Benjamin Franklin Plumbing

Susan S.

I called Benjamin Franklin after hours last night and received a call promptly this morning. The backyard faucet was leaking into the basement. A different company did not accurately diagnose the issue the previous day. Rob came out around noon and quickly diagnosed the problem as a cracked pipe and repaired it. From what I understand, the repairs are priced according to the job, so I can't comment on the price compared to other companies. However, the $99 service call fee was applied toward the repair cost. Rob was very knowledgeable, professional, and did what needed to be done. We are happy not to have to worry about it anymore.

Javi V.

Call them over and pay them $60 for the ""I don't want to do it price"". Nothing is more helpful than tacking wasted money and time on to an already expensive project. These guys want more money than your doctor, and every job is the hardest one they have ever done, so of course it'll be expensive. The worst part is that they won't quote you over the phone. They come over and pretend to look for 2 minutes and then flip through a little booklet that has the price they won't tell you on the phone, as if coming to look had any bearing on the price whatsoever (it doesn't). They will spend more time processing your payment than anything else. It's almost like a significant part of their business is making $60 for not even giving you an earnest/realistic quote. Lots of people would love to spend 5 minutes and make $60 (what is that, $720 an hour? That's seriously a realistic price for what they ask for). It's a heck of a business model! I guess I should have skipped college and worked for them, because clearly they make more than any white collar worker.

Call literally anyone else if you know what is good for you. I did, and I got great service for half of what they were asking, even with the $60 they stole from me. Oh, and they quoted me over the phone and did a serious amount of extra work for me that we did not agree upon beforehand for the same price.

Chris G.

The plumber came out the next day and fixed the problem. Everyone I spoke with the next day was very nice and apologetic. The office manager was nice and offered further reparation. While I wish this would have been done the night before, I am satisfied with the remedy to the problem.

Karen H.

My parents' toilet broke at 5am this morning, Zachary arrived by 10am to install a new toilet. He stayed to help my father reinstall the shelf they had above the toilet afterwards and even went out to his truck to grab a few extra pieces that were needed to make it work. My dad tried to tip him $20 and he said no, he wouldn't take the money.

I live in AZ while my parents are in OH, it makes me sad that I am not there to help them out in emergencies but it makes me very happy that there are people like Zachary that go above and beyond to lend extra hand when he sees someone that might need it. 5 stars in my book.

Diana D.

I do not trust this company at all. They were hired to install a toilet and snake a shower drain back in February. At the time it seemed the price was quite high, but it was an emergency call so it was accepted. The shower plugged again 2 days ago. Not an emergency call, so a regular appointment made at a mutually agreeable time. The plumber came promptly, went to the basement, then recommended the main valve be replaced so it could easily be turned off in an emergency(?). He also gave a sales pitch for a plumbing insurance/maintenance program. Both were declined. The estimate was $230 to snake the drain. I requested that records be checked as we had been assured the drain was snaked in February and the cost then to install a toilet PLUS snake the drain as an emergency call was within $10 of this new quote. Loooong story short, the plumber made a few calls to his office while I called around to learn that the quote indeed was out of line. We were then offered a $115 fee as office records proved the previously disputed cleanout had indeed occurred, but ""drains don't carry a warranty"" (even though this shower was minimally used in those 10 months) The plumber was very concerned about facing trouble in the office the next day but declined my offer to speak with the supervisor. The clean out was completed and then documented as a ""courtesy with absolutely no warranty and the understanding that Ben Franklin would refuse to come to the house in the future"".(We assured him we would not be making a future call.) In the end there was great concern that a positive review be given regarding clean up (?). After he left I went downstairs to find the valve in just fine shape. My main concern? The plumber was working with /hard-selling to an 88 year old man - in February and again today - until I arrived. Had I not come at that time, there would have been a $230 charge made/paid for a drain clean out that evidently was a re-do (or first-do) from a previously charged visit. Shame!

1/10/17 an update.... the drain backed up again on 1/7/17! Less than 3 weeks and only 4 showers later! So glad we refused to pay the $230! Planning to call and Angie's list A rated plumber this time!

Mike L.

UPDATE:

I wanted to provide an update because I think it's only fair and mistakes happen. John, the manager called me to discuss the issues we had. He was very kind, understanding and patient. He never got defensive and was pretty much the best example of a business manager one could ask for. He immediately apologized first and foremost and admitted that they had made a mistake. They didn't have it in their system that they had installed the water heater and therefore made the mistake of not covering the repairs under warranty. He also apologized for the time that it took to make the repair and the running around to get the parts. I don't want to get into the details of what they did to rectify the situation but I will say that they went above and beyond and earned my trust. Going forward I would definitely give them another chance because we're all human and mistakes do happen. It's how you handle the mistakes and bounce back that matters. Thank you John.

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Absolutely sick to my stomach with this company.

On 1/25/2016 our water heater went out, pilot wouldn't stay lit. In the morning my wife (which had just worked a 3rd shift) called Ben Franklin to come out and look at it. They came at 10:30am and gave my wife an estimate of $119 and was told our water heater had ""carbon buildup"". An hour later after doing god knows what he comes back and tells her it needs a new ""control box"" which he said was under warranty and would normally cost $300 for the part, but would be $360 to install. Being that my wife worked a 3rd she just agreed hoping that he would just replace the part and be on his way. The guy leaves for like 2 hours and comes back to the house to replace the part, at around 3:30 he makes some bogus claim about our heater needing a new valve and the bill goes up yet again to $440. My wife was taken advantage of by this company while I was at work and charged us not only for repairing a water heater THEY installed that wasn't even 3 years old and supposedly under warranty but price gouging and repeatedly changing the estimate. I am beyond disgusted with this company. They claim ""100% satisfaction guaranteed"". I am not satisfied with their constant changing of the estimate and taking the entire day to make the repair keeping my pregnant wife up all day.

I could never recommend this company and wished I had been home when they came to do this work. I would have called a more honest company.

Louis R.

Charged $500 to snake a drain and couldnt even clear it then quoted me $9000. Another plumber only charged $100 to snake the drain. Dont waste your money with this place

Mo J.

Ben Franklin is way overpriced. Their ""Society Membership"" is nothing but inflated pricing on goods and services. Even with the 15% discount they are double priced!! I will let everyone in my development know what kind of customer service you get when you say ""no"" to their membership. I can go on about how they don't honor their warranty on products and the sneaky way they try to negate it...but my time is too valuable. Don't hire them...find a nice local small business plumber...I did!!

Stephanie B.

Ben Franklin has done a couple plumbing/gas line jobs for me over the years. Very satisfied.

The first was when the local utility company found a gas leak and wouldn't turn my gas on in 2008. Ben Franklin sent someone out within 24 hours (it was March and I was freezing cold). He found the problem quickly, fixed it, and went on his way. He was polite and efficient, and he went out of his way to keep my house clean while he was working (wearing slip-in booties when he was on my carpet). I walked away from the experience happy and satisfied. (He even cut me a discount on the emergency call. I think he felt sorry for me!)

I hired them again a few years later to install a wall-mounted fireplace. It was a different worker that came out, and at one point, he became disrespectful of me, informing me I should ""talk to my husband"" before I make these kinds of decisions. Regardless of the fact that it was my house and I didn't have a husband, he should have never made that kind of statement. I called Ben Franklin's office the next day and told them, requesting a new worker to come out. They were very, very helpful and apologized to me. The new guy came out, mounted the fireplace, and left. Extremely professional and clean just like the first.

I can only assume I got a dud that day as Ben Franklin has otherwise been a joy to work with. One guy does not a company make, and it meant a lot to me that Ben Franklin was more than willing to fix the situation to my satisfaction. I will continue to use them for all my plumbing needs.

Kathy B.

I called to get a quote for a repair or replacement of a boiler for my duplex in Toledo, OH. They charge just to come out and diagnose the issue. I called 2 other plumbers and they just go out, check out the problem, then give or send me a quote. Why would anyone pay for a diagnosis when their quote could be higher than someone else vs. getting multiple quote and deciding on the lowest and/or best quote.