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HH Hydronics Inc., Hector Hernandez, 650-384-6393.
Highly recommended for leak fixing (as well as radiant heat). Hector fixed a leak in our hot water (drinking water) quickly and professionally for much less than the price quoted by Master Plumbing. Hector learned his craft from Dan Salzberg and Bill Lipp.
Vince on Richard Court, 6/2/22
Abound Plumbing: Jose Avalos, 408) 706-7022, (925) 577-9771
We had major water leak under our kitchen sink. Jose answered the phone after normal work hours, and was able to send Steve to diagnose and fix the problem the next morning! Steve arrived ready to work. He was knowledgeable, friendly, and explained payment options, charges, and senior discount! He also answered a few small plumbing questions for us. When he was done, the problem was fixed and we had learned some useful tips about airgaps and faucets.
We highly recommend this skilled, friendly, and responsive service, and will use them again!
Sarah and Dox on Adele February 03, 2023
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When we had a shower valve leak, Jose answered his phone immediately and quickly scheduled a plumber. He suggested that if I wanted to job to go faster and cost less, I could purchase the replacement valve myself. I sent him photos of the shower handle, and he advised me what to purchase. When I was at the hardware store, I contacted him again and showed him what was available, and he again advised me. The plumber was very professional and also alerted me to a small issue with my water heater. Highly recommended.
Vince on Richard Court, 6/2/22
Boudreau Plumbing & Heating, Inc.
Something as easy as a water heater should be easy. Our 13yr old water heater heater needed to go away, its only problem was age. Neither of the previous ones had lasted this long, both for leaks at 8 and 10 years. Boudreau responded to the last emergency so we arranged a visit to provide a replacement estimate. Glenn was prompt, answered more than enough questions, and the estimate was in the range of the many phone quotes I had received in the prior week. A call to the office arranged installation and when Glenn and his assistant arrived 4 days later in went the water heater on time and budget $. Easy.
Alan on Alvin 11/2021
3-17-21
Same recommendations as below - Sam Custer, Dave's Specialized, After Hours Plumbing, A&A Plumbing .
New one is Commando Plumbing
2-28-21
Sam/Therese Custer
650-537-0352
650-567-0016
I do NOT recommend Mike Council Plumbing. They have taken advantage of two seniors in the neighborhood, charging $20,000 for something that should have been less than $10,000.
Frank with After Hours Plumbing - 650-279-5357 - Frank is in MV and recently helped a neighbor who was having a huge plumbing issue. They do plumbing, heating and AC.
Mike Fox A&A Plumbing 800-577-5862-They do plumbing, heating and AC.
dave's specialized -david diaz. -650 814 6323
EJ Plumbing
While Sam Custer replaced a leaking pipe under my sink I asked him who he would recommend for big jobs such as sewer replacement. He said that EJ Plumbing does good work for reasonable prices.
Marilyn Gildea on 11/13/17
2-28-2017
Thanks to all who responded. Here's a list of the responses i got along with number of recommendations:
Sam Custer 650-537-0352 (cell) - 3
Justin Markovits http://www.plumberdrummer.com - 1
Tom's Plumbing (408) 867-6010 -1
Scott's Plumbing (408) 246-8376 - 1
Dale plumbing out of Redwood City - 1
E J plumbing - 3
linda powers
Sewer problem? Call the City first
Alice Hazelgrove advised in 2015: I learned (the expensive way) that the City needs to check your line to the street before you pay for a plumbing service to come. Call (650) 903-6329 to report a backup or overflow. They respond at all hours; the worker who came (within two hours, on a Sunday) told me to always call the City first. See www.ci.mtnview.ca.us/depts/pw/services/sewer.asp for info.
Palo Alto Plumbing Jan 2015 ========
reposted from MLN announcements list
Just to conclude the story, I called Palo Alto Plumbing back today to notify them that the mainline they had snaked and then re-snaked again the next day after the city had told them that they missed roots 4 ft in from the street, had backed up again 2 weeks later. In that 2 weeks, I was away from home and had not used the facilities. I explained that another plumber (Sam Custer) had come and removed a 17 inch root that was right where the city had said it would be and that it seemed that somehow they had missed it.
The response was that they don't guarantee sewer clean outs and that they had done their job. I can understand that but to have it back up two weeks after they had been here twice and when I had been on vacation most of the time doesn't seem normal under any circumstance. Her reply was that they already gave me one free visit (that was requested by the city since they didn't do the job right the first time). She reiterated that they don't guarantee clean outs and it was my problem. Goodbye. (Rudely)
This is not the kind of service to expect from any business, much less a local one and they obviously don't take any interest in what they do or doing the job right. It was a waste of $200 to have them come out. I definitely will not be using them again and would not recommend them as they don't take any pride in their work nor do they care about customer satisfaction. It is now 1 1/2 weeks since Sam cleaned the lines and all drains are still working correctly.
Sam Custer
650.567.0016 (landline) or 650-537-0352 (cell). Call cell for quicker response
Sam Custer is very much still in business. Office Phone: 650-567-0016 Cell Phone: 650-537-0352 — Janet, Dec. 2010
Sam fixed the sewer line in our house in November 2010. I called him on his cell - 537-0352 — Shalini on Dell
He’s a licensed plumber and [former; as of 11/2010] Monta Loma resident. His cell phone number is 537-0352. (Dayne, former ML resident)
Sam is a former ML neighbor who is an excellent plumber. He has my highest recommendation. He is also a licensed contractor.
—Marguerite (Peggy M) on Thompson Square
Just had a toilet installed by plumber, [email protected] tel [650] 567.0016, x1. Sam has the expertise of an old-timer who knows what these Eichler homes need since he lives in one, too. His rates seem very fair. — Elaine on Diablo [added from email dated 9/17/2005 by artibee]
Sam cleaned out the clog in my kitchen sink drain, then ran his snake to clean out the sewer line and checked out both bathroom sinks and tubs. I was impressed by his thoroughness. — Marilyn on Thaddeus, November 2011.
Asked for referrals from group and four people recommended Sam. He came, gave an estimate, faucet was beyond repair, so it took longer to replace, and a return trip, but he kept to his estimate. Comfortable to have him in the house. I will definitely call him again. He lives in Mtn. View.
Deborah 9.12
We call Sam when we have a backup, he is our go-to plumber. He is reasonable, very good and was recommended from various neighbors. Anna Avenue - 01/16.
UPDATE 5/7/18 by Chuck Henderson on Aldean. Sam Custer was by today to deal with two problems with the kitchen sink faucet and shut-off faucet under the sink. He was quick and thorough in the repairs. In addition he cleaned out some debris to improve hot water pressure. Sam is your best choice for good handyman type services in your home. He also deals with all types of appliances.
Sam came the same day I called and cleaned out a blockage that made water overflow from the washer outlet pipe flooding the garage. That same block also made the water from the kitchen sink overflow out the same washer outlet pipe. He had to cut the fused exterior cleanout cap under the kitchen window before he could use the plumbing snake. He knows the type of houses in the ML neighborhood so I was confident he could solve our issue. Very nice person and I recommend him. His price was 25% lower than my quote from EJ Plumbing. William on Mardell (Mar 4, 2019)
EJ Plumbing
Called EJ Plumbing based on recommendations in this Wiki. The technician was named Louis, and he did a fine job. I needed a new water heater, and they did the job quickly and within what I would expect the cost to be. Very friendly and polite. (1/30/2013) Steve
We ended up using EJ Plumbing (650-520-8717). The technician's name was Sam and I would highly recommend him. His attention to detail and desire to do a quality job stand out in my mind. I wouldn't hesitate to call him again. Their prices were competitive with the other bids I received but I feel like I got more expertise for my money.
Shelly (8/30/2012)
We just used EJ Plumbing to put a new lateral sewer line in. Our contact was Daniel (650-787-1959). They did an excellent job and I could not be more happy! We were upset that a year previous we put in a new driveway and walkway and had the sewer evaluated at the time and thought it was in good shape. A year after putting the driveway in the sewer started to back up. We had 3 plumber come out and to try and clean the sewer and two of them recommended replacing it. The roots had become so bad the cleaning machines they use could barely get through them and we were told that it would take several attempts to clean the pipe and we would probably haft to do it over within a year. I was very concerned about destroying the walkway, let alone scratching. EJ Plumbing made every effort to avoid it. They brought plywood and tarps to protect the concrete and avoided leaving any heavy equipment on the driveway. They compacted all the soil afterwards and did not leave even a small scratch on the driveway or walkway They did exactly what they said and avoided damaging any plants or digging outside the area they said they needed to. They were quick and efficient and had the sewer done by 3pm. They were professional, friendly and on-time. They are not the cheapest but they are a local company, located on Sierra Vista and worth slight extra cost. PS they did match the lowest bid. (07/23/2015) Jeff on Alvin
I had EJ add a cleanout (drain valve) to my laundry drain line. Another plumber estimated it would cost more than $900. The EJ plumber said $475 but discounted it because EJ had recently done some work on the same pipes. It turned out that the previous work made adding the cleanout easier so the plumber discounted the cost another 10%. I was happy until it took the the EJ plumber less than 1/2 hour to do the job and it still cost me more than $300, and I realized I could have done it myself because the hard part was done by the first EJ plumber. (Vince on Richard Ct. 1/2016)
Roto Rooter:
RotoRooter, January 2016
Sewer backed up into tubs and toilets from clothes washer. Called and was handled with courtesy. Plumber came in 1.5 hours because I pleaded urgency. Was surprised to find the cost to be over $350 when the dispatcher wouldn't give a quote.
The work was done in 45 minutes by a pleasant, competent plumber. Would recommend them.
Jim C on Thaddeus
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Rotorooter -- September 2015
Superb in every category: cheerful appointment-setter, prompt and accurate "We're coming!" notification, timely arrival, terrific "technician" (Jesse), lots of sensible information, a straightforward and completely effective dual-snaking (Main and Kitchen-to-Main routes), a subterranean post-operative video colonoscopy ("Those were once root-clogs, harmless now! And look, no clay-pipe damage after all these decades!"), the revelation that the City's sewer-entry pipe is broken (creating a snag that may well give us trouble in a while, here upstream from it), and a tolerable cost of $378. I don't know what Material World kinds of things can still bite us, but So Far So Very Good.
Ike -- Victory Ave
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Roto-rooter September 2014-price has gone up a lot since last time we called them. Charged $728 to clean clogged sewer line—2 man job for main line since had to go on roof. Line inside house got clogged with back up from main line—maybe. Charged extra to clear the inside line.
Plus—got here fast. Workmen seemed competent. Lines seem to be working. I will post if have problems with this incident
minus—very high price. charge to clear line in 2004 by Roto-rooter was $272. Also done by 2 guys at that time.
I have had the best luck with Roto Rooter.....estimate wise and just plain honest...and great guarantee. Just don't buy their drain cleaner/maintainence stuff.....if you need that Home Depot has some great stuff that worked to clear my bathroom sink in 15 minutes... (PS)
We had a sink backup and used roto rooter. They were really good and professional too. (Oliver)
We've had good success with Roto-rooter; google them for the number. (Joel)
Roto Rooter is really good at this. They have a standard price for it and guarantee it for a period of time. (can't remember how long) (cj)
i used the local roto rooter, probably in los altos. great job, nice guy.
i'd first called rescue rooter and the guy was a jerk and tried to make it a money windfall. i'll never call them again. .(bren)
Sounds like roots in the lines. Roto Rooter is good for cleaning the pipes. Also you can have the city come out for free and cleanout from the sewer to your cleanout pipe. (Heidi)
I used Roto Rooters. They came out about 1.5 hours after I called and cleaned out from the clean out on our property to the blockage and then back out to the street. Since the clean out is a two way cleanout there is no need to do it from the roof. Cost was $269.00 (John)
We highly recommend Roto-Rooter as they saved us over $5K; the estimate from another pluber who said we had to replace the "broken" main sewer line which caused the clogging. Juan Martinez from Roto-Rooter was friendly, very knowledgeable, explained clearly the problem and what needed to be done including an estimate. He cleared roots from the main line (which was not broken) from house to city cleanout. He checked our toilets, replaced valves & other parts which were quite old and left us with 2 toilets which were like new. He recommends periodic cleaning of drains with Pipe Shield sto prevent clogging. Pipe Shield can be purhcased only from Roto-Rooter. Work was done on 2/21/08 in about 2 hours. (Rita & Rex, 2/22/08)
Master Plumbers:
Yes, snaked our house from the street, guy stood there and fed it in...$88 hr, he was there about an hour. I work for a real estate office that does LOTS of property management, they shop for the best work best prices and that's who they use, otherwise I would’ve called roto rooter...
Ours was bubbling back and forth shower/toilet...no waste luckily, but could barely use....
Master Plumbing charged me $88, I tried the City for free first but didn’t work… (Karen)
Around The Clock Plumbing - (650) 968-1100
I'm happy with their service. (Hether)
you can also try "all hours plumbing" or "around the clock plumbing", something like that. again, probably los altos. they did some plumbing work, but not sewer work (which is what you need). the guy was great, clean (actually smelled nice), on time, and fixed another issue he found (Bren)
Dahl Plumbing and Heating
We just finished up a house remodel and I thought that I should share
some feedback on the contractors that we used.
I highly recommend the following Companies:
JDW Painting 408-499-1910
Garcia Tile 650-255-4149
Dahl Plumbing & Heating 650-213-9506
William Lipp Hydronics
According to another contractor Lipp Hydronics went out of business.
650-327-1943
We've had them out many times for radiant heat leaks. Once an emergency and they came on a Sunday. And also (March 2007) for a major in-slab hot water leak. Our tech, Kirby, used to live on Alvin, and is very familiar with radiant heat in Eichlers. He had to drill through quite a bit of concrete to get to the hot water leak, but he managed not to shake the radiant heat apart. The office is a bit slow sometimes and the lady a bit cranky, but once Kirby's on the job, it's been quality service. ~ Jen on Alvin
Dan Salzberg
Neighbors recommended Dan Salzberg, 650-965-3777. He lives in Monta Loma and used to work for Lipp (see other entry). He was very nice on the phone but going on vacation at the time we needed him. ~ Jen on Alvin
Craig Plumbing
Los Gatos (408-358-1333); we used them to repipe the whole house after a major water leak. They did a very good job, finished the whole thing in four days, the final bill came to 20% more than the estimate (I don't know if that is normal) -Shalini
Around The Clock Plumbing - (650) 968-1100
After replacing the cartridge in my kitchen sink faucet, I got only a trickle of water coming out. I called Around the Clock Plumbing (on a Sunday, no less) and got Nick, the manager of the company, who was covering. He talked me through taking apart the faucet head and cleaning it out (which, apparently, was also part of the problem that I didn't know about). That was all I needed to do. Nick was so nice and helpful and said to call anytime... that phone calls are free! Where do you find that these days?! So I highly recommend this company.
Nick says he's been with the company for 27 years. It's a small, family-owned company, and they're always available, around the clock, as the name indicates. We got into a conversation about the neighborhood, and he seems to know this neighborhood. I'm very satisfied and will call them with any future needs. Cheryl Jasper - 10/23/05
Joe Chan's Appliance
650/960.0969
Note from Scott (3/5/2010): Joe Chan is a fantastic handyman who will fix simple plumbing problems, but he does not specialize in plumbing.
J&R Plumbing
We used Charlie, owner of J&R Plumbing for a very similar situation. Reasonable, not cheap, and very skilled. J & R Plumbing & General Contracting (650) 322-3001 (650) 320-8213 (650) 564-9026 4045 Transport St, Palo Alto, CA 9430
We also had work done by Charlie in the past year and were very pleased. — Sheri on Anna Ave (posted 12/6/06)
Our work (installation of new toilets) was done in the fall of '04, but I still recall the professional demeanor of Charlie, who gave the estimate, and Vince, who did the actual work. They charge by the job, so there's no need to watch the clock with a sense of dread as the hours tick by...Have since recommended them to two neighbors who were also pleased with the service.
Charlie changed two bathroom faucets and unclogged a drain. He was very professional. (March 2009) Adrienne on Palmer
Charlie has retired (Feb 2017) Ken on Mardell
Pro-Plumbing - 368-9015
Tony and his crew are honest, reliable, fast and hard-working. They have snaked out a plugged up pipe, replaced our house/sewer main, and replaced our hot water heater. I trust them implicitly. - Leane Reelfs
$15 Sewer and Drain - (650) 968-1551
As of 08/2005, fixed fee of $64.00 per cleaning.
I had a terrible experience with $15 Sewer and Drain. I called because my sewer was backing up and was told the charge would be $70. The man came on time, but he was belligerent and I felt uncomfortable with him. He lit up a cigarette but I didn't ask him not to smoke as I was afraid I might upset him! When he finally found the drain cover for the sewer he told me it was only a one-way cleanout. I told him Roto Rooter had cleaned it out before and I was sure it was two-way. He then searched for another way to access the sewer and went up on the roof. He said it was a 2 man job and would now cost $140. He was about to call out someone else when I told him I didn't want the job done at that price and I was sure I had a two-way cleanout. He charged me a call out fee of $20. I then called the City and a very nice man came out promptly and cleared from the cleanout to the street. He would not go to the house, but he said the cleanout is definiately two-way. I called $15 S&D and requested back my $20. My thanks to the neighbors whose e-mails I saw about calling out the City. This was on a Sunday. I would not call out $15 S&D again.
Hether on Mardell (June 07)
City of Mountain View
The City of Mountain View will clean out sewer line roots, etc. from streetside cleanout for free 24 hours a day, every day, including holidays. They usually come in 30-45 minutes, and they're really nice and helpful. During business hours call 903-6329 and after hours call 903-6395.
American Plumbing
This is a negative review of American Plumbing. Due to a very serious error on their part, I retract all recommendations for them now or any time in the future. Because the owner, Mario Francisco, did not hire qualified help nor supervise them when they were digging the hole to install a new sewer line for a client of mine, the workers hit the gas line! This brought the fire department, the police department, and the PG&E repair crew to the scene. Gas to the entire last block of Alvin was shut down for many hours. Fortunately, no one was hurt. But it could have been a disaster. Mario admitted the error but had a negative attitude about the repair work he became responsible for - restoring the landscaping; paying to have the brand-new torn up driveway repaired, etc. He became very difficult to deal with in this crisis despite the implications of not getting future referrals. I strongly advise anyone who reads this Wiki to never use American Plumbing as a result.
In another incident for a different client to whom I referred him, he again did not supervise his help, and they were digging in the area of the water line rather than the sewer line so created two areas of landscaping that were destroyed. In this case, we followed with replacing all of the front yard with grass, but had we not done so, the patching would have diminished the aesthetics of the yard.
Pat Jordan
Another NEGATIVE: American Plumbing needs to go back to plumbing school. They gave us an estimate more than $5K over the actual cost of work done by Roto-Rooter. Ameridan Plumbing twice gave us incorrect information and recommended unnecessary extensive work of trenching front yard, under/around palm tree, through driveway and walkway to front door in order to replace the main sewer line which the technician said was broken. It was NOT broken. They certainly confirmed our suspicious feelings that something did not sound right with their findings and searching for lines. We would never call American Plumbing again, not even for an estimate.
Rita & Rex, 2/22/08
Repipe Specialists
***Negative Review - Mar2009***Salesman (Ron) added $2K to total bill of $7K to replace 3/4" copper main with a 1" copper main under the pretense that "everything would work better in the house". However, the 1" copper main was immediately reduced to 3/4" inch upon coming into the house. Thus, there was no benefit of upgrading the main line (...other than replacing say 15 year old copper with new copper that's a little thicker). Making matters worse is that the salesman (Ron) continued to claim that there's a benefit which is essentially too technical to fully explain to a lay person. This is complete BS in my opinion. Replacing the main chewed up our yard and broke our sprinklers in more than a half-dozen places, and added $2K to the cost. I would advise caution in any areas of trust with Repipe Specialist's sales folks, especially Ron (Note: Their workman ship is pretty good...however...they subcontract this out anyways so you might get a better deal going direct...their subcontractor on our job was JA Plumbing out of Hayward, 866-699-7586.)
Bob, Diablo
Trenchless Sewer Repair
Bay Area Trenchless - Sean Fry (408) 981-5730; [email protected]
11/2/2017, Ken on Thaddeus
Just had this done and can’t say enough good things about it. Work was done in a timely and professional manner with no surprises. Cost was $4800, which was approximately 1/2 what Roto-Rooter had quoted
Rescue Rooter
We had to have our sewer line replaced and used Rescue Rooter to do a trench less replacement. However we would NEVER uses them again. Although the job was finally completed reasonably satisfactorily, we did not like: the way some of the job was done, the way the workers appeared to be paid, some mess left behind, the way the job was priced (playing games with us on the pricing), and the length of time it took to do the job,
H & H
(two votes for)
I've just had mine done by this chap, who was recommended by another neighbor. I wish he'd been a bit more careful with where he put the dirt when he was digging and I wish I'd supervised more. It was trenchless.
His name is SEAN FRY
Company name: H & H company
Phone: 408-224-7777
Me & my neighbor across the street did it about 6 months ago. Actually my neighbor was the one who did the research & she found this company through her connection with City of Mountain View. This is the company that City of Mountain View always uses for their needs. The name of the company is:
H & H Company
other comment
one person who is a plumber says that liners will reduce the size of the pipe, so investigate carefully if you are considering liners
