Plumber re-clogs restaurant's pipes after dispute over unpaid bill

Independent

28-03-2025

A Thai restaurant and a plumbing company in Indiana are facing off after a plumber returned to re-clog a pipe over a disputed bill.
Jesse Sanders, Thai Bistro & Bar operations manager, told local news outlet WFIE that their Evansville restaurant recently called Heavrin Plumbing to un-clog a blocked grease trap. That first bill was $235. But the clog returned three days later, and Sanders called Heavrin Plumbing again.
After the second job, the new bill was $390 because the plumber returned on overtime, WFIE reports.
The restaurant said they were frustrated because the 'same drain clogged just days after being serviced' and it 'didn't feel right to be charged again.'
'We didn't refuse to pay—we just said we wouldn't pay on the spot, which we're allowed to do since we still had time under the payment terms,' the restaurant wrote in a statement on Facebook late Thursday.
The next day, Heavrin Plumbing returned and re-clogged the grease trap with a balloon, telling the restaurant they wouldn't remove it until the bill was paid, WFIE reported.
Heavrin Plumbing owner Joel Heavrin told WFIE the company doesn't offer warranties on drain cleaning.
'I don't have a magic wand I can wave and remove all the garbage and debris the drain line,' Heavrin said. 'What we can do is, we can snake it; we can make sure that it's open and working correctly. Which is what we did.'
Still, the resteraunt was baffled when the pipe was re-clogged.
'The following day we received a text message saying that he's on our property,' Sanders told the outlet. 'He put a balloon into our grease trap, and he's not going to remove it until we pay.'
The plumber told Sanders he would be leaving for the weekend in one hour, WFIE reports.
'If we were to leave the balloon in there, it would overflow the restaurant with water, dirty water from the grease trap,' Sanders added. 'Basically, we would've had to shut down.'
Heavrin told WFIE the restaurant had a history of paying late in the past. The restaurant disputed this claim in its statement on Facebook.
'We have paid all of our bills. We operate on NET 15 or NET 30 terms, meaning invoices are paid by their due dates—including the plumbing invoice (which is on a Net 15),' the restaurant's statement reads. 'Nothing is outstanding or past due. Nothing is overdue, and I'm more than willing to share proof if needed.'
Sanders called the police, asking them to mediate the situation, WFIE reports. The Evansville Police Department said these matters are typically decided in small claims court, but Heavrin said he didn't want to go that far.
'Frankly it was not worth me pursuing it in court,' he says. 'It was not worth my time, just wasn't worth it for me.'
Ultimately, the plumber removed the blockage and the restaurant paid the bill, but marked it as 'paid under protest.'
The restaurant stands by its actions.
'As a small business owner, I believe we had every right to question a charge that felt unnecessary,' the statement reads. 'We weren't trying to cause conflict—we were simply asking for fairness.'