Benjamin Franklin Plumbing

Judith E.

If you want to pay $2719 for a new water heater and never have questions answered, then this is your company. We needed a new water heater in an apartment we own, and the person managing them while we were out of town called this company in Novato. When we returned and saw that we were charged $2719, we were appalled, especially since we had paid $1021 the year before for a different unit and different company. So, I called the company in Novato, was referred to the tech who installed it who then referred me to his district manager who told me he would call me from the office the next day. Never happened. i had asked for a breakdown of costs and a copy of the permit they said they got for our taxes. Nothing, no response. Don't ever use them unless you want to be ripped off as we were.

Mike K.

I called Benjamin Franklin for two issues. I noticed my water heater had been leaking recently and figured it was about time to go bad, being that is was about 25 years old. I also had a clog in my yard drainage somewhere. Pedro came out to inspect the water heater and as expected it needed to be replaced. Pedro informed me of everything that needed to be done to bring everything back to code. He did an excellent job re-positioning the new heater and providing for proper drainage. The next day he returned to clear the drains with the hydro jet and his partner Jake. They both worked for hours pulling roots and clearing accumulated mud and debris from the drains. It was also pouring rain while these two guys worked nonstop getting soaked without a complaint. Needless to say my drains are now clear. Pedro and Jake could not have been more polite. Before leaving they both asked if there was anything else they could do for me. I would recommend Benjamin to anyone looking for excellent service.

Martin W.

Nick at Benjamin Franklin came to my home because I thought I had a water leak after the City of Santa Rosa showed my meter still running even though all water was turned off. Nick responded to my call and was at my home within 90 minutes. He soon discovered that it was caused by a running toilet. He suggested that I have my monthly handyman repair it as it would be much less expensive for me. He refused any payment offers and was on his way.
Such honesty is hard to find these days and it was nice to see that he did not take advantage of a 90 year old widow. If I ever have any type of plumbing problems in the future I will be calling Benjamin Franklin Plumbing!!!!

Gunnar A.

Second time using this company on an older home. First time, Cree was out to replace a corroded/collapsed sewer drain line from the rental unit behind the main house. The second time, Dusty and Craig came out to replace the water service to the rental unit, a corroded kitchen/laundry drain pipe under the main house and cold & hot water piping throughout the main house. I have been in the construction industry for most of my adult life and am familiar with building codes and the construction trades in general. I found Cree, Dusty and Craig to be knowledgeable, professional and courteous. They wore booties whenever they came in the house, left no mess when they were done and the work was nice looking.

In particular, Craig did an excellent job of patching the concrete walkways where he had to cut (the first crew that replaced the sewer drain, not so much). Plumbers are not really known for their concrete skills. If the job requires concrete patching, ask for Craig.

Admittedly, they are not the cheapest company around, but the work was done correctly, on time and cleanly. It seems like you get what you pay for.

JP M.

I've been a member of their ""Home Protection Club"" for a number of years. I'm still a little fuzzy on what the benefits are, but...perhaps that is the reason that they are so responsive to my calls for urgent plumbing problems. Typically I get same day service and they are able to give me appointment times that don't tie me up all day. Their plumbers will give me a ""window"" of time, then call me about 30 minutes before they show up.

Recently water started pouring out of a canister light fixture on my first floor. I shut off all of the water upstairs and called BF Plumbing the next day. Because it was apparent that several gallons of water were probably trapped in the ceiling, BF recommended that we quickly get the ceiling opened up to begin drying the affected area before mold starts to grow. They gave us a number of a remediation company that came out the same day to assess the extent of the leak. Apparently it was a large amount of water in a short period of time. The next day we removed the sheetrock, and found that the source of the leak was from below an upstairs toilet. At first I thought...""Oh no problem, probably a failed wax ring, I can replace that myself"". So I removed the toilet and lo and behold, the problem wasn't the wax ring, but a broken toilet flange! Again I had to call Benjamin Franklin. It was Saturday and they said everyone was booked, but they could send someone on Sunday. A few hours later they called to tell me that one of their plumbers was finishing his last repair early, and was available if I wanted him. I said ""yes"" and 30 minutes later, Nick showed up. He noticed a couple of pairs of shoes outside our door, and put on a pair of shoe covers over his own work shoes without me saying a thing. He took one look at the broken toilet flange/bolts and went to work cutting off the old flange from the 3 inch pipe below and attaching a new flange upstairs. He was fast, polite, and clean. Got the job done in under 40 minutes. He even offered to carry the old toilet down the stairs and dispose of it for me. (I figured I would install a new 1.28 gal model while I was at it.)

The only hiccup on the whole deal was when I got the bill...it was a bit more than I expected. Nick was in my house for a total of 50 minutes and the entire job took less than 40. So...a couple of days later I called BF Plumbing and spoke to a very polite and sympathetic young woman who promised me that the Operations Manager, John Rossi, would call me the next day as he was out of town. Much to my surprise, I did get that call. We talked about the job and the bill. He said that given the circumstances...it sounds like I was inadvertently over-charged. The bill should have been less, since I removed and was reinstalling the toilets myself. So...he immediately issued me a partial refund and followed up with a nice follow-up letter.

I have used BF Plumbing about 6 times over the last 2 years. This was the only time that a charge seemed a little high and they took care of it right away. Top notch company. I will be calling them again.

A K.

Twice now I've had to call a plumber because of a flood in my washroom. I never had to call a plumber previously in my life, but I do know I made a good decision when calling Benjamin Franklin- I had two different techs, but both times the techs clued me in each step of the way as to what they were doing and gave me their personal advice on what is the best solution. Most recently, Nicholas Graham was the tech and he did a superb and quality job (as after he arrived, we had another problem needing repair that we were notified of from the previous visit). I appreciated that Nicholas called his boss as a favor to me for assistance in fitting the job in my budget and that he made time to do the other work.
I lastly wanted to comment that I was helped almost within the hour each time (although they made no time commitments over the phone), I just trusted each time that they would fit me in and they did- so thank you for that, and thank you for working within my means.

James R.

Do not do business with this company!!

I needed to replace a 50 gallon, gas water heater; in the garage with easy access, no complications. Quote for parts and labor for a 6 year warranty heater $3200. I expressed my dismay at the price and he immediately dropped it $400. Clearly the quote was padded so they could make it look like they were giving me a discount. I was in a bind to get the hot water working so I agreed and the installation was scheduled for the next day. Then I researched online for water heater prices and found the high end to be around $1200 and that installation time would average about 3 hours. $1600 for 3 hours labor was way too much for my taste so I called and cancelled. About 5 minutes later I got a call and he offered to reduce the price to $2000. So why the original quote of $3200 when they are willing to do it for $2000? Can you spell ""price gouging?"" I had no interest in doing any business with them ever so I called Prado's Plumbing (local, family-owned) and got the job done right away for $1650.

By the way, BF also quoted me 2 higher price levels with 9 and 12 year warranties. This made it appear I would get a better heater but when I asked directly what the difference was he admitted they are all the same. Basically, they're selling extended warranties without telling the customer that's what it is.

Linda D.

Big thank you to Benjamin Franklin plumbing who opened a spot for us on a busy Friday afternoon & fixed our hot water heater problem. Thank you Nicholas Graham for your quick rescue & friendly efficient service.

Sh E.

We had a pilot light part that needed to be installed and they came out as promised with in the timeframe. Nick Graham provided excellent customer service and installed the part with no issues, checked the water pressure, sewage and other areas. Best of all, we have HOT water again!

Barbara N.

Benjamin Franklin plumbing was referred to us when we called one hour heating and air conditioning. I hated to give them one star. Our furnace broke. A repairman came to fix it and after hearing that we couldn't afford the new furnace he wanted to sell us he said he would have to order a part. That was January 6 2017. We have never had a call back after numerous calls to them. The repairman left us his card but his voicemail was full. So we are still without heat. I guess you're not important enough for good service if you aren't spending the big bucks.