Roto-Rooter Plumbing & Drain Services

Reviews 3

GR

Grischa Metlay

Although the people who take customer calls and route the technicians (i.e., "dispatch") care nothing about customer service, the technician who came to our house cared deeply about making sure that we were satisfied. Our sump pump failed three weeks ago during a serious rain storm, and we noticed that we had water seeping up from our basement floor late at night. Without any time to do the research needed to find an honest and competent plumber, we called Roto Rooter, which was a regrettable decision. Understandably, they were not able to send a plumber that same night (there was lots of flooding in the area), so we arranged to have someone come by the next day between 1 and 3. I had to take off half a day from work, without pay. I waited around until 3, only to get the runaround from "dispatch" when I asked what was going on. After two more calls (and waiting on hold for an inordinate amount of time), I was finally patched through to someone who told me they could send a plumber between 4 and 6. The problem was that I needed to get my toddler from daycare at 5, and they couldnt have someone working when no one was home. So, after some more calls, we figured out that only feasible option was to have someone come between 6 and 8, which meant that my wife also had to leave work early - more money down the drain for us, and no closer to an actual solution to our acute plumbing problem. What I realized along the way was that "dispatch" took appointments from anyone who called in, regardless of whether they had anyone available to actually do the work. As a result, the people doing the work were completely unable to keep their schedule, which meant that suckers like me were left in the lurch. The absolutely infuriating thing about it was that the recording they played while I was on hold kept repeating these innate statements about how much they cared about customer satisfaction. Such a joke. They couldnt care less about customer satisfaction - they just want to profit as much as they can anytime there are flood-like conditions. Eventually the technician arrived around 9 (six to eight hours after he was supposed to). He took the time to clear out the debris in the well and even installed gravel to help prevent problems in the future. Even though it was late, he took a good 2.5 hours to make sure that the job was well done. He even left us his personal number in case we had problems with dispatch in the future. This proved to come in handy during the next heavy rain storm, when there was a mechanical problem with the sump pump he installed. I called dispatch to complain, and they could make no commitment that someone would arrive anytime soon. I called up the technician who came out before and he was at my house within the hour. He replaced the pump quickly and at no charge. We were very grateful for that. Although the dispatch side of the company is dishonest and money-grubbing, it does seem like they have honest and competent technicians on staff. Even so, Id do yourself a favor: go with an local, independent company that actually cares about their reputation and isnt beholden to a corporate culture that prioritize profits over customer service.

DE

Deb Tolley

Called them to fixed a clogged drain. Tech that came out seemed completely inexperienced. He got the snake stuck in the drain and then proceeded to beat it with hammers and a crow bar! Didnt re-install the toilet properly, its 1/4 inch off the ground and rocking and he glued the cap back on the screws because they wouldnt stay on. Called them to have someone come back out and rectify. Toilet no longer rocks but is still up off the ground, they insist it was like that before -- NO IT WASNT. Also had the 2nd tech check the stack 1st guy had been beating on. Good thing we did, it was leaking sewage into the basement! Not sure if it wasnt properly resealed or what. He also discovered 1st guy hadnt actually cleared the line, only did it part way. He had to call a supervisor to see if they would charge for clearing it. SERIOUSLY, we already paid WAY TOO MUCH ($400+) and you want more because your tech screwed up and didnt do the job properly?? I dont think so. AVOID, AVOID, AVOID!!! UPDATE.... Well, what was a horrible experience ended up being a horrific, expensive experience! Turns out that in the process of beating on the stack with the hammer, the tech actually cracked the stack!! One of the techs also broke the cap on the clean-out and reinstalled it with a hole. How do I know, sewage filled basement - everything in the basement destroyed!! Called in a real plumber and they were appalled to hear and see the results of the work performed by Roto-Rooter. Oh, and it gets better! Turns out the real problem was not a clogged drain in the house and the "work" they performed was a complete waste. The real problem was roots clogging the line outside of the house. Thousands of dollars in repair and clean-up later, the problem is actually fixed. Well, all except the toilet that is still up off the ground. The plumber looked at it, determined it isnt leaking...but... it appears that the Roto-Rooter tech GLUED it, they arent sure they will be able to get it up to replace the wax ring or do maintenance without destroying a relatively new toilet. Lovely! Still thinking of calling Roto-Rooter??? Are you NUTS!!!

WI

William Wagner

I bought a house that had a lot of DYI plumbing done to it. Mystery pipes that ran from under the sink and into the laundry room that served no purpose and surely werent up to code. These pipes ran right off of the main and fed my entire water supply. Being concerned for the quality of my drinking water, I wanted these mystery pipes removed. Also, the back hose spigot ran off of this under sink plumbing as well. It was a mess. I called Roto Rooter and a few other local plumbers to get a price quote, Roto Rooter was the first to call back and the first on the job. Robert Boyle (cant say enough for the guy, works harder than a crew of 10 combined!) showed up to provide me the estimate. He let me know it was a lot of work and most likely would be labor intensive, gave me a ball park estimate. I told him to get it fixed and give me peace of mind about qualify of my drinking water, the expense would be worth it. Robert went to work immediately, it was a huge job, the entire main stem under the sink needed to be replaced, fridge line, dishwasher line, remove the mystery pipes, outside spigot, kitchen sink lines, etc. About half way through (5 hours into it), Robert told me it might be higher than he had originally thought. I told him I appreciated the heads up but to keep going. He did a great job. I then told Robert that I had no outside spigot at the front of the house, there was just a hole in the brick where the spigot used to be. He said that he would be happy to look at it. To save time, he gave me some exploratory work to determine where the line fed into my house, I found it and had to cut out the back of my master bath cabinet to give him room to install the new plumbing. Robert did a great job, I could not ask for more. The final price was in the ball park that Robert quoted on the second go around and it included the installation of the front spigot. I am a satisfied customer and have already recommended Robert and Roto Rooter to my family and friends. Awesome job, thanks Robert and thank you Roto Rooter! Will Wagner, Gambrills, MD.

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