Fix First HomeWhat home-upgrade rebates actually pay — and who you apply to.

Fix First Home › Ontario › Protective Plumbing Program (3P)

Protective Plumbing Program (3P) open

Administered by the City of Hamilton.

Hamilton gives owners of single-family houses a grant of up to $2,000 for a backwater valve and related flood protection, through a contractor from the City's pre-qualified list, and lends up to $2,000 more at 4%, repaid on the property tax bill.

source · verified 2 October 2026

What it pays

Grant and loan, per property
UpgradeConditionUp to
Grant: backwater valve and other eligible workWith a pre-qualified contractor$2,000
Grant: backwater valve onlyWith a contractor not on the City's list$500
Loan, at 4%, on the tax rollOn top of the grant, for costs above $2,000$2,000
What the pre-qualified contractors charge, before HST
ContractorAssessment and mainline backwater valve
Stokoe Plumbing$1,292
Hamilton Sewer and Water Services$1,444
Orella Group$1,523
Rooter Guys$1,554
The Plugged Piper Drain Service$1,562

The building permit costs $291 and each downspout disconnection $75 plus HST, at every listed contractor. The grant also covers downspout disconnection and a sump pump; the loan covers a backwater valve, a new sump pit and pump installed with one, and downspouts.

Who is eligible

who
Owners of a single-family house with a basement, connected to the City sewer, with property taxes up to date.
home age
Built before 1 January 2012.
second units
Not while a secondary dwelling unit is being added.
money left
If part of an earlier $2,000 backwater valve grant is unspent, it can go toward downspout disconnection.

What disqualifies you

The rules people find out about after the work is done.

  • Homes built in 2012 or later.
  • A home with no basement, or not connected to the City sewer.
  • Adding a secondary dwelling unit at the same time.
  • For the loan: invoices sent more than 12 months after the loan approval.

Where the application goes

Call or email the City first to check eligibility; the contractor gets the permit.

Where the application goes
If this is youApply here
Protective Plumbing Programhamilton.ca
Phone905-546-2489

The thing most pages get wrong

The $2,000 depends on the contractor. Pick one of the five on the City's pre-qualified list and the grant covers up to $2,000; hire anyone else and the backwater valve grant is capped at $500. The listed contractors charge $1,292 to $1,562 plus HST for an assessment and mainline backwater valve, plus the $291 permit.

The grant goes to you, not the contractor

Hamilton pays the property owner once the work is inspected and the paperwork is in, so the owner pays the contractor first. The loan is paid the same way and is added to the tax roll at 4%, repayable early without penalty.

A separate repair grant

Hamilton also runs an Emergency Repair Program for homeowners on Ontario Works or ODSP, and Ontario Renovates for larger repairs; see the Ontario page.