Mr. Rooter Plumbing of The Oakland-Berkeley Area

N N.

Possible plumbing issue Friday 4pm while I'm at work. Ugggh I was anticipating this was going to be complicated and costly.
I called them when I got home and spoke with someone who told me an on-call after-hours plumber would call me back soon.
LANCE soon called back and what a patient guy. He asked me informative questions about what could have been going on, waiting while I inspected the situation as he gave me feedback with my sleuthing discoveries.
Turned out it was actually a construction-worker problem rather than a plumbing one so YAY on that front but so cool that Lance toughed it out with me for the 10 minutes it took to figure out that there was no issue at all.
Guy deserves a nice box of cookies. Thx, Lance!

N S.

Spencer was smart, quick to the scene, and super efficient. He got exactly what the problem was and within two hours our plumbing problem was solved. That was amazing service quality - Thanks a lot Spencer!!!

judi H.

In a panic I called them because of a major plumbing issue I had in my Airbnb unit. This was 8:30pm on a Friday night. I called them because they say 24 hour service. While no one was able to come out on Friday night, but by 10am Saturday morning technician Jimmy Pham was there - with all the equipment needed to diagnose - my issue.

Jimmy was very methodical about looking at all possible repair options/alternative and very patiently answered all my questions. Unfortunately it was a much bigger issue than he could fix on Saturday but he was there on Monday with all the tools (and additional help) to fix the problem in my sewer line. Jimmy even had the owner come over to review the situation.

I've heard that this company is a but more expensive than other companies, but I feel you get what you pay for and they are worth it. Professional, reliable, well trained, courteous. Will use again.

D S.

9/29 update - The owner reached out to me the same day and informed me the diagnostics should have been a free estimate and was very helpful, offering a full refund of the $233. They also took some time to understand the diagnostic and send some estimates around the faucet replacement. I had already contacted another plumber by then so I did not end up using their service, and cannot comment on the work, but I do really appreciate the help from the owners.

Original review:
$233 to run a diagnostics which took 15 minutes to tell me I need a new kitchen faucet, which was quoted as a minimum of $600 for the cheapest ones they had (including install), so $833+ for a kitchen faucet install basically.

The diagnostic was not disclosed on the phone when I called even though I asked how much it costs to send someone out, what hourly rates were, etc. I can't imagine a scenario where they would not run 'diagnostics', so it should have been communicated. I get that you can't commit to something you don't know what is wrong. But that is a basic, set price it sounds like. I guess they charge such a high amount because they know the rest of their prices are so expensive people won't go with them, so they need to get something for coming out because they get turned down so much for the actual work?

On the plus side, the person, Jimmy, that came out was on time, very nice, and I wouldn't be surprised if he did excellent work.

Very disappointed in the unexpected fee for 15 minutes of work (30 minutes for the entire visit door to door), not applicable to what I'm sure is only a 30 minute to hour job of replacing the faucet (which is a $300-400 charge not counting the $200+ faucet).

So I guess with the 30 minutes at my place and lets say an hour to change out a faucet, the labor costs would be about $600.

Carol J.

Soooooooo - I am more venting right now, than anything!
Called Mr. Rooter at 8:00 a.m.ish this morning. Waited, waited and waited some more, for someone to call back (as I was told they would). Called again at 3:00 p.m. to ask what was going on?!?! Was told - someone would get back to me. In the mean time - I sent two emails to the company website... Finally at 4:30 p.m. a fellow called. He said that it was the first he got the text from Mr. Rooter. OK.....
He asked the hubby some questions about the issue. Told hubby he had to get a part (without even looking at the issue) and couldn't come until Monday. I kinda' call ""BS""!
I will repost after we see what happens on Monday!

Adam J.

Called this morning, they said they would have someone call me back. It is now 3:00... why say you would have someone call back if you can not keep your word? Horrible customer service, I spent my day waiting on a call back. Please do what you say. Stay away from this place.

Jean D.

I had a ""digital"" shower that only did boiling hot or freezing cold, a 2 to 3 minute wait for hot water at the back of the house, and an ailing garbage disposal. They fixed all of them, were pleasant, clear and punctual throughout, and I'd recommend them in a heartbeat.

Barbara M.

""24/7 service"" is pure false advertising! I called these guys' emergency number at 10 PM last night when my water heater sprung a major leak. I eventually WAS connected to a 24/7 answering service/call center that sounded like it wasn't even in California, where a very nice lady told me she'd put out a call and ""someone would get back to me."" Well, a different local plumber (who does not claim 24/7 service) told me over the phone how to shut off the water to the house temporarily till he could get out today -- he's been here, stopped the leak, and set me up for a replacement job on the 30 year old heater (which I suspected I needed soon anyway) for tomorrow morning. ALL THE WHILE, I HAVE YET TO HEAR BACK FROM MR. ROOTER (It's now 5 PM).
Bottom line: if you are actually having a plumbing emergency and need 24/7 service, DON""T call these guys.

Griffen L.

Three out of the four sinks in our house was clogged at some level. Our technician was Jason Whitefish and was patient and persistent. Our kitchen sink was VERY clogged. It took Jason 4 attempts starting with the standard snake tool to the medium to the heavy industrial and finally punched through the clog at 75ft with the mother of all snakes. He was respectful and knowledgeable explaining the process as he went. I would recommend to anyone.

Lenny O.

We had a 140 foot gas line that needed quick replacement, including concrete trenching. After a few quotes I decided to work with Spencer (the owner) and very glad I did. His team did the job well, quickly and professionally, and was easy to communicate with especially dealing with the city and PGE to reactivate serivice. There was even a snag on a Sunday night, and Spencer came out personally to repair it so get the heating working again. Highly recommended!