The local place to go for all your plumbing and electrical needs.
By Fern Corraini
This month we focus our Spotlight on Jalisco Plumbing, El Centenario’s premier hardware store that offers a wide variety of plumbing and electrical supplies and services. With its walls of carefully arranged tools, glues, cutters, and crimpers; and its shelves filled with small bins of every bolt, nail, washer and part you can think of, Jalisco is a DIYer’s paradise.
The men behind the counter at Jalisco are up to any challenge: “Sergio, I need that little thingy that goes from the BBQ to the propane tank.” (Insert hand gestures here). And voila, the part magically appears! The staff are not only mind readers and translators, but they seem to have a computer spreadsheet of the store’s inventory in their heads. In a time when you might wander the big box store aisles for ages trying to find someone to help you, Jalisco’s team are a refreshing alternative, ready and eager to help you find that part you need and explain exactly how to use it.
The boss of the entire operation is Catarino Villa. Catarino moved here with his family from Jalisco when he was eight years old. At the tender age of twelve, he started his apprenticeship with two electricians here in Centenario. He loved it immediately, but he had to work a variety of jobs until he was old enough to study for his electrician’s ticket. (Fun fact: We bought our home in El Centenario in 2008. Catarino was a genius at fixing our electrical and plumbing issues, and we were delighted when he told us that our home used to be the Restaurante Palapa Patricia, and that he had been a busboy/kitchen helper here when he was sixteen.)
In 1982, he was the only ticketed (licensed) electrician in town. The plumbing side of the business eventually grew out of sheer necessity, and the store was built in 2004. Having survived the arrival of Home Depot in 2012, Jalisco Plumbing continues to be a busy, thriving hardware emporium.
Catarino feels that it is his job to provide professional satisfaction to his clients. Sometimes his work brings some unexpected turns…surprising a coiled rattlesnake inside a breaker box, dealing with black water issues, late-night emergency calls and the aftermath of storms…but he still likes to go to work each day.
He and his crew work a large area of our state, from Reforma Agraria south to Los Cabos. His team cover both residential and commercial jobs, working on electrical and plumbing repairs and installations, and are happy to come out and give a presupuesto (estimate) on whatever job you might have.
The next time you need a 16mm copper female end elbow reciprocator thingy for your washer hookup, head to Jalisco Plumbing first. You’ll save time, money and the drive to Home Depot, and you’ll be supporting seven local families.
Contact Information
- Address: Prolongacion Em. Zapata y Calle 10, El Centenario. See location on map.
- Hours: M-F 8am-1pm/3pm-6pm; Sat 8am-3pm
- Phone/WhatsApp: (612) 124-8239
- Email: catarino_villa@hotmail.com
