Plumbing Site Visual Research — for GPP v3

12 sites captured Playwright full-page 1280w design-forward + franchise + direct IL comps click any thumbnail for full-size

Per Wes directive 2026-04-22 11:03 CT. Full-page captures of 12 plumbing sites across three tiers: family-business trophies (Tony LaMartina, GarriCo, Chambliss), direct Chicago-suburbs comps (Bee Quick Naperville, D.E. Mathieu Warrenville, Modern Naperville, Residential Plumbing IL), and franchise negative references (Roto-Rooter, Benjamin Franklin). For each: what to steal, what to avoid.

🔥 Key finding — Residential Plumbing IL (Naperville/Aurora) is the GPP-exact geographic comp and their hero is a real family-team-in-front-of-branded-van shot with 'Western Suburbs Since 2002'. That's the template pattern. See site below.

Tony LaMartina Plumbing

St. Louis, MO tonylamartinaplumbing.com
family / design-forward
Hero
Dark B&W candid of two kids — 'Trusted plumbers for over 40 years.' No van, no plumber. Emotional anchor (generations, trust).
Palette
black · navy · gold accent
Typography
Heavy display serif headline + thin body + small caps sub-labels. Disciplined one-family feel.
Photography
Mostly B&W editorial + lifestyle. Craft detail shots in the services grid. Very little stock.
Section rhythm
Dark → light → dark bands, alternating 2-3 times. Never all-light.
CTA pattern
Phone + form together. 'Schedule Service' (not 'Call Now!'). Calmer verb.
✓ Steal for GPP
The B&W family-stock-footage hero, the one-family typography discipline, the dark-section rhythm. The lack of a parked van — more story, less logistics.
✗ Avoid
Over-dense footer, aged menu styling

GarriCo Plumbing

Raleigh, NC garricoplumbing.com
family / trophy of the set (Blue's voice pick)
Hero
Dark half-screen block with 'Plumbing Services in Raleigh, NC' + photo of Chris Garrico on the left half. Human-first.
Palette
teal · cream · navy · warm-dark accent
Typography
Light sans, clean. Not distinctive but readable. Not the strength.
Photography
Real photography of Chris (owner) + service tile photos. Portrait at bottom with name + credentials.
Section rhythm
Dark hero → light services grid → light reviews → dark footer. Simple.
CTA pattern
'Let's Get You Scheduled' — conversational verb (same line Blue flagged as top-of-set copy).
✓ Steal for GPP
The owner name-and-face under a photo block with the direct-hire claim. 'You're not dealing with a big corporate company.' The conversational schedule-CTA.
✗ Avoid
Typography is undifferentiated

Bee Quick Plumbing & Sewer

Naperville, IL (GPP direct comp) beequickplumbingsewersinc.com
family / local
Hero
Dark photo of plumber at work + overlay 'YOUR TRUSTED PLUMBER IN NAPERVILLE' + trust-badge row. Very utility-forward.
Palette
black · yellow · gold
Typography
Bold black-and-yellow stencil feel. Aggressive, utility-company.
Photography
Owner photo prominently. Bee mascot as a secondary mark. Service-area grid is text-only.
Section rhythm
Black-dominant throughout. Yellow accents punch.
CTA pattern
'Contact Us' + phone repeated 3x in hero alone.
✓ Steal for GPP
The 'proud local business' tone. Owner inclusion. Service-area list density (12+ cities, zero photos).
✗ Avoid
The bee mascot feels dated. Black-dominance might be TOO aggressive for GPP's softer positioning.

D.E. Mathieu Plumbing

Warrenville, IL (neighbor to Batavia) plumbingbackflownaperville.com
family / 30+ years
Hero
Dark-blue-tinted photo of backflow devices + 'Commercial Plumbing Specialist in Warrenville, IL' headline. Small Google review card floating.
Palette
navy · white · occasional teal
Typography
Generic WordPress-sans. Not the strength.
Photography
Real product shots of installed work. Brand logos (Bradford White, Grohe, Kohler, Moen, Zoeller) as trust strip.
Section rhythm
Photo → white → brand logos → blue footer. Very standard. Trust-built through specificity.
CTA pattern
Phone prominently + 'Review Us on Yelp'. Not a form-heavy site.
✓ Steal for GPP
The brand-logo trust strip (Bradford White + Grohe + Moen etc). The father-son 30-year origin story (in copy). 'Never any surprises or hidden fees.'
✗ Avoid
Template-y WordPress feel. Not a design winner — a COPY winner.

Modern Plumbing

Naperville, IL (GPP direct comp) modernplumbingllc.com
family with small-agency polish
Hero
Dark-photo hero with 'In Search of the Top Plumber in Naperville, IL?' Lots of card-based trust signals below.
Palette
blue · orange · white
Typography
Rounded friendly sans. More approachable than utility.
Photography
Mascot (cartoon character with tools). Owner photo in a trust-band. Service cards with flat icons.
Section rhythm
Blue → white → orange band → white. Busy. Lots of content.
CTA pattern
'Schedule Service' primary, form embedded below.
✓ Steal for GPP
The 'Modern Techniques, Traditional Care' tagline dance. 'We don't just slap on a band-aid.'
✗ Avoid
The cartoon-mascot-plus-real-owner confusion. Too many trust cards — overcrowded.

Chambliss Plumbing

San Antonio, TX chamblissplumbing.com
family / 1400+ reviews
Hero
Financing-partner callout (GreenSky) front and center. Then 'San Antonio's Most Trusted Plumber.'
Palette
cream · red · dark
Typography
Clean sans display. Restrained.
Photography
Team photo (3 women). Brand logos (Kohler, Delta, MOEN, BBB). Clean.
Section rhythm
Cream → light-cream → red accent band. Softer than Bee Quick.
CTA pattern
'Read Reviews' + phone. Financing-first framing is unusual.
✓ Steal for GPP
The team-of-real-people photo (no mascot, no stock). '1,400+ 5-Star Reviews' as a hero stat. Financing partnership as an above-fold trust play.
✗ Avoid
Leading with financing — it's a niche. GPP's promise is flat-rate, not financing.

Olympian Plumbing

Park Ridge, IL olympianplumbing.com
local / mascot-forward
Hero
Branded van image + 'PLUMBING PROBLEMS?' + 'WE'LL JUMP RIGHT ON IT!' + cartoon bunny mascot overlay.
Palette
navy · orange · white
Typography
Generic sans. Not the story.
Photography
Mascot-first. No real plumber photos. Line icons for services.
Section rhythm
Hero → icon row → reviews-placeholder → area info → dark footer.
CTA pattern
'CALL NOW!' in orange, phone in top nav — phone-first everywhere.
✓ Steal for GPP
The phone-first commit. Every fold has the phone number. 'Same Day Plumbing & Drain Services Near Park Ridge, IL' specific-geography claim.
✗ Avoid
The mascot is everything and the photography is nothing. GPP wants real, not mascot.

Roto-Rooter

National franchise rotorooter.com
franchise / negative reference
Hero
Side-view of plumber + van + 'THE PLUMBING EXPERTS YOU'VE TRUSTED FOR OVER 90 YEARS' + phone. Big scale, low personality.
Palette
navy · red · white
Typography
Plain corporate sans. Zero character.
Photography
Staged stock-ish posed plumber. Franchise Yellow Pages energy.
Section rhythm
Navy → red band → navy → red. Corporate blocks. Not warm.
CTA pattern
'SCHEDULE' pill + phone. Both big.
✓ Steal for GPP
Nothing really — it's the WRONG end of the spectrum for GPP. Useful only as 'don't be this.'
✗ Avoid
The everything: scale-over-story, staged-over-candid, tagline-over-proof. GPP's anti-corporate positioning is EXACTLY the opposite energy.

Benjamin Franklin Plumbing

National franchise benjaminfranklinplumbing.com
franchise / negative reference
Hero
Staged team-photo (3 plumbers smiling) + 'You can count on the Punctual Plumbers!' + 'Find your local plumber' form.
Palette
blue · yellow · white
Typography
Standard bold sans display + serif accent.
Photography
Staged team shot. Stock-y plumber with dog in carrier. Service grid with line icons.
Section rhythm
Blue → yellow band → white → yellow → blue footer. Rotating branded blocks.
CTA pattern
'BOOK NOW' orange pill repeated.
✓ Steal for GPP
The 'industry-leading guarantees' confidence claim. 'Punctual Plumbers' as a differentiator anchor.
✗ Avoid
Staged team photos. The perma-smiley uniforms read fake. GPP's 'no corporate' framing is the exact inverse.

Residential Plumbing (IL)

Naperville/Aurora, IL (closest geographic comp) residentialplumbing.biz
family / 23 years
Hero
Real photo of 5-person family/team standing in front of branded red van. 'WE'VE BEEN PROUDLY SERVING THE WESTERN SUBURBS SINCE 2002.'
Palette
black · red · white
Typography
Serif display for hero ('SERVICE. REPAIR. RENOVATE.') + clean sans body.
Photography
Team/family photo as HERO. BNI member badge. Brand logos (Kohler, MOEN, Toto, Champion, NOVO, Rinnai).
Section rhythm
Mostly black dominant with red accents. Feels utility-company.
CTA pattern
'Book an Appointment' + phone. Standard.
✓ Steal for GPP
🔥 THE FAMILY-TEAM-IN-FRONT-OF-VAN HERO. This is the exact geographic comp (Naperville/Aurora) doing the thing GPP could do with Justin + his van. 'Western Suburbs Since 2002' is the claim pattern for GPP.
✗ Avoid
Black-dominant can feel aggressive; GPP's palette is softer.

Pardue Plumbing

Greenville/Caddo Mills, TX pardueplumbing.com
family / minimal template
Hero
Dark navy solid block: 'Residential and Commercial Plumbing' + location. Two product tiles below (sink + two sinks).
Palette
navy · white · orange accent
Typography
Generic GoDaddy Primer WordPress theme.
Photography
Product-detail photos only. No plumber, no van, no team. Just the work.
Section rhythm
Navy → white content block → navy footer. Two-tone, no complexity.
CTA pattern
'Schedule Today' standard button + phone.
✓ Steal for GPP
The navy-dominance + product-only photography approach. If Justin wants to disappear entirely from visuals, this is the model.
✗ Avoid
Template feels dated. Copy is minimal.

HIS Plumber

Fayetteville, GA hisplumber.com
family / values-forward (Christian)
Hero
Close-up photo of pipe wrench under sink (craft detail) + 'Serving The Lord Through Serving Your Needs.' Values-forward hero.
Palette
navy · cream · red drop accent
Typography
Navy oval badge logo (HIS Plumber) + sans body. Since 1997.
Photography
Craft macro shots. No plumber, no team in hero. 'Strong Christian Values' section with no photo.
Section rhythm
Mostly light/cream with navy footer. Simple.
CTA pattern
'Contact Us' + 'Make an Appointment' + phone.
✓ Steal for GPP
The craft-macro hero (exact pattern Wes is interested in for GPP!). 'Our approach is Christian-family-owned-plumbers.com' — whatever GPP's equivalent values-statement is.
✗ Avoid
Christian-values positioning is specific to them. GPP's values-anchor would be different (family plumber, Chicago suburbs, no remodels, flat-rate).

Patterns across the 12

The pattern that wins
1. Family-team in front of branded van — Residential IL does exactly this. Also part of GarriCo's owner-portrait pattern. 5 of the family-tier sites lead with real humans; 0 franchises do family.

2. Dark-section rhythm, not all-white — Tony LaMartina, Bee Quick, Residential IL all commit to dark sections. Wes's 'doesn't look like a plumbing site' critique was right — the light-dominant look reads luxury-design. Dark bands make it read utility.

3. Phone-first everywhere — Olympian runs it hardest (5+ phone placements), franchise sites are phone-everywhere, family sites balance phone + 'schedule/book'. GPP has the phone pill — good.

4. The specific local claim beats the generic — 'Serving Warrenville since 1990' > 'Trusted plumber.' 'Western Suburbs since 2002' > 'Your local plumber.' Numbers beat adjectives. GPP's 'Batavia, Aurora, Naperville & across the suburbs' eyebrow is doing this work now.

5. Real craft photography trumps stock mascots — HIS Plumber's craft-macro hero is the strongest of the set for a visual pattern that isn't about the owner. GPP's macro-craft pack fits exactly this pattern.

6. Franchises are the negative — Staged team photos, branded uniforms, punctual-plumber taglines, 'book now' pills, giant scale claims. The more a site looks like a franchise, the more anti-corporate copy earns trust. GarriCo saying 'you're not dealing with a big corporate company' works because the franchises look exactly like that.

Recommended moves for GPP v3

Top 3 changes I'd make based on this research
1. Swap the walk-up hero for a Justin-or-team-in-front-of-van shot. Residential IL's pattern. 'Serving Batavia, Aurora, Naperville & across the Chicago suburbs.' Specific + visual. Keeps brand-over-Justin but anchors trust in a human-in-place shot.

2. Commit harder to dark sections. We already moved Specials + Area to navy in my earlier pass. Consider making the trust-row darker too, or swapping the Reviews background to deep off-cream. Dark-section rhythm is how Tony LaMartina, Bee Quick, Residential IL all avoid the 'luxury design studio' feel.

3. Add a craft-macro hero option (HIS Plumber pattern). Our macro-craft pack already shipped 8 of these. Pin ONE of them — hand on Ridgid wrench, with chest patch — as a secondary hero band above services. Tells the 'real work, real tools, real brand' story without the owner-face cost.

Nagatha · 2026-04-22 · 12-site Playwright sweep · annotated for GPP v3 direction