Group of plumbers beside company vehicles

Family Members Carry on Late Plumber’s Legacy and Vision

03/02/2026 | $15 Sewer & Drain |

Mark McGinnis’ unexpected death didn’t mean a downslide for his longtime plumbing and drain cleaning company, as his wife and children stepped up to ensure it remained strong and on a healthy growth trajectory.

$15 Sewer & Drain’s HotJet II is a hot-water jetting unit capable of producing 4,000 psi at up to 10 gpm. “It has brought us to a different level in drain cleaning,” owner Valerie McGinnis says. “Now we can clean up to 12-inch-diameter drains and do more commercial work. It has opened up a whole new market for us.”
Charlie Morales uses a HotJet II trailer-mounted jetter from HotJet USA on a job.
Savannah McGinnis snakes a drain using a cable machine from Gorlitz Sewer & Drain.
Savannah McGinnis uses a LeakTronics leak detector on a job.
A big part of why Valerie McGinnis decided to keep her husband’s company going following his death were the many loyal employees. “I couldn’t just walk away from almost 20 families,” she says.
Charlie Morales replaces a garbage disposal in a residence.

When Valerie McGinnis’ husband Mark unexpectedly died of a heart attack in January 2020 at age 60, she wasn’t sure what would happen to $15 Sewer & Drain, the business the well-known plumber and drain cleaner had started in 1986 in San Jose, California.That all changed when she met with grief-stricken employees the following Monday morning.“They were beside themselves,” McGinnis says. “When I saw the looks on the faces of all these grown men, that’s when I decided to keep going. I couldn’t just walk away from almost 20 families.”