Baker Elman Plumbing

Turned out to be a real simple fix. He sized it up right away and he was in and out in no time. Thoroughly professional and friendly. Would not heistate to use again.

Excellent - They said it would take 2 days - and finished in a 1 1/2 days and most important had all the bathroom fixtures working at the end of day one (very important - we have only one bathroom) The estimate was exactly what they had said. The 2 man crew were polite, knowledgeable, worked quickly and left everything clean and in working order.

They are honest, fast and responsive!

In order to get the job done on time for me they sent 3 plumbers and it took them 2-1/2 hours to complete the work. They did great quality work and they were all very friendly and cheerful. To install the water hose spigot one plumber had to climb into a very short crawl space and coordinate with another plumber that was outside. I had a racks full of electronics in front of the crawl space, they helped me move stuff without complaining and afterwards they offered to help put it back. My sink is no longer leaking and the pex line in the basement is no longer leaking either. My lawn is doing very well now thanks to them. They now do electronic receipts instead of writing them on the spot, but I got the receipt the same day via email. I noticed that they hadn't given me 10% off for being an Angie's List member; they took care of that right away and sent me a check for 10% off the work. I felt bad that I was taking money back from them after the great work they did but having just bought a house every dollar saved is important.

Our experience from start to finish was wonderful!! David was very knowledgeable and informative and addressed the issues very efficiently. He was very patient in answering all of our questions.

The original call was to replace a broken faucet but discovered I had no hot water that morning, so the call turned into a “no hot water”! Even though I was willing to wait to schedule an appointment for the following week (weather was hot and I could have survived on cold water for a few days), I was advised that someone would be right out to check out the hot water tank. A plumber arrived within 2 hours, as promised, and I was advised that I did indeed need a new hot water tank. I was advised that someone would be out by 1:00pm with a new tank. They were prompt, professional and courteous. I have used Baker-Elman for over 30 years and the service has always been excellent.

Baker Elman has been absolutely great ever since I started using them. Dealing with them is a pleasure. They're not like other plumbing companies I've used in the past. It's a family business and they really seem to care. They return calls, show up when they promise, call if they'll be late, bill per their estimates, etc.?all the things you'd like any business to do but contractors and tradespeople so often don't. They are also very good at what they do. David Elman is an extremely experienced master plumber, very knowledgeable. He listens carefully and is generous with his time to help figure out what to do to solve problems. His other plumbers seem excellent as well. His wife seems to run the office and she is uncommonly pleasant to deal with. They all are. I actually look forward to having them in my home (though not the problems that sometimes bring them here!). Among other work, they performed a complex installation of a freestanding gas heating stove. I was impressed by the careful attention to detail to make sure the project went smoothly. They were also suitably attentive in their dealings with the local building officials to avoid problems on that front. I give them the highest recommendation.

These guys were great to deal with. Super-responsive and helpful. They took care of everything.

After reading all the excellent reviews, I called to have a broken garbage disposal repaired. The woman who answered the phone asked all the right questions and asked for the model number of the garbage disposal to make sure that the repair person would be prepared to help me. To my surprise, she said she could get someone there the same day. I didn't ask for special or expedited treatment. (I've been living without the garbage disposal for a couple of weeks now, and while it's been a drag, it certainly was not an emergency.) Four hours later I was in position of a beautiful new garbage disposal. He was able to fix mine, but it is so old and loud I decided to have him replace it. Absolutely no pressure from him to replace the old one. This was my choice. The new one is great. I had NO idea a garbage disposal could be that quiet. Overall, a great experience.

The pricing was good and they were thorough. We were not clear as to where the leak was coming from. They came and found out where it was coming from. It turned out to be the valve on the shower. They fixed the problem without having to tear out all the tiles around it. They patched everything up properly.

Repairs to toilet (refill doesn't stop), leaky kitchen sink faucet, and bathroom faucet replacement. Plumber was on time, very efficient, and very helpful in offering parts replacement suggestions for the bathroom faucet set. A very good value for the price, and a good experience overall. I would recommend without reservation, a good experience all around, including the office / scheduling staff. Thank you.

They agreed to come on a Friday, based on the tight time frame created by the delivery of the heater and the upcoming weekend so that we would not be without hot water over the weekend. They arrived on time, we're highly professional and friendly, and did not leave a mess. They answered all my questions as they worked. They finished quickly.

Superior work, very professional, courteous and respectful. Estimate matched actual cost.

1) Plumber sent was incompetent with respect to Kohler products (the very product the firm recommended back in May; was not one of the original plumbers who installed the unit; was unable to install the new unit without trying five times; did not follow the instructions/diagram). Furthermore, wasted time looking for replacement part at a store that does not carry such parts. Drove much further without my authorization (and I was billed for his poor judgement). 2) Was told to get reimbursement for replacement cartridge from Kohler, but that is not Kohler policy. They only provide replacements, not reimbursement. They don't seem to know about the very companies they recommend. 3) Doubtful original installation was done properly: mismatching o-ring found and lack of plumber's grease residue on original cartridge. Either issue by itself could account for the later leak. 4) Was billed $498.50, of which $392.50 was for work for one plumber doing relatively trivial work compared to less than $300 for two plumbers on the original installation which required much more difficult work (cutting out the previous rough valve, soldering in the new one and installation of the trim). Was billed for more time than actually spent on the job. 5) Was told to buy Kohler by the firm in May and was then told by the firm in September that Kohler was a poor choice. 6) In May, was told by the firm to buy rough valve and trim on my own if I could get it cheaper than their price. Was informed in September that because I bought the product on my own that they would not replace the cartridge for free. 7) Upon investigation and examination of the supposedly failed original cartridge, had an experienced friend re-install according to instructions and with mismatching o-ring replaced. This supposedly failed unit HAS NOW BEEN WORKING FINE for two months. 8) In explaining my refusal to pay the 2nd bill, I produced a clear chronology of events, none of which Baker-Elman refuted, but now they are filling a claim against me in Small Claims Court. ======================== May 1, 2013 Update: After being sued by Baker-Elman, I can report, the court did not award Baker-Elman a penny of their $390 "work" bill and only gave them $106 for a replacement part (which is what I offered them in October). Not one aspect of what I stated above was refuted in court. Every aspect of incompetence I alleged was accepted by the judge as fact.

Pretty good. Might have had them also replace water hammer silencers, but they didn't have the part in their truck, which was disappointing. However, plumber doubted that was problem, anyway, saying it was probably the washing machine that was defective.

The woman who took the information on the phone was very professional and clear and courteous.The plumbers came incredibly quickly (the same day).I had to do some work to create access to the site, one of the plumbers was a bit grouchy about how "cluttered" the basement was.(I didn't expect the plumbers to come so fast, so I hadn't completely cleared everything when the first guy came). They took the old one out and put a new one in and it works.They were fast and competent. The guy who took my credit card was very nice and explained what happened.I would hire them again, no question about it.

We called Baker Elman when we discovered a leak in our basement. My husband was able to determine that it was coming from the hot water heater, which had been installed 10/2002 by the previous owner of our house. When he spoke to the woman on the phone - Cathy, I believe - she said it was probably under warranty. She looked up the serial number to confirm that, and we just had to pay for the installation costs. $600 did seem a little high just for the installation and removal of the old water heater, but we were thrilled that we didn't have to buy a new one. My husband said the man who came to do the installation was extremely professional and courteous, laying down cardboard to avoid dripping the water everywhere from the rusted-out old water heater. They were very helpful, professional, and prompt, sending someone out the same day, so that the whole process took less than 8 hours from our first call to the completion of the work!

They were wonderful! They were very responsive about the toilet. I was trying to order it, and they took great care to make sure I ordered the correct one. The price was good. They are my new plumbers!

This plumbing work was part of a half bath renovation. Baker-Elman's prices are not the lowest out there, but they do good work and are responsive, neat in their work, and professional overall. They installed fixtures that I purchased separately and didn't pressure me to buy from them. Sharon, who took all my calls to the office, was very helpful, very accommodating, and nice to work with. I highly recommend Baker-Elman.

Arrived on time as scheduled, did the work, left the room clean.

1st service call the guy determined that the clanking of my pipes and the radiators was because the system had not been cleaned in a long time. After he finished it sounded like the problem was fixed, however the next day the clanking started again in the pipes and the radiators. They came back out on a call back the next week and this guy said it was because the radiators had been moved when new carpets were put in and the registers were not level so he proped them up and replaced the valves on 3 of them and he said to wait a week or so and the noise should get better once the water in the pipes had leveled out. However the noise had not improved within in a week. When I asked how much the service call was he said I owed nothing because it was a call back. I called another plumbing company to look at the system and the guy said that the because it was a steam heating system the radiators should not be level and that the pipes in the basement should be pitched toward the furnace. He showed me the pipes and explained that the system probably not been set up correctly when it was orginally installed before I bought the house. He showed me a pipe that had a leak in it and had been repaired and that the pipe was rusting and would need to be replaced soon. He explained how the system should be set up and how the pipes should be pitched so the water would flow back into the furnace. He explained that Steam heating systems are very old and new ones are just not done anymore, so many companies do not know how to repair them. The next day I recieved an invoice in the e-mail for $206.00 on the call back service from Baker and Elman. I called and explained to one of the owners that the guy told me there would be no charge and that the pipes were still banging after he left that day. I told him I had someone else look at the system. He asked me what they had said and I told him that the pipes were not installed properly and were not pitched correctly. He asked me how long the system had been like that and I said that I had purchased the house a month ago and the problem had been there since I moved in. He said so you can't answer my question anyways. I have no idea what he meant by this because I did answer the question and what does it matter how long the problem had been going on? The pipes were clanking and this was a problem. He said he would just charge me for the parts and not the labor and I agreed. I will not be using this companies services again as it seems they do not know how to work on steam heating systems and really didn't know what they were doing. Thus, I have wasted almost $400.00 on a system that is probably going to need a couple of thousand to repair.

Baker Elman Plumbing installed a sink at my home. They did a great job. The price was good for the services performed.

- The process, from scheduling to completion, was very smooth. Had asked for a call around 30 mins prior to arrival to be sure I was home, and got it as expected - Bought parts myself at home depot, no problem doing that - Plumber was very professional, looked for ways to not spend more than necessary, and completed his work on time and budget, which was about 2 hours - Would use them again for general plumbing needs, no problem

Water heater was leaking, and we needed to replace. I kept looking for the cheapest solution, and Baker-Elman was incredibly patient giving the pros and cons about what to I could do. The plumber finally came up with a great solution - to tie the plumbing to another much newer water heater we already have. Final price was hundreds of dollars less.What I loved was the fact the Baker Elman really listened and worked with me and my budget - thinking creatively. Another bonus - getting an e-mail invoice, and ability to pay with credit card over the phone. BTW, they forgot the Angies discount, but then immediately corrected it when I pointed it out. they were prompt, and helpful!

He was here most of the day. He replaced some pipes and valves as well as the toilet. They are really good about not runnig up the bill. They provide honest work. Steve Elman has been to my house in the past to do work and have met him personally. The company upholds old-fashioned values and service, which I especially like.