Kevin Shaw Plumbing

Maya M.

Was referred to Kevin Shaw by a questionable source but I scheduled an appt anyway on Tuesday for Thursday between 10am - 12pm. I asked for an estimate but he didn't provide one over the phone nor a price range, which is to be expected in most cases.

I didn't hear anything on Wednesday and on Thursday, I missed a call at 9:22am due to being on a business call. I called back an hour later to be advised since he couldn't confirm we were still on for our appt, he went to a different appt. I'm confused as to why he wouldn't of confirmed Wednesday whether or not we were still on for Thursday. He advised it would take 30min to get to his new appt and the job would be 30min. I advised him to call me afterwards so I can see if I'd still like for him to come by.

He called at 1:22pm (which I knew the job he mentioned could definitely take longer than his anticipated 30min) but by that time, I already had another company come out on the same day I called, and they were halfway done with the work.

Kevin apologized and advised he called initially to make sure we were still on before making the long trip. I advised I was unaware he stayed so far away and would've called someone locally if he was worried about my not being home but I can understand his point of view.

Maxwell T.

I called out Kevin Shaw plumbing expecting for them to fix my problem with a toilet which they did fix but not very well but they did charge me $408 goddamn dollars for less then 30 minutes of work And when we called them to ask why our bill was so high they give us a little bit of an attitude and said they would call us back which they never did so now we are even more pissed off with them so now I am on here writing a review on how they ripped off a 75-year-old woman by charging her $408 for
less then 30 min of work for three fucking screws and a ring for a toilet

L. N.

Excellent, on time, service to reinstall existing toilet with loose floor connectors and wax seal leak. Jeffrey and Joe removed the toilet fixture which is like new, cleaned up the mess completely, and reinstalled the toilet on a new wax seal, PLUS they seated the toilet fixture in a seal compound to the somewhat uneven tile flooring to ensure that toilet ""wobble"" would no longer occur. Joe and Jeffrey have previously done major plumbing restoration work for us before. They and Kevin Shaw Plumbing are my ""go to"" plumbing service because of the quality and integrity of their work. And they are also very friendly, pleasant persons which is a nice bonus. I am willing to pay top competitive dollars for this kind of service and work!!

Ming C.

bathroom sink stopper broke. came out and notified me the entire sink unit has to be replaced at $500 (estimate), later to learn that I can purchase replaceable parts on the manufacturer website for less than $20. Easy enough for self-install. I just paid a trip fee so someone can come and lie to me in my face.

Two stars for a somewhat professional experience with the tech.

M. J.

We've used Kevin Shaw Plumbing for many years. We have found them extremely reliable. They always fix everything perfectly and never have to return to re-do their work. Highly recommended.

Brian L.

Great service, on time and great work! Thanks KS team!! We appreciate the ease of scheduling and how well they communicate with us as lay people (non-plumbers) To really understan the scope of the issue.

Also, not sure why Yelp mandates that we write a certain length review - totally unnecessary!!

Lashley S.

My issue with this company lies strictly with its practice of charging $89 for having someone come to your premises to offer you a quote. After being well served by multiple plumbing companies in the years since my interaction with Kevin Shaw Plumbing, I'm now convinced that charging customers for just an estimate is not only unprincipled, but a suspect way to nickel-and-dime prospective clients. Ever since this company charged me their $89 fee (despite not recruiting them due to their exorbitant quote), I've NEVER ONCE come across another plumbing company that performed this same practice. I didn't know better at the time, but with more perspective now, I realize just how borderline unethical this is, and am amazed by how this company (despite all the negative reviews) has managed to skate by with these snake-like tactics.

Consider yourself warned, and be aware that they strategically minimize the emphasis of this fee by placing it in between a lot of fine print verbiage, making it easy to overlook as they tape record your consent over the phone. They will also be ready to use the recording against you if you try to question the charge later.

Looking through all the other negative reviews, I was taken aback by how aggressive the company has been in many of its replies to one star reviews, even going so far as to belittle its critics (e.g., see Ryan C's review on 12/11/15 to observe just how borderline unprofessional the company's response is. Client confidentiality even appears to be violated when the client is outed as a Medical Doctor). If this company had hundreds or thousands of reviews, then I could understand how some negative reviews may be full of hot air. But as a smaller company with few, but exceptionally HIGH number of negative reviews, I would advise that the owner(s) take heed, as it likely speaks more to the way you run your business than it does the credibility of your critics.

Henk P.

Kevin Shaw plumbing installed a drain pan and emergency shut off for a whole house humidifier system that's in our attic on May 14. Price: $928.

There was water coming out of our ceiling today, July 6, and the pan was half full, but leaking somehow anyway. Called them and, this being Friday after 6pm, the earliest they could send someone out would be Monday morning.

So, not only was the job not done correctly, they're also not able to fix emergency problems they have created.

Stay tuned for updates.

For now: avoid!

---- added note follow up after owner response below ---

As you can see, the owner states the pan worked correctly for two months, but that is not correct.

This pan is supposed to catch water if it backs up due to a drain getting clogged, and then the water level in the pan reaches a secondary drain and a trigger in there is supposed to shut off of the unit. The water level never got to that point because a strap holding the pan level got loose, causing the pan to tip and drain into the ceiling. It failed the first time it filled up, so it was not installed correctly. That's not ""working correctly for two months""

Indeed the issue was resolved without cost, but I don't expect anything less, a company doesn't get bonus points for having a 3 month warranty. In fact, that's rather low for installations with low incidence of use.

I cannot be confident that they would fix a construction defect if it shows up beyond the warranty period, the first time it is tested in real life.

The issue was fixed on a Tuesday, while the issue showed up on Friday before that. I didn't know they would come in on Tuesday until the company called me Monday morning. That's something to take into account, how responsive a company is.

Amy C.

Called Kevin Shaw Plumbing and got Kevin immediately, no need to wait for a return call. I explained what I needed, and he was able to send two technicians within half an hour. He was friendly and professional on the phone. Before the technicians arrived, I got their pictures and bios. They arrived promptly and followed directions to the house (which most people mess up on at this address) They introduced themselves with smiles. Both men put on foot covering over their shoes so as not to stain carpet. They surveyed the job, gave an estimate and went to work. The job was done beautifully and quickly. From the time of call to finishing the job was just over an hour! (Toilet repair kit plus new handle and flush apparatus. Overall, they were excellent. The only reason I did not give five stars is because when they replaced a toilet handle fixture, they did not give me options. If they had given me a low, medium, and high end price for a flusher, I might have made that choice. The prices were quite a bit higher than I thought was reasonable, but then again, the service was perfect. If given the trade off, I would rather overpay and have the service level I experienced, than to have someone come out who charged less, but not pleasant.

Ben O.

In my opinion I wouldn't use them. I'm not saying they don't know plumbing or how to service things, but from what I experienced and from what I hear, they may take advantage. I've been a contractor for 30 years and when a tenant in Monrovia couldn't get a hold of the landlord who in turn gets a hold of me, they called kevin shaw right down the street. They proceeded to charge a 90.00 diagnostic fee to tell them that their angle stop was leaking at the toilet supply, which was already known. Then charged another 500.00 to replace it and install a new fill valve in the tank, which didn't need done. I've been around a while and this is extreme, even for shady plumbers, but when they saw no owner and nobody to answer to and knew the tenant would pay, they knew they had the green light. The owner had to absorb the cost. It takes a lot to get me to the point to confront somebody, but me and the owner went into his shop and showed him the invoice and he stared at it for about 30 seconds. When I asked him to justify it, behind watering eyes he says ""I'd rather eat steak than hamburger"" I kid you not. This was many years ago, but more recent in the last couple years I had a 90 year old customer in Arcadia I was doing some plumbing for, and she was so grateful and we got to talking and I told her if you don't call me, just be sure you don't call kevin Shaw Plumbing. She gave me a look and says she already did a couple years before because of a leaking R.O. Fitting. They took her credit card and told her she needed a new sink and faucet and then proceeded to charge her thousands of dollars. I believe she told me 3,000 to 4,000. I talked to her son and I think they tried to get some money back but pretty sure it was fruitless. I am all for plumbers making good money. You are paying for many years of knowledge and equipment and insurance etc. but when I see cases this extreme it is really sad. This is my experience with him and maybe he has turned over a new leaf and is a great guy now. Just always be careful and ask questions. I hope you are enjoying your steak, Kevin.

Update: 5-2-18 after response from owner. Yes, Kevin I made all of this up for fun. Really!! How did I know your "" I'd rather eat steak than hamburger"" line? It's the only time I ever met you and I stood 5' from you in your shop with the owner you ripped off from the condo. I'll never forget it. I may not be a rich contractor, but I'm honest.