Sunshine Plumbing & Backflow Prevention, Inc. carries a family legacy and a logo guaranteed to bring a smile to your face.
Founded in 2008 by fourth-generation plumber Dirk Payne, Sunshine Plumbing vehicles are known as “duck trucks” for the bright yellow duck logo emblazoned on the side. The duck is modeled on Dirk himself with a spiky hairstyle and ever-present sunglasses.
AT A GLANCE
Top executives: Dirk Payne, President; Cody Payne, Vice President & Service Manager
Phone: 225.262.2322
Address: 11648 North Harrell’s Ferry Blvd., Unit C, Baton Rouge, LA 70816
Website: sunshineplumbingco.com
“I was in Washington, D.C. for a lobbying event for the plumbing industry with the Plumbing Heating Cooling Contractors Association, and I saw just a plain white plumbing van with a small rubber duck on the side of it. I can’t tell you why it stuck with me,” Dirk says. “So when I started my business, I wanted a six-foot rubber duck on the side of my trucks. It’s one of the greatest things that we’ve come across as far as marketing.”
Sunshine Plumbing provides basic health services, small remodels, and sewer/drain cleaning in the Baton Rouge area. Dirk strives for his employees to be the most knowledgeable, cleanest, best-dressed plumbers in town.
“When we do a job at your house, you’re not going to have to clean up after us,” he says. “We will scrub your bathroom before we leave. All our guys are vetted. Everybody’s background is checked. We keep well-stocked trucks so we have all the parts necessary to make repairs. And of course, we have the cool duck shirts.”
Trained by his father, Dirk started Sunshine Plumbing with one truck and successfully grew the business to a four-truck fleet with an independent shop. Then the Great Flood of 2016 struck, bringing in eight feet of water that completely destroyed Dirk’s Central home and his Baton Rouge business.
“We didn’t work for about three or four months because we had no way to work. We had no trucks, nothing,” Dirk says. “It took us all the way back down to just me and my son, just a one-man shop.”
The COVID-19 pandemic and worry for his family provided the momentum necessary for Dirk and his son Cody Payne to start growing the business beyond a one-truck operation once again.
“I have two autistic children. Who’s going to take care of them?” Dirk says. “My oldest son Cody is my service manager … we had a sit-down talk and we dropped the hammer.”
Sunshine Plumbing got a reboot in 2020, growing from a single-truck operation to seven trucks with 14 employees. Its mission is to be the premier plumbing company in Baton Rouge. “We stand behind our work. We give the longest warranties out there for our industry and that’s one of the things that separates us from everybody else,” Dirk says. “We truly believe in the integrity of our work and integrity comes with a great warranty.”
Part of that confidence comes from the culture of continuing education Sunshine Plumbing has put into place twice per week before employees head out to job sites. Dirk estimates the average employee will receive approximately 100 hours of education each year to better their craft.
“All the guys really do enjoy it because craftsman like to learn their trade better,” he says. “Everybody’s looking for that next thing that separates them from the other guys.”
Sunshine Plumbing was named National Residential Plumbing Contractor of the Year by Plumbing & Mechanical Magazine in 2023.
The company also bought the commercial space it has been operating from for the past several years—a step Dirk hopes will lead to future expansion.
Looking forward, Dirk plans to maintain 40% business growth and add two new trucks to his fleet each year. He also plans to add an AC division to Sunshine Plumbing’s service offerings in 2024.
“We’re hoping this will take us to the next level of business growth, which also requires the next level of business management to better run this team the way we want to.”
