Beacon Plumbing - Seattle's Emergency Plumber - Furnaces, Clogged Drains All Plumbing Emergencies!

I called this place yesterday asking for an estimate as offered on their web page. The phone was answered by Brian. After explaining to him the work I needed done, he asked me what time I would be free that afternoon. I explained to him that I was looking to have the work done on Friday or Saturday. He then responded "Call back Friday or Saturday for an estimate," then hung up on me. I can't believe the nerve of this guy! I later went onto their website and wrote about this to customer service, even saying that I might still be willing to hiring them as I had had good service from them in the past. I asked for a manager to call or get in touch with me. They never bothered. This Brian guy is probably the owner and just doesn't care. With so many plumbers out there and the economy the way it is, I'm surprised that there are business people out there treating customers this way and not expecting that word will get around. If you want to be hung up on and receive no customer service I highly recommend Beacon Plumbing!

Posted 10/27/09 | Report Abuse

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During the hot spell this past summer I called 4 companies to give me an estimate to install air conditioning in my house. 2 of the companies told me that they were booked for a week or more. A 3rd company never called back. I called Beacon and was plesently surprised when the young lady told me that they could be out the same day. Around 3 pm Mike and Aheron arrived, they looked at my furnace and quickly gave me 3 options for different grades and prices of equipment, and informed me they could do the installation the next day. As promised they showed up at 9:30 am the next morning and by 7 pm I had a professionally installed air conditioning system up and running. my house was 103 degrees by that time. They spent extra time going over the whole installation with me and gave me a coupon for my next maintenance. I couldn't be happier and would recommend these guys over and over.

Posted 10/04/09 | Report Abuse

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Two and a half years ago (Jan 2008), my water heater died. Beacon was super quick to respond. While the techs were very friendly and helpful and prompt,

I was troubled that they brought only a single 50 gallon unit, which they used to replaced my busted 40 gallon unit. What's more, the water rotted pressed wood board stand had to be replaced and they offered (and I had to take) a paint-chipped, slightly rusted metal stand they charged $200 for.

I was furious at feeling cornered given my circumstances as I hardly could shop around in the middle of winter.I later spoke with the owner, Bill, who promised a credit of $200 Beacon bucks, WHICH I NEVER RECEIVED nor did I ever get phone time with him on the matter again.

Now, I've just found this water heater has a leak and there's rust showing at the base...just two and half years later.I've called Beacon because they caused this problem and I expect they'll fix it.I

F they do in a timely and responsible manner (I better not be charged a dime beyond service call) then I'll eat crow and come back here and sing their praises....

I'M EATING CROW....Tom of Beacon came out hours after I posted this and took care of the matter. He explained my water heater was simply sweating. He then went on to perform the annual maintenance check.

I spoke to him at length about my concerns with customer service and he politely allowed me to 'vent'.

I also called Bill and after struggling through issues with their new computer phone system, he agreed to honor his promise of credit from 2.5 years ago. He spoke with Tom via speaker phone and the $150 credit was immediately applied to the yearly service.

I have to say, this company has been through the ringer since I last used them ( a simple internet search will yield results) and it seems that they are truly trying to clean up their perceived image (which did result from actual issues with plumbers and on the customer service back end).

Beacon has definitely had a second chance to make a first impression with me.

4 out of 5 stars based on earlier 2-star experience and now newer 5+ star second experience.

Posted 07/28/09 | Report Abuse

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After getting a "run-around" from several other companies, Beacon gave me same-day (as call) service and repaired my problem. (Rewired furnace/ relay)

Posted 07/25/09 | Report Abuse

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We had an issue with a repair they made but when we called customer service Patrick was excellent at helping address and making sure we were fully satisfied.

Lots of companies do good work but the ones that treat you right when things go wrong are very rare.

Posted 06/25/09 | Report Abuse

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

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I just had Beacon Plumbing in to fix a small leak. They exhibited excellent customer service from the first phone call to the plumbers in person. When I first called they said "we will do excellent service" and they did. They were prompt, efficient and personable. Being a plumber they don't really have to be personable. At the end the plumber said to me "You've already paid. Is there anything else we can do for you while we are here?" They were kind, caring and did excellent service. I would highly recommend them!

Posted 04/16/09 | Report Abuse

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

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Had issue with my shower in house, called Beacon at 1:00pm, told them I could be home at 5:30pm after work, and when I arrived at 5:15pm, they were already waiting for me.

They showed up when they said they would, the 2 technicians were professional, courteous, and gave me estimate of what job would entail, did their business, I paid, and they were onto the next job in 20-25 minutes.

I would highly recommend this vendor to others, as they did what they said they were going to do, which is all I am looking for on plumbing vendors.

Great work!

Tim O'Brien

Posted 03/30/09 | Report Abuse

2 out of 4 people found this review helpful.

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It was a Thurs. night around 5:00 P.M. when Puget Sound Energy shut down our furnace because of carbon monoxide. I started free-ken so I called Beacon. With in an hour Brian Hoskins showed up at our door. He immediately took some measurements and we sat down and he gave me three different furnace's that would work for us. I felt very comfortable with Brian and I felt like he was very honest and wasn't trying to sell us anything we didn't need. I picked the med. priced one and paid for it. He right away removed the old furnace that night . He left around 9:00 P.M. came back in the morning and installed the new one. It was quick and easy. He also took some extra effort to look at our gas fireplace. I was impressed how fast their service was,how easy it was, the quality of work and the concern Brian had that if we would be comfortable over night. I give them five stars and more!!!!

Posted 03/11/09 | Report Abuse

2 out of 4 people found this review helpful.

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I thought the serviceman was very thorough and knowledgeable. My furnace was repaired on his first visit which was a pleasant surprise. This was my second Beacon call and I have been satisfied with each. I consider them reliable.

Posted 03/02/09 | Report Abuse

2 out of 4 people found this review helpful.

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Beacon Plumbing truly went over and above in a recent transaction for me. In a house sale, a few items came up on inspection and needed to be remedied quickly. They were out there that day, and took care of things in a fast, professional, and pleasant manner. I was very impressed!

Posted 03/02/09 | Report Abuse

1 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

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Beacon was quick to respond to our request for service. They were efficient in replacing the motor on our furnace and fully explained what went wrong and how to help prevent future problems. We were pleased with their overall service

Posted 03/01/09 | Report Abuse

1 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

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I called Beacon Plumbing when I noticed my water service line had ruptured, making a small lake in my neighbor's yard, a waterfall in my driveway, not to mention making my water meter spin like a fan. Beacon came out within the hour to secure my water and presented me with several alternatives for repair. They were able to replace the entire water service line and get me back into service within 24 hours. With their use of "the mole" they were even able to save all of my fave roses, heathers and other prized plants which would have been sacrificed with a traditional trench. I'd like to give a shout out to Aaron and the "mole man" for their superior professionalism and customer service. They stayed until the job was done at approximately 2:00 a.m., and did a superb job of clean-up and restoration. The price was about what I expected. The service was way above. I will use Beacon for my next plumbing problem and highly recommend them to others. Thank you, Beacon.

Posted 02/13/09 | Report Abuse

1 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

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on 12-26-2008, I called Beacon to come and look at my gas furnace which was not working properly. After a couple of minutes, I was informed that my heat exchanger had a crack in it and needed to be replaced with a new furnace. When asked if we could just replaced the exchanger, we were told that the company who made my furnace was no longer in business. And why would we want to replace parts in a furnace that is 10 years old? Well I don't think 10 years is that old. We were then quoted a price for the new replacement, and told they would be back on Monday. Well after thinking about it for awhile, I checked on line to see when Frigedare had closed, only to find out that they were still in business and had the replacement for our damaged heat exchanger. Well this really pissed me off, that we had been lied too just so we would have to buy a new furnace. The technicians must work for commission! On Monday, we called and spoke to someone at Beacon about this.They said that this wasn't their practice, and that they would speak to the techs. And that we really wouldn't save that much by just changing the exchanger, it really would be better to put in a new furnace. Go figure!! I feel that we were ripped off, and I would never call Beacon again! I knew that they had been investigated by Jesse Jones, so I was sure that they would be on the up and up. Well I guess I was wrong!! So if you have these guys come and look at anything in your house, do your homework and make sure they are telling the truth!!

Added Review: So I must say I was pretty impressed when I got a call from Beacon the day after I entered my review. And then when the owner Bill called me personally, I was really taken aback. He assured me that he was very upset by the information that I was given by their Tech. He said that was not the kind of business they practiced there at Beacon. He told me I would be receiving a credit for the difference between the new furnace and a replaced exchanger. Well now, it has been 3 weeks since that call, and no credit yet. When I called last week, the bookkeeper had heard nothing about my refund, but was going to speak to Bill right away. So now I am not all that impressed with the quick call I received. I don't think it should take 3 weeks to do a little research, and to write a check. Bill said they were really working on their customer service. Well, they need to work a little harder!!

Posted 01/01/09 | Report Abuse

2 out of 4 people found this review helpful.

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I had been having problems with my furnace for the past two years. I had 2 other companies come out last year and they weren't able to figure out what was wrong other than telling me my filter was dirty. Well, this year I called Beacon and they sent out Brian. YAY!! Brian actually spent the TIME to figure out what he thought was the problem. He did tell me however, that because of the age of the furnace, there was a chance that replacing this part may not solve the entire problem and that there could be other hidden problems. The only true fix would be to replace the furnace. He gave me the price of both options in writing and offered a 10% discount if I did the water heater at the same time. In his defense, I KNEW when I bought the house 4 years ago that the furnace and hot water heater were at the end of their lifespan and would need to be replaced soon. Brian in NO WAY made me feel as if I had to purchase a new furnace today, just that it was an option. However, not wanting to deal with any future problems, I chose to have him install a new furnace AND a new hot water heater that day. Of course, Brian didn't have a new furnace or hot water heater on his truck since he didn't expect to be replacing one, so he called back to dispatch and they sent another truck out with the new stuff so that the work would be completed with no disruption or waste of time.

Could I have found a cheaper price by going elsewhere? Of course.

But working "in the business" myself (I work in the Service Department of a local car dealership) I understand that cheaper does not equal better. I realize that great customer service is more important, and it is what keeps the customer coming back.

Posted 11/29/08 | Report Abuse

2 out of 4 people found this review helpful.

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Hi all:

I wanted to send my comments regarding the work Tom performed at my residence on 11-1-08. Tom repaired the leaks beneath my sink and replaced a number of pipes that were not in code compliance. There is now much more space than before to use as storage and there are no leaks. He was professional, courteous, friendly, and extremely knowledgeable and willing to share some of this with me regarding other plumbing concerns.My congratulations and "Kudos" to an extremely competent plumber.
Thanks so much,

Gary Kickbusch

Posted 11/17/08 | Report Abuse

1 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

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We had a problem with our furnace that we knew was beyond what we could diagnose; Beacon came out within 24 hours from our service call. A part needed to be replaced, which was ordered, installed and tested by the following evening. We felt taken care of in a timely manner given that it was the busy season for heat repairs! And we were pleased with the Service Techs; they were professional and honest.

Posted 11/17/08 | Report Abuse

1 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

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I couldn't have had a better experience. Jared our installer answered ALL of our questions and didn't make us feel that this was even out of the ordinary. We had contracted with another company but cancelled because they made us feel so uncomfortable about what they were going to do when installing our new water heater. Everyone at Beacon Plumbing both on the phone and in person has made us feel they were trying to earn our trust...and they did! They provided real customer service & with a smile. And the prices they quoted & charged were consistent & competitive in the market. We would recommend them to anyone!

Posted 11/17/08 | Report Abuse

1 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

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I had a pipe burst and from my first call to the final bill "everything" was top quality service!!! The "expert" Brian Hoskins who came to my home is a "GREAT" asset to the company!!! He was courteous, informative and polite....he turned a "bad" day into a pleasant experience~ He gave me superior service and was beyond professional, he treated me like it was his own business! Price was fair, and explained all prices to me before doing the work> Thank you Beacon for having such a "GREAT" employee~ I will recommend to all of my friends!!!

Posted 11/07/08 | Report Abuse

1 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

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I called Beacon Plumbing to fix a water pipe leak under my house.
The leak was noticed a few weeks ago when I was doing other work under my house.

I have never dealt with Beacon before and have no relationship to them.

The leak was very small, but I was afraid the pipe would eventually burst and flood my crawl space. I also wanted someone to fix a "water Hammer" issue where my pipes would bang whenever someone shut off the cold water quickly.

A plumber (Nick F) showed up at my house within 2 hours of my call to Beacon. We talked about the issues and he gave me an estimate. It was a little higher than I expected, but it was within reason. A burst water pipe would cost me much more to fix.

Nick was very professional & knew what he was doing. He worked in very tight quarters (under my house) and was able to solder on new piping without any problems. I watched him throughout the process as I have soldered piping before. He was meticulous and took his time to do the work correctly.

I was very impressed with Nick's professionalism and plumbing knowledge. He also solved my water hammer problem!

While I can't speak for the other plumbers at Beacon, I was VERY happy with the work done and results done by Nick. If Nick is any indication of the quality of work done by Beacon, I would have not problem hiring the company again.

Posted 10/06/08 | Report Abuse

2 out of 4 people found this review helpful.

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Brian provided excellent workmanship. The service was timely. He had a professional appearance. All work was completed to my expectations. I would recommend Brian & Beacon to others.

Posted 08/18/08 | Report Abuse

3 out of 5 people found this review helpful.

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I had water heater problems and they came right out within a few hours and fixed it without needing specialty parts (I have an odd sized heater). This is the second occasion (two different problems at my house) that I've needed a plumber and both times I called Beacon and have been very happy with their work.

Posted 08/12/08 | Report Abuse

3 out of 5 people found this review helpful.

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I knew what my plumbing problem was but did not have the tools or parts to fix it. Brian agreed with my assessment, promised an end-of-the-day return, and kept his commitment. While the final toll may seem expensive it was worth the value because of the quality of service and kept promises.
Scott Jensen
Mill Creek

Posted 07/12/08 | Report Abuse

3 out of 5 people found this review helpful.

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I had a new central air until put in during that hot spell we had here at the end of June. The guys that came out were friendly, knowledgeable, and did professional work. They showed up quickly for the service call and on time for the appointment. I would recommend to anyone, and would call upon again. Price was fair. Thank you.

Posted 07/12/08 | Report Abuse

3 out of 5 people found this review helpful.

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We opened a new restaurant in Kirkland and the night of the Grand Opening found water backing up through our floor drains!

It seems the restaurant in the same complex hadn't snaked the common drains in years and when we added our restaurant, it overloaded the system.

We called Beacon, they were there in under 40 minutes with the trucks, manpower and equipment to do the job. They tried one way and then another and finally pulled a toilet off the floor to access the (ancient) plumbing drainpipes.

The story ends happily with free flowing drains and a sweet smelling restaurant - our customers didn't even know there was a problem!

Was the service free? No
Was the price fair? Yes
Was the team professional? Yes
Did we know the price before they did the work? Yes

WILL WE CALL THEM AGAIN???? YES

The way I see it, give me a professional that charges a fair price for his time, equipment, training and insurance (and gas) before I hire some cut rate guy off Craigslist that comes in, takes a deposit and disappears.

I like KING5, Jesse Jones(!) and Chris Ingals... but they missed the boat on this one.

My name is John Gilday and I approved this message.

Posted 06/17/08 | Report Abuse

4 out of 6 people found this review helpful.

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We had a problem with a clogged drain line. I called Beacon, they came out the same day, and their tech did an excellent job determining the problem and fixing it. He used the video camera technology to identify the problem and then flushed it out. We did see some roots that will have to be addressed soon, but there was no hard-sell to get the job for Beacon. I've read some of the other reviews, and I must say I didn't have a single problem with the quality of the work or the price. The technician was fast, friendly, knowledgeable, and competent.

Posted 06/06/08 | Report Abuse

4 out of 6 people found this review helpful.

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We recently had Beacon come to our home to work on our furnace. The tech charged me quite a bit of money for essentially flipping the breaker switch and replacing a filter. I contacted Beacon about this and they promptly refunded my payment. I was a bit skeptical to call them the next time, but I'm so glad I did. The tech came out within an hour on a Saturday evening. He could have easily convinced us to spend a few thousand on a new furnace (ours is getting old and does need replacing). However he got it up and running in no time. He took time to show us the problem and what he did to fix it - which will allow us to get by another year or two on our furnace. I am so glad I gave them the opportunity to come out again - I absolutely trust their business and without a doubt, when it comes time to replacing my furnace and water heater, Beacon will be the only place I call. They get an A+ for customer service not only when I called them about the first service call, but as well for the prompt, professional service when they came to our home. They are great!

Posted 05/30/08 | Report Abuse

4 out of 7 people found this review helpful.

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I started having furnace problems when we began to use it this year. I called Sears and they told me it would be six to eight weeks before they could have someone out. I called some other local shops and received some phone help with the issue but couldn't get someone to actually come out. After getting tired of having it work sporadically over the next few weeks, I called Beacon and they had someone out the same day! It was on the pricey side, but we were very happy to have the furnace working again. The two technicians were very friendly and helpful.I would call Beacon first for my future furnace needs and would recommend them. However, the amount of negative reviews on this site has me a little skeptical now.

Posted 05/30/08 | Report Abuse

3 out of 5 people found this review helpful.

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A++ We had a repair done at our Rental property in Renton and had the PRV or pressure relief valve replaced. All because the city of Renton has the water pressure to high in the street. (Thank you Renton!!) Beacon did a great job repairing it and getting this problem fixed fast. I have hired these guys over and over and over and gave me a good deal on this repair because the City caused the problem. They won a customer for life! Thanks Beacon! Woody

Posted 05/29/08 | Report Abuse

3 out of 6 people found this review helpful.

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I had a chronic kitchen sink leak that was very difficult to diagnose. At first water was dripping down my intakes so Ronnie from Beacon came out and replaced those. He was very friendly, courteous, clean and professional. Did an excellent job cleaning up after himself. Then about a week later there was water accumulated on the bottom of my sink cabinet. They sent a second guy out who couldn't figure out where the water was coming from but suggested I grout around my faucet and next time I was really going to town, cooking and doing dishes, to look under my sink with a flashlight and see if I could see where the water was coming from (OK, that visit wasn't too satisfying). Third visit they sent out Ronnie again who figured out there was a leak between the sink and the deck. He grouted that for me (did a good job too). You can imagine my frustration when two weeks later there was more water under my sink. This time they sent out Brian. He was also very clean, friendly, courteous and professional (must be a Beacon requirement). He apologize profusely for my inconvenience. Spent over an hour running water and my dishwasher to figure out where the water was coming from. Finally figured out it was a very slow leak from the cheap faucet the builder had installed when they remodeled my kitchen. He deducted the cost of my previous visits from the cost of a new faucet and install. He even filled out my warranty card and sent it in for me! I thought this was the kind of attention to detail that spoke of a true professional. Anyhow, I felt like Beacon worked with me till they got it right and I appreciated it. Yes, they're expensive, then again plumbers in general are expensive. Yes my experience was frustrating but they fixed it in the end and after the second visit made sure to do it on my time so I wouldn't be inconvenienced any more. They always showed up promptly when they said they would. Like my title says they stood behind their work, and I'll call them again when I have a problem.

Posted 04/27/08 | Report Abuse

5 out of 12 people found this review helpful.

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Beacon had excellent and fast service. Their price was a bit more than what I expected, otherwise I would give them five stars.
-Edmonds, Washington

Posted 04/22/08 | Report Abuse

6 out of 12 people found this review helpful.

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Beacon came out to replace a pipe that broke in my upstairs bathroom, causing damage in the bathroom and to my kitchen ceiling. As they had done on a previous job, they responded to my household emergency promptly, and went right to work -finishing the job by the end of the day. I did have some concerns about the cost of the job, and was contacted promptly by Beacon after voicing them, and they listened carefully to those concerns, and we were able to work out a satisfactory adjustment. I appreciated this very much. Thanks to Amber and Patrick in the Beacon office for their courtesy, and to William Cahill for the satisfactory resolution of this problem - and for returning my bathroom to a functional condition quickly.

Posted 04/15/08 | Report Abuse

10 out of 17 people found this review helpful.

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They showed up as promised to sell and install a new furnace, but when it didn't work the next day, they left me freezing cold for HOURS before showing up to fix it, and even then, it wasn't really fixed. It's about a month later, and I'm STILL waiting for the complete fix on a $3500 furnace. Maybe they'd be fine on a minor plumbing repair, but I'd suggest you get a furnace from somebody else.

Posted 12/09/07 | Report Abuse

0 out of 9 people found this review helpful.

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I called them because the shower had all the water pressure and the tub faucet had none. They came and diagnosed the problem as it needing a valve replacement and the charge was to be around $1000. The cost was so much higher than I thought that I had to send them away without the work getting done. In the mean time, my father came home from vacation and I asked him to look at it because he had done some minimal things like this around his own house. He said the gasket for the diverter needs to be replaced. He came over with some basic tools and the 25 cent part and fixed the problem.
Is this how you pay for all your ads Beacon??? That's some questionable business practice if you ask me. The only reason I'm freakin' now, is because I almost let you do the work!

Posted 09/10/07 | Report Abuse

7 out of 17 people found this review helpful.

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I called them to snake my drain because of the standing water in my tub at the end of a shower. I was having another problem in addition to that in that the tub faucet was producing a shockingly small amount of water in comparison to the shower. It was determined that I needed a valve replacement on the tub faucet, but they went ahead and snaked the drain. Unfortunately I didn't stay in the small bathroom to watch the process to learn that the tech tested the freshly snaked drain with the tub faucet (which wasn't working well) instead of the shower (which was). The next morning I was standing in 6" of water and called them to come back. At first they said it would be no charge and then another person said they would need to charge me again because I signed the waiver against "future" clogs. I said it wasn't a "future" clog, it was the clog that they were originally hired to fix the day before. They said the only way they'd do it is if I gave them a credit card in advance. The tech came out and did several more things and actually tested it with the shower that time and found it worked. When I asked him if he had done this two days before would it have worked, he said yes and then charged me anyway. I couldn't believe. I called the next morning to speak to a manager and she said she spoke to the tech and he said it was a "chargeable" service, so she was not going to return the second fee to me. This company's business ethics are extremely poor and questionable at best. I'd think twice before calling. When I called another business to get a quote on the valve replacement, they were hundreds of dollars less as well. Good luck with your business boys. You're going to need it!

Posted 08/28/07 | Report Abuse

7 out of 16 people found this review helpful.

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