Benjamin Franklin Plumbing

Kelly B.

No star but had to give one to post. Something needs to be done with shutting this business down!!! My goodness what a joke of a business! We had to have $7000.00 up front before they even did the work and i put my trust in them because it needed to be done. They promised a receipt that would show parts and labor but they knew it wasn't going come in the mail. Called three times now and say they'll talk to the manager to get one out. The reason for no response is because we were charged double!! I had two plumbers look at it and the work and parts should have only been $3500.00. They didn't do the work right so that is why someone else looked at it!! BTW, this was for my parents house who are elderly and was taken advantage of!! Makes me sick!!!

Tire R.

Sprung a leak at end of the business day. They immediately responded, got things under control for overnight and promptly returned the next morning and fixed everything in a timely manner. Did some additional work as requested while on the job. Great folks, very professional and quality work. I highly recommend. Erik, manager of TIre-rama on grand avenue. 10 stars if I could.

Ken Faber ..

Was going to charge me an overtime rate because they scheduled me me for overtime, even though it wasn't in overtime. It was during normal open hours.
I used to do HVAC work and I prided myself on never getting over on a customer. If there was a questionable decision, the customer would get the benefit of doubt. I have integrity and I expect all businesses to adhere to that criteria. If not then they shouldn't be in business.

Pretty good racket !!!!

Ken F.

Joel F.

Buckle up. This review is lengthy, but for those who care about quality customer service I would recommend giving this a read.

I was having issues with my hot water heater. So I looked up what the problem might be online, just like anyone else would. Pilot light would light, but it wouldn't stay lit. Long story short, all the online advice recommended exchanging the thermocouple out. I called Ben Franklin plumbing and they told me over the phone that it is not the thermocouple, but rather the gas valve needs replacing. At this time I'm talking to Mark, the owner of the company. They said the part is free because it falls under the warranty of the water heater. I asked if he had an estimate and Mark told me it would be about $250 for the labor service. They send a guy out two days after the initial phone call to replace it.

My first issue is that when one of the workers shows up to replace the heater, he lets me know that it's going to cost just shy of $500 to do the work. I explain that Mark had estimated $250, but the worker reiterated that the pricing for replacing a gas valve with service fee will be about $490. Keep in mind, the part is free as it was under warranty. So I'm thinking this must be a pretty big job that will take a couple hours if they are charging nearly $500 dollars for only labor. I agree to the pricing as I don't know what the work fully entails. They guy is down there for about 15 minutes in total. He comes up and says he's all done. He said things went well and he will cut some of the pricing off. He ends up charging $350 bucks. To me, that still seems absurd to charge so much for labor when the job took 15 minutes (over $1,000/hr). I explained that I didn't feel like the pricing was fair, but they essentially said it is what it is. I paid for my service and thought ""at least it's done and I have hot water.""

By the next morning our hot water was out again. I attempted to restart the heater and again only got the pilot flame, but couldn't get the heater to stay lit (same issue as before). I called them right away, but they couldn't have a guy out that day. They gave me an appointment that was another 4 days out (less than ideal for a household with 2 adults and 2 kids).

Fast forward to when they sent a guy to work on my water heater. Again, the guy was down there for less than a half hour. He comes up and explains that the thermocouple is not working properly (which is what I had brought up initially as the potential issue based on the research I found online). Instead of them saying ""we're sorry for the inconvenience and we'll get that part replaced,"" they instead said this is a whole new issue and will be separately billed. They also said that since the gas valve was already replaced, that makes it so the thermocouple is no longer under warranty. They stated I'll have to pay for the thermocouple and the labor out of pocket as a new bill. They also told me that it will take around 3 weeks to get a new thermocouple shipped from the East Coast as they do not have any on hand. The guy then proceeds to tell me he recommends I should just buy a new water heater for a couple grand.

At this point I'm in disbelief. I'm $350 in the hole and all I have is a broken water heater. They didn't do any testing to see what the issue may be before showing up to replace the gas valve, they just wanted to try that first even though I inquired about starting with the thermocouple. They ignored any input I had, and now I'm stuck with the bill and no hot water. Instead of trying to maintain some integrity and customer service by continuing to work on the problem, they only say they will work on it for more money.

The other frustration that I had throughout this whole experience was that Mark was the one who called me and started this whole process. After that, I haven't been able to talk to Mark a single time. I've reached out and called many times, and I'm only able to talk to the office manager. He said there's not a lot he can do. I am frustrated and disappointed. First and last time I'll be working with them.

Shane Hayward ..

Great Plumber - fast and efficient!! Would use him again.
He was professional and made payment easy.
There was a fitting that needed readjusting and he promptly came back to remedy it!

Marianne O.

During last month artic blast, my old boiler finally died. The temperature stayed in the negatives for a week and my pipes were in danger of freezing. I contacted them and they helped me soon afterwards. They were very concerned about my situation and obtained the appropriate boiler for my home. It was installed in 1 day and Mark, the plumber was very professional and prompt. I would call them again for my plumbing needs.

Evan B.

I will somewhat retract the earlier review that I made. The misunderstanding that I had with the Man that did the estimate was that The guys would start on Tuesday and finish up on Wednesday. It took way longer then that. A small company with few workers makes it hard to get the job done on time all the time. I would still recommend people to them.The plumbers are professional and courteous and do a good job.

Chris P.

Even though part of the blame is mine for not getting a written estimate, what a rip-off company.
I was billed $140 an hour and a helper (not a licensed plumber) is also billed at $140 an hour. Checked several other plumbers in town, rates not even close, and helper significantly less money. Billed higher rate because of remodel, no other plumber I checked with did this. You would think an hour is an hour. Parts were priced over double the retail rate I could get at a box store. The helper did very little mostly handed plumber parts. The job could have been done by a single plumber in just a bit more time. Would not recommend to anyone. I would wait even if every other plumber was booked.

Sherry B.

I called at 8:15 am and Pat was to my house at noon. Problem diagnosed and fixed by 2. Fair price. Super kind office staff. I will use them again.

Nancy S.

Very dissatisfied! Had apt set up for 2 days. When called to find out where they were, was told they had to cancel. Will never call them again!