Rhino Rooter

Erica H.

To begin with, when I called Rhino Rooter, I was simply looking for advice on this ""Hydroblasting"" that was being recommended to me by another company. Even though I was not necessarily looking to hire Rhino Rooter for any service, the owner, Dave Rocco, answered my call and immediately answered all of my questions regarding my situation without any reservation. He was patient and kind and clearly, very experienced and knowledgeable regarding sewer drain problems. After speaking with Dave, I realized that the other company I had been working with either did not know what they were doing or worse, they were deceptively trying to make extra money off of our situation by recommending an unnecessary and expensive service. So, I called Dave Rocco back and asked if he would give us a second opinion. Even though this call came late on a Wednesday evening, Dave booked us for the very next morning, wanting to come himself to make sure we got the best service. Not only did Dave arrive on time, but he immediately got to work, confidently using the drain access closest to the street, explaining that this would give him the most torque with the snake. He insisted that the camera was not necessary because in most cases, he could ""feel"" where the blockages were and how to address them. Clearly, if he is able to do this without a camera, he is experienced and skilled. Within an hour, he had addressed this so-called ""difficult"" blockage by using a larger blade on his snake. What was most impressive is that in addition to cleaning up his own work area, he cleaned up after the previous company, who had left our basement covered with sewer muck and removed tree roots. When I came downstairs to talk with Dave about what he did, I almost teared up seeing that he had cleaned up the entire mess. I had been anticipating a major cleanup after he left and this was truly such a gift. His work was professional and his customer service was exemplary. Most importantly, Rhino Rooter solved our problem (it's been several week with no issues), clearing the clogged drain pipe and only charged us $350. Obviously, this saved us from a considerably more expensive and possibly unsuccessful service. I'm so glad that I followed my instincts and researched before committing to this other company. I just wish I had called them first. Learn from our mistakes and call Rhino Rooter with any sewer drain problems.

Stephen W.

I called Dave at Rhino Rooter to unclog a blockage in main drain line. He arranged for tech to come to my house within 24 hours. Tech was polite and timely. It was all downhill from there. The tech snaked the main drain but was unable to unclog the blockage. The tech informed me that snake traveled all the way through the septic tank so ""there was no blockage."" Thus, the tech concluded, ""your septic tank is totally full."" Tech requested $290 check, not credit card, I thought this was odd but I wrote the check and requested a receipt. Tech indicated that he didn't have one but he would mail it to me. (Tech also fishing for complement because he left bathroom in the same neat condition that he found it (I told him ""that was expected""))

I contacted septic company on emergency basis and they arrived the following day. After cleaning septic tank, toilet would not flush, indicating that there was a drain blockage. The septic company accessed the drain through the septic tank, located and cleared the blockage, and the drain was free and clear. Septic company charged $450, which included the extra work of clearing blocked drain (not their job). In sum, Rhino's tech DID not feed the snake all the way through to Septic tank because the blockage prevented the snake from going that far. The blockage should have been cleared by Rhino for $290.

I called Dave from Rhino and informed him what happened. I asked him for partial reimbursement of $150 because his Tech was unable to fix problem AND his tech was incorrect about what was causing the blockage. Dave reluctantly agreed to reimburse me $150 out of $290. Weeks later, I never received the check so I called Dave again. Dave resorted to calling me names . . . but when I reminded him that HE AGREED to reimburse me $150, he claimed that he was on vacation and didn't have time to send me the check. One month later, I still have not received the check, prompting me to write this review.

Incompetent tech. Shady (only accepted check when website indicates credit card payment acceptable) . .. didn't provide invoice. Untrustworthy (promised reimbursement but it never came). Unprofessional (name-calling).

There are probably better choices out there.

Keith S.

Rhino Rooter was very helpful. We have a problem drain and they cleaned it out once, and a month later it clogged again. It's a difficult pipe. They had a full schedule but still managed to arrive that day around 6:30pm, cleaned the drain out (there was no charge for this 2nd visit) and saved my day.

Marco V.

I don't use my basement very often, so you can imagine my concern when I found my restroom flooded in 2 inches of water. I called a couple different plumbers first, and no one wanted to deal with the mess. When I called Rhino Rooter, I spoke to David, and he assured me that he could make it out to my house in the late afternoon. David knew exactly what the problem was, and got to work clearing the main drain, while I went upstairs to finish up some work. About an hour later, I got a text from David, telling me he was all set. I was shocked, at how quickly he was able to fix the problem. It's been a month now, and I haven't had any other issues. David was very thorough, clean, and reasonable. I work as a real estate agent, and I would be comfortable referring him to all of my clients.

Oscar R.

An employee from the company came in the morning and tried getting to the pipe under my sink for about 45 minutes without success as he was a very big man. He called his boss under the pretext that my disposal needed to be removed in order to reach the pipe. The owner came and told me he had to charge me by the job and not by the hour. I asked why and he said that it is the way he charges. He admitted that his guy was too big to fit to get under my sink and did the job himself in 10 minutes without removing the disposal. He charged me $250. I talked him down to $190. I truly feel he charged me for the time of his employee who could not do the job. Would never hire this company again.

Chris Y.

He charged me more than twice other plumbers to clean my ejector pump, and it would only work for a few hours after cleaning. He then concluded the pump needed to be replaced, and yet his replacement cost (labor + equipment) was still much more than other plumbers quoted. I had the pump replaced by another plumber for $300 less than Rhino Rooter quoted. I do not recommend using Rhino Rooter.

Cindy F.

This was a remarkably happy experience, considering I needed two drains cleared, my tenants' bathroom sink and my own tub. I emailed Rhino Rooter through Angie's List and got an IMMEDIATE reply, saying they could help and to feel free to call. I called, left a message, and while I was still on the phone telling my tenant I'd reached a drain company, I got a call back. They could come that same afternoon -- in about two hours! Wow. I'd been prepared to wait several days.

Jose arrived roughly when expected and I had him do my tub first, as I thought it would be easier, but it turned out to be an long, arduous job, thanks to what turned out to be shoddy workmanship in the installation of my pipes and fixtures during my 2010 bathroom reno. Jose was stuck working on my tub for almost two hours. The owner kept calling Jose to see what was taking so long, as other clients were waiting. (That shows you how much this company attends to its customers -- impressive.) Jose explained that certain pipes were not connected and certain parts didn't fit, which I wish I'd known in 2010. Too late now, but I was grateful that Jose took the time to show me the problems. He finally finished working on my drain, then went upstairs and cleared my tenants' drain in a flash. He cleaned up both their sink and my tub thoroughly before leaving.

I expected to have to pay more than the quoted price, since Jose had had to stay so long. But here's the nicest part of the story: Jose handed me his phone, saying his boss wanted to talk to me. After I verified Jose's tale of woe with my tub, his boss (sorry, I forget his name -- very personable and concerned though) told me not to worry, that I would only have to pay the agreed-upon rate. Yay!

I hate dealing with issues like clogged sinks and tubs, but now that I've discovered Rhino Rooter, I say bring them on! Well, maybe not really, but at least I will know who to call in the future. It's such a relief to find such professionalism and concern for customer satisfaction in a service company. Reasonable prices too. Thanks, Rhino Rooter!

Michael M.

I found Dave & his company through Angie's List where he has over 200 ""A"" ratings, so it looked like he would be a good first person to call when my main sewer line started backing up into my laundry.

I called at 9am this morning and he was able to come out by 1pm the same day. He was extremely friendly and professional and was able to clear out the blockage all the way to the street in about two hours.

I live in a 100+ year old house with the original piping through the street. He recognized this and decided to use an access point for the snake that was further into the house (away from the foundation) in order to be less likely to cause damage to the piping from trying to open an access point that hasn't been opened in decades. This was great, since it was likely more work for him to rooter out longer lengths of pipe.

The cost was very reasonable and he even brought in a camera to show me the cleared out pipe all the way to the street. I had asked him a few other questions I had about my home's plumbing (newer homeowner) and he seemed very honest, explaining that everything looked good & I didn't need to replace any of the piping/plumbing work. I appreciated the honesty when he could have tried to sell me additional unnecessary work.

HQ L.

I thought these guys were great. I scheduled a call for to have the Main Line Drain from my house snaked and then cancelled it 20 minutes later because I found someone cheaper who ended up trying to totally rip me off. I threw that guy out of the house and called Rhino Rooter again. Explaining my situation (and apologizing for canceling) the guy on the phone was VERY gracious and re-added me to their call list. Two guys came out at 7:30 on a Sunday night (Oscar night no less) and snaked the drain within 45 minutes. It had tree roots in it so they actually did it twice to be very sure they got as much as they could. Rudy and Jose were equally as gracious and polite and really clean in their work; This is important- I've had my drain snaked before and have always had a huge mess to clean up afterwards- not with these guys. Rudy also advised me about replacing one of my drain caps - giving me detailed instructions of what I need to purchase as well as alternate options. The cost was $300 which is competitive for a main line auger job. No off-hours add ons. I highly recommend them.

Chris T.

My bathtub had been running slow for a while, but having a new baby in the house we could never get around to scheduling the service to come out. We have used Clean Drains, Inc in the past with great results as (this drain needs to be cleaned every 18-24 months).

My Mother-in-law was trying to be helpful while we were away over a long weekend and she scheduled Rhino-Rooter. Typically this service takes 30-60 minutes and costs a flat rate of $125-$150. This guy took a really long time and charged my mother in law more than $350 for the visit. Basically taking advantage of an older unknowing customer. Stay away.