Duncan Plumbing

D And D.

They responded quickly to a weekend call for a leaking kitchen hot water line, which we discovered a day before a 2 week trip away from home.
Punctual and professional, but pricey.

Joe H.

I highly recommend Duncan Plumbing.

When we had a pipe leaking water in our Aptos garage and house, it was hard to find someone who could come out on a Saturday. Duncan came out that day, identified the problem and fixed it. Our technician, Eric, was professional and creative in trying to locate the leak. In the end, the job was a bit expensive but Eric explained why and gave us the option to make informed decisions.

We also dealt with Lacey from their main office. She was super helpful in getting Eric to come out, she called during the day to make sure we were satisfied with Eric's service and called to follow-up on the job. Great communication and follow thru. We needed to have a concrete patch in garage where the leak was fixed and Lacey was quick to schedule the follow-up visit to install the patch.

They also dealt with questions from my insurance carrier when we submitted a claim for the leak. I can't say enough great things about my experience with Duncan and will definitely use them again.

G. M.

I called Duncan on a Sunday morning at around 8:30 due to a significant leak which was causing damage. They called back at 9:30 and told me someone would be there between 10:00 and noon. Took my credit card, etc. I had placed calls to other plumbers and Duncan was the first to respond. When others called back I told them that the problem was being taken care of. Duncan then called me around 11:00 to tell me that they could not come out after all. By time I got that call the other plumbers were not available to come out. Very unprofessional of Duncan.

Cindi H.

I have mixed feelings about my experience with Duncan Plumbing. I found them here on Yelp and they had good reviews AND a Yelp deal going on, so I figured I would give them a try. I just bought a house and it had some root problems in the drain line which was causing the whole house to back up. They were super nice and were able to come out same day, so I was very happy about that. The tech explained that he uses a 2 inch auger and ran a camera down the line, but that there were still a lot of roots because only 2 inches are cleared and the pipe is 4 inches. He said the problem will come back it's just a matter of when. My other option, he said, was an expensive hydro jet procedure. I declined, figuring it should last me a few months until I could find a better option, or prepare for the expense.

The problem is that within 3 days the house was backing up again. I ended up calling another plumbing company who came out an ran a 4 inch auger down the drain line several times until it was all clear. Now, granted, the roots WILL come back again, and I realize this. But it has now been about 1 month since this was done, and all is well.

Bottom line, they have great service and their employees are excellent. However, I don't think their tools, at least in my case, were right for the job.

L F.

I had a great experience with Duncan plumbing. Eric showed up on time (the very day I called!), was competent with his skills, great customer service (Both Eric and Melissa),polite, and got the job done on time.
My only criticism is with how expensive the whole industry is..and Duncan's prices are consistent with the other quote i got. So if i'm going to spend a lot of money, I want the money to go to competent plumbers. I would use them again if the need arises-without a doubt.

gman s.

Be careful with this outfit -- the service is uneven and expensive.

The strength of Duncan is that they are often available and can stick to a schedule. If you get a good plumber from their staff, and the job isn't too complicated, the outcomes will be fine although you will pay premium prices.

Here's a brief account of my worst experience with Duncan. We had a small drip under our kitchen faucet. Called Duncan and they sent out a fellow who didn't know what he was doing. The fellow tightened up one fitting, but caused a leak elsewhere. Called Duncan again, and this time insisted on an experienced plumber. The next guy said that we needed a new faucet assembly. He installed the new faucet, which worked fine, but now we had yet a new leak under the sink. Called again and guy #3 came out and said that we had a bad joint that needed replacing. However, tried as he might, he couldn't loosen the fitting. He said that we would need an $800 repair job to replace all of the pipes leading back to the main. He then spent another hour looking around at our plumbing to size up a full redo of our house. In the end, he wanted to charge $200 but hadn't fixed a thing. Ugghh! I protested and he left. Gave up on Duncan and called Cimarelli's. I told the Cimarelli's guy that the leaky fitting was so tight that a previous plumber couldn't get it loose. The Cimarelli's guy laughed, had the bad fitting out in five minutes and completed the repair in about half an hour. I should have called them first.

In the future, I will call Cimarelli's first. If they are not available (often the case given their popularity) I will call Duncan but only if it is an emergency. Moreover, I will watch their pricing and insist on one of their experience plumbers.

Final comments. They seem to pull some weird gimmicks. For example, if you have one of their refrigerator magnets posted, they will give a modest discount. Also, when repairing joints or fittings, they spend a lot of time out at their truck ostensibly ""working"" but the time does not seem commensurate with the job. In the end, extra logged time and cost. I think they are gaming the customer, but to be honest, I don't know enough about plumbing to know for sure. Finally, they seem to look for job creep. No matter the repair, they always find other ""problems"" that should be attended to, with the claim that without immediate attention, the cost will be much greater in the future.

Tommie D.

They answered the phone, actually showed up, on time !!! Clean, professioal and at a fair price on a Sunday !!!! Is this still Santa Cruz ??? Thank you !!

katy i.

The entire experience I had with Duncan Plumbing was easy and seamless. I spoke with both the office and the technician and everyone was very polite, professional and clear at communicating what was happening. I have no complaints and will definitely call them again if we break any more pipes!

Diana T.

Called them to repair & pressure test radiant heat. Quoted us at $2100.00. That equals APPROXIMATELY $350.00/HOUR IN LABOR.

That's a ridiculous amount of money to be paying a plumbing company.

Gesine S.

I have used Duncan Plumbing in the past to install a water heater, as well as for a couple of subsequent service calls. I have had no reason in the past to be dissatisfied with them, but I have also not compared their prices with other plumbers. Recently I had a leak in one of the water pipes, and I called them for an emergency situation. A technician came to the house (an unincorporated area of Santa Cruz County, requiring a trip charge - ok with that), gave me an estimate of over $1000, which I accepted, as I had no alternative and no immediate knowledge of the cost of these repairs. The final bill came to $1,117.83, which I paid.

A few days later another leak developed, and a different plumber came to fix it, also as an emergency measure. I had initially called Duncan, but they were not available. The total bill for exactly the same work performed from the second plumber came to $278.

I think I was not only overcharged, but felt taken advantage of. I am an elderly woman (71 years old), and know this sort of thing can happen. You judge for yourself.