Ravinia Plumbing

Steve C.

I had a previous 1-star review for Ravinia plumbing here for about a week. I had hired them to dewinterize my home. Their hvac technician found two valves that he believed needed to be replaced for the boiler to function properly. He did a satisfactory job in replacing the valves.

The technician asked if he could bleed the radiators for $100. We told him no, he went on and did it anyway. The $100 charge showed up on our bill. We talked with the manager to resolve this issue. The manager, while not the most courteous person, seems respectable and willing to discuss concerns.

The technician that dewinterized our other water lines (outside of the boiler) was very friendly and cooperative.

I changed my initial review after speaking with the manager. He explained the miscommunication and apologized for the inconvenience. He expressed how he felt that my previous review was not accurate and thus unfair, and now understanding his position, I agreed.

angela l.

Got referral from our neighbor and have used their services numerous times throughout the years.
Different crew or individual showed up for the repair projects were all:
Efficient
Competent
Charges layers out clearly upfront
Cleaned up nicely afterward
Fixed the problem
We feel we can rely them to do a good job.

Preston C.

My great experience began with calling to schedule an appointment. The person I spoke to was very friendly and engaging. I explained my problem and she gave me a time window for the following day and said if she could get someone out sooner, she would. I appreciated that thoughtfulness.

The next day, the technician arrived within the designated time and was very friendly. It had snowed the day before and he was careful to wear booties in the house. I explained the problem I was having and he assured me it could be handled. He explained the pricing and once the work was done, offered tips on how to avoid a reoccurrence of the problem. Great experience!

R D.

When a home has plumbing or heating problems you want to go to a source you can trust and that will give you a fair value. We used Ravinia in the past and while expensive versus others in the Northbrook area they were efficient, timely and professional. And we trusted them to do good work.

But today my water heater went out and I needed a new one quickly. So I called Ravinia again. They came out for their customary $59 service fee that is waived if you use them and the cost they quoted me was about $400 more than several others I received. I tried to explain this to their repair guy but he basically said take it or leave it, so I left it. And I am leaving Ravinia. They are no longer in touch with their competitive marketplace and if I were you I would avoid them altogether, unless you want to pay a whole lot more than you have to and want to fund their very attractive service fleet on the streets.

Dave J.

My ""credibility is worth $95"".

That's what the owner of ANOTHER plumbing company told me during a somewhat heated telephone discussion on the evening of November 10, 2015. What would compel a business owner to insult a (former) frequent customer in such a manner?

I noticed two very minor leaks in my basement. One of the leaks was at a cast iron waste pipe, the other was at a copper water pipe on the opposite side of the basement. Having had previous satisfactory business dealings with the OTHER plumbing company, I gave them a call to come out on November 4, 2015 to diagnose and correct the problem. It was understood, and mutually agreed upon, that there would be a $68 charge to show up. Fine.

The two plumbers were on time, and courteous. They put on protective footwear and went to the basement to look at the two leaks. After careful examination, and a phone call to their office, they estimated the cost to replace 30' of 4"" cast iron pipe (at leak #1) and 14' of copper piping (at leak #2) for a total of $3,185.00. They said the pipe was cracked. Also, the cast iron line would have to be rodded out at a cost of $265. It should also be noted that the two plumbers bad-mouthed the quality of the work performed by another company at an earlier date. I was disappointed to learn that their ""advanced diagnosis"" incurred an additional charge of $95.

Time for a second opinion.

On November 5, 2015, I called in RAVINIA PLUMBING AND HEATING which I also had dealt with previously and was satisfied with, for a second diagnosis and estimate. Their plumber was also courteous, on time, and wore protective footwear (paper-like booties to prevent spreading any dirt on the floor from their boots).

Alas, the RAVINIA plumber also diagnosed leaks, but determined the leaks were coming from missing lead around several joints in the cast iron piping (leak #1). The end cap of the copper water line was loose (leak #2). The plumber tightened the end cap, and voila...the leak was gone! No need to replace 14' of copper piping! And he agreed with the first diagnosis only as it pertained to a clogged waste line...around $300 to rod out. Repacking the lead around the joints would cost an additional $250. Total cost: $560.

When I brought this up to the owner of the OTHER PLUMBING COMPANY, he became somewhat agitated, and very defensive. He said he wasn't going to lose sleep over $95 and agreed to refund this portion of the charge. I had considered putting a stop on the the $68 show up charge with my credit card company, but the process, and his attitude didn't make the effort worthwhile.

When in doubt, ALWAYS get a second opinion!

So, to recap, my credibility is worth $95. I learned a lesson that cost me $68.

But, I got to keep $2890 in my pocket.

Bravo, Ravinia Plumbing! Bravo! They are honest, professional, friendly, and do the job right!

Christopher T.

Dave Ariano and Jim Picchetti of Ravinia Plumbing really came through for us. My client, a private owner of a new group home for his son and two other young men with autism, needed a new water service be put in place on short notice. Dave got this pushed through in just a few days and it is now going in Monday. This is weeks ahead of everyone else's schedule. Involving digging up the street and horizontally boring over to the house it is not simple - except for Ravinia Plumbing. Ravinia is also a rock solid company for quality of work and I highly recommend.

A thousand thanks!!

Chris Turley
Turley Architects

Tom R.

As usual, extraordinary service. Noticed water leaking from upstairs toilet Monday evening. I shut the water off, so not an emergecy. Called Ravinia Plumbing and left a message with their service (live person) for them to call me Tuesday morning. An hour later I got a call from Ravinia so I could tell them what was happening, and he wanted to ensure that I had shut off the water to the toilet. 7:45 Tuesday morning they called. I have an appointment for 8-9:00 am. 8:15 Jeff called to say he was on the way. 9:30 am it was fixed. They are not inexpensive, but I don't know them to be higher than others. I do know they are prompt, professional, fix things right the first time.

Mr F.

Mahoney Plumbing was a great firm. They got the work done for a reasonable cost.
My father used the company with success for years!
Ravinia Plumbing is not the same story.
My 93 year old father insisted on calling Mahoney when his sewer backed up recently.
After 2 days, 2 plumbers and a bill for over $800 nothing was clear. The first man said he had rodded out 40 feet in the sewer under the yard and there was a blockage, the yard would have to be 'dug up'. The next man, the next day, said the rodding was still in the house and the basement floor would have to be 'dug uo'. The combined bill was already over $800, with no success, and they were guessing what was wrong.

I called All Clear Sewer - and for a $65.00 charge, they came to the same conclusion. After careful inspection, they located the outside sewer clean out, and determined where the problem existed. Their expert help defined the problem. It was NOT where either of the Ravinia Plumbing men said the problem started.
When contacted, they refused to rebate any of the money already paid, and said they could finish the job for more payments.
I will NOT be calling Ravinia Plumbing in the future.

Tim J.

I had been a client of Mahoney Plumbing for some time, and could not have been happier with their high level of service. Since Ravinia bought Mahoney, I have had two visits. The first was at our commercial space, a very old building in downtown Libertyville. We had an issue with our air conditioning unit that involved quite a bit of practical problem solving. The HVAC guy they sent over was absolutely great.

The other night just after 10pm, the furnace in our house started making good awful noises. We have a 50+ year old furnace and a radiator system in a 1920s house. I was very scared as I had no idea if there was going to be an explosion, a freezing home, or a $10k bill.

When I called the emergency number for Ravinia, I got a call screener who took down all the details from me and contacted their on-call person: David. Maybe 5 minutes later, I got a call from David Ariano, Ravinia's head honcho. David put me at ease right away. He told me what he thought the issue was, then we went on FaceTime and I showed him the situation, and he confirmed his suspicions (a part broke- no danger, but no heat, either). I can't tell you how good it was to know that somebody who really knew their stuff was on the other line. He got a guy (Scott- top notch!) out there within an hour and we were all good in less than an hour from there. I guess my problem was really that bad in the grand scheme of things, but when you have a scary noise coming from something that expensive and potentially dangerous and you have a 1 year old and its 15 degrees outside, its a big deal.

Yes, I got a bill, but it was far more reasonable than what I was girding myself for this emergency service in the middle of the night, in the middle of the winter.

I could not recommend Ravinia higher. Every single interaction I've had with them has been great. True professionals.

Jason N.

Ok, they did the right thing and fixed my issue so I can recommend them now. Thanks Dan for resolving my issue. Great integrity!!!