Plumber in Winter Haven

Winter Haven at a glance

Winter Haven is Polk County's second-largest city, with 49,219 people at the 2020 census. It lies east of Lakeland, about 51 miles from Tampa and 47 from Orlando, and is a principal city of the Lakeland–Winter Haven metro area.

What that means for your plumbing

A city this size has every era of home, from early frame houses near downtown to new subdivisions. Slab construction is common, so a hidden leak often shows up first on the bill. If yours jumped, check the meter with everything off; see slab leak detection.

Chain of lakes

Winter Haven's lakes were mapped in detail in an 1849 survey, and Lake Haines is named after the railroad builder. Homes near the water face a high water table and damp soil, which makes septic drain fields and sewer laterals work harder after storms.

Harris Corners and the railroad

The Timucua and Calusa were the earliest known people here. The first railroad across Polk County, built in 1883 for Henry Plant's system, passed just north of town, and the area was platted from 1884 to 1885 as Harris Corners, after F.A.K. Harris, who opened the first store. The railroad brought the first real growth, and homes from the decades that followed still line the older streets. Older houses may have galvanized supply lines and cast-iron drains; if you're seeing brown water or repeat leaks, read about repiping.