cost Estimator ->
Toilet Water-Waste Calculator
What it does: Turns a running or leaking toilet into a real dollar figure, using EPA WaterSense waste rates and your local water + sewer price. It shows honest monthly and yearly ranges – never one scary number – and points you to the usual $5-$20 fix.
Use it when: A toilet hisses, refills on its own, or never goes quiet, and you want to know what it is actually costing you per month before you decide how urgently to fix it.
Who it is for: Anyone with a running toilet who suspects it is wasting money but does not know how much – and wants the cheap-fix shortcut, not a sales pitch for a new toilet.
Open the Toilet Water-Waste Calculator ->
How these tools fit together
These are not random utilities – they map to the three questions homeowners actually ask. “Which part do I need?” goes to the Cartridge and Valve Finder. “What should this cost?” goes to the Cost Estimator. “How much is this leak costing me?” goes to the Water-Waste Calculator. Start with whichever matches your problem; each tool links you to the relevant step-by-step repair guide once it has given you the answer.
Everything here is free and requires no sign-up. They are honest about their limits, too: every estimate is a researched range, and every tool tells you when a job is past the point where DIY makes sense.