Ken’s Plumbing & Heating

On 12/10/2021 we had an issue in the basement. Our washing machine drains into the slop sink & water wasn’t going down quick enough which could cause the sink to overflow & flood the basement. Ron from Ken’s Plumbing came to the house & I stated the issue. He explained that in these houses, all the water drains into one pipe so a blockage could eventually back everything up. TWO times I asked if he needed to access or snake the trap that goes to the street and he said “No”. I asked if he was going to snake at all to obstruct the blockage which is how it’s been done before, successfully. He said “If I do this I’m gonna do it right”. His definition of “Right” was changing a piece of pipe behind the washer so he could use a machine that would “blow out” the blockage, never snaking the pipe that goes from the house to the street. He stated that should this happen again, this $500 work would make it easier & less expensive to resolve in the future. He also said he guaranteed his work. Exactly THREE weeks later (9pm New Year’s Eve with a party going on) I went downstairs to find half the basement under water. It is worth noting that laundry hadn’t been done for 2 days prior. The sink was full & overflowing into the rest of the basement soaking the rug & everything on it. Any water that was there was backup from the kitchen sink, toilets, bath sinks & dishwasher. (We tested it by running water in the kitchen sink and were able to confirm this.) We couldn’t use any water in the house at all so we had no choice but to call an Emergency Service (Roto-Rooter) at 9pm on New Year’s Eve. Mike & Sean from Roto Rooter came at 9:45pm. When I explained to them what Ron said & did 3 weeks earlier, they looked at each other in disbelief and said, “Actually the “RIGHT” way to work with a blockage in these homes is to run a snake through the trap to the street, locate & address the problem.” (Also worth noting, Mike from Roto-Rooter is a seasoned pro with over 25 years experience.) So they did what I had asked Ron to do - ran a snake & camera from the trap in the basement to the street, found the blockage & resolved the issue for $635. That doesn’t even address the damage done to the basement including a $300 rug. In addition, the day that Ron was here, we also asked his help with a running toilet. He charged us $200 to replace a few parts in the tank. Three flushes after he left, the toilet didn’t flush at all & he had to come back. Monday 1/3 I called Ken’s Plumbing and explained what had happened only to literally be laughed at by the girl who answered the phone. She claimed she was laughing at the thought of me accusing them of this because of the work they did prior. Clearly, she didn’t understand that it was what they DIDN’T do. She was incredibly unprofessional. She asked me to send a copy of the Roto Rooter bill to the owner Ken. I did and he responded… Good morning I have read the receipt and see that you had a main line back up with roots. I am sorry you had this problem but it is completely unrelated to the work that we did. We snaked laundry line 3 weeks previous and that has been working perfectly. We never snaked your main line because at the time you did not have a main line problem. You had a problem only with the laundry sink. The reason it backs up at the sink we worked on is it is at the lowest point in the house so that’s where your stoppages will flood when its entire house. If you had a main line when we were there it would have never worked for 3 weeks. It wouldn’t work for even 1 day. I am sorry this happened to you on a holiday and we were not around to respond. I hope this answers your complaint even though its probably not the answer you were hoping for. But my explanation is truthful and exactly what happened. The Root Rooter plumber has no right to say the water on the floor was our fault. The entire sink overflowed and the pipes are not even made for that kind of pressure. I have been a plumber for 38 years and it will be clear to anyone with experience that you just had bad luck. Again, he responded as if I was saying that what they did CAUSED the issue, when it was clearly what they DID NOT do. He also stated that Ron never snaked the main line because I told him we had a problem with the laundry waste when in fact, as he acknowledged, all house water drainage goes through the one pipe. In the above response, Ken said “The entire sink overflowed and the pipes are not even made for that kind of pressure.” so how have we lived here for 20 years with the pipes in this house and never had this issue? He then goes on to dismiss it as “Bad luck”. There is a big choice of plumbers and services in the area, so I’d advise all homeowners to seek out someone who actually takes responsibility for the work they do and provides knowledgeable, professional people.

Excellent The men were fast and worked very clean

Had emergency last year with main drain backing up. It was a Saturday and my son was graduating in Boston a few hours from then. I was referred to Ken's by my regular plumber whom I had used for years. They came over within the hour. Diagnosed the problem as tree roots and cleared up the mess. I was off to Boston in no time. This year I noticed slowing drains in laundry room and sink. To prevent further issues, I called Ken's (why go back to first plumber when you have had great service with the new one). They made an apt for the day after and arrived 10 min earlier than expected. Again diagnosed and took care of problem in no time. The two guys who came were great-quick, efficient and very professional. Price seemed a bit steep but they did work with me. Sometimes it's worth paying a little more if the service is good. I will continue to use them.

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Job was done well but price was high.

As expected. We have used Ken's for several years and we never have been disappointed.

I called Kens faucet and toilet repairs to fix a bad leak under my sink. Normally I would do the work myself but just couldn't get it done. The plumber came and was so courtesy and helpful and showed me what the problem was. He was on time and very professional

The work was done and completed in a timely manner. I took a shower and realized my shower was not draining. I called Ken's and the plumber came the same day. The 2 men were extremely professional, neat and very nice. I would highly recommend Ken's Faucet

The work was fine. However, when I called and to the owner Ken, I told him we had intermittent water around the toilet, and we needed to find the cause of the leak. The plumber (Kens brother) showed up promptly. He inspected the toilet, removed somethings from underneath the sink, checked for leaks,and declared the seal on the toilet needed to be replaced. I questioned if this was true wouldn't the leak be continual? His response was not always. I then questioned why was water accumulating on the lip of the shower stall which is a good 5 inches higher then the floor. He once again responded, it happens. He started doing the toilet (which was replaced only two years ago, when he stated we need 2 wax seals as the drain pipe was never brought to the floor level. (The bathroom was gutted and redone 2 years ago by an Angies list A Rated contractor. The price I was quoted seemed very high, however in time of need its hard to negotiate. He was extremely neat and clean. That night Im watching TV and I hear water dripping in the bathroom. Water is dripping from my ceiling fan vent as the shower upstairs was being used. This would explain why the puddles of water was intermittent and not continual, it also explains how the lip of the shower was accumulating o came water. I called my super he came over and informed me the folks upstairs have been having issues with their shower and where in the process of getting it fixed. I called Kens to complain he had fixed something that may not have need fixing and he did not fix or find the actual problem . Ken promptly called the next morning. I wish I had read the previous write ups on Angies list. Ken responded exactly like he did in the write ups. He was very aggressive, loud at times demeaning. After going back and forth with him he offered me a $135.00 discount. Not wanting to listen to him any longer I agreed to the discount. I hope this helps you with your decision regarding your next plumber.

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I called them on a weekend because I had an emergency, they are not 24 hours, and do not have an emergency line so I did not leave a message. I called the office back a couple days later and the woman said she leaves at noon, I advised her I called before noon and she said the take calls "now and then". I do not know why you would advertise and not do business on a weekend. I advised I would write a negative response on Angie's List, and she didn't even give me a courtesy response and I gave ample time for the owner to give me a call. He never did call or reach out to me. Very unprofessional.

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We have used Ken's Faucet before for both small and large jobs.  The crew is always friendly, polite and professional.  They were not deterred by having to first remove various things we had stored in the garage crawl space, and were able to snake the main sewer line quickly and efficiently.  In addition to this job, we had a problem several months ago with a large pipe in the wall of our first floor laundry room, which extended to the second floor bathroom.  This would have turned a large job into a huge mess, since not only would the wall in the laundry room need replacing, it would have meant tearing up the floor and the wall of the bathroom upstairs as well. We were pleased and impressed that they took the time to consult with others on the team to determine the least invasive way to do the installation, and that they were able to maneuver the pipe into the laundry room wall only.  This saved us the time, money and aggravation of replacing sheetrock and flooring for the upstairs bathroom. They also came back and installed new sheetrock in our laundry room, and we haven't had any issues since. We've had them back for various smaller jobs, and they always leave the place as they found it; neat and clean. These guys, especially Juan, the foreman, are pros.  We can't comment on the price of the work performed as these things vary depending on the work being performed, but we have never felt 'scammed' or had an issue concerning cost. 

It's good to know that we have someone we feel comfortable to contact when we have plumbing issues! 

 

My 89 year old parents had the misfortune of using Ken's Faucet and toilet repair. He advertises on my parent's church bulletin-they might need to change churches. After an original agreed price of $390.00, the bill was raised to $600.00 with the addition of an unneeded 2" clean out. After performing their work, my parents paid them cash and they left without checking their work or leaving a receipt. I arrived 15 minutes after they left my parents house and noticed the sink was not draining (it did before they did their work).  I was told that they were too far behind schedule to return . I had to hire another plumber to finish their work.

My parents paid $ 600.00 for a $390.00 job, and all they got was a sink that didn't drain. This company is a predatory company, especially with the elderly. His line is "26 years in business-never a complaint." " I was at the doctor for my foot." "Too bad your parents had a son like you." And the best " no heat, no water, no sewer an emergency. a sink not draining, can wait til 8am"  

Homeowners beware

My 89 year old parents had the misfortune of hiring this outfit from their church bulletin. After an original agreed price of $390.00 to replace the p trap, they charge them an additional $200.00 for an installation of a 2" clean out. 15 minutes after they left my parent's house(3 pm) I arrived at my parents house and noticed the sink wasn't draining. I called the company immediately to get someone to return to clear the drain. I was informed that they were behind schedule and there was no possibility of anyone coming back. I was also informed that the owner wasn't to be disturbed until 7pm. I did inform the secretary that they were paid in full ($600.00 cash), they left no receipt for the work and they were leaving elderly parents with a non-working sink. Again she reminded me that they were too busy to return, and the earliest they could return would be sometime the following day. After 4:30 pm, they stopped answering my calls. I found this unacceptable, and called another plumber to clear the drain.

This would have been the end of the story, but the drama continued. At around 7pm, I did receive an email from the owner explaining to me he went to the doctor for his foot. I asked him if he received my complaint about him leaving my elderly parents without a draining sink. He said he did, but gave me no reason why he couldn't send someone back to fix the problem earlier in the day. He went on this diatribe about how was in business for 25 years, and never having a complaint. No heat was an emergency, not a sink that didn't drain. I told him that his attitude was appalling, and I shouldn't be blamed for his lack of customer service. His following emails became more acerbic, and bordered on the absurd.

I would love to share these emails with anyone who is interested about improving customer service. You can quickly tell after reading the email threads that this company is a predatory company, especially when it comes to the elderly. My parents paid $600 for a $390 job, and all they received was a sink that didn't drain. Steer clear of this company.

He came out and said the handle was broken. He said it was not working. He went and got me a new handle, which was not good. He screwed in the new round knob, this replacement did not even have the Hot/Cold option. He billed me $380 to screw on the new handle. I was not feeling well so I did not have the enrgy for dealing with nonsense. After he left, the handle got loose and was falling off, he said he would send someone out. The he sent a guy came out  and tightened it, but it started falling off again. At that point I might as well have left the old on one. He called me back literally screaming and yelling saying he already sent someone out to help once, and he was not going to send him out again.

I'm writing this on behalf of my parents - despite having a AL membership, they never thought of actually using it as a resource.
 A small leak in the shower drain had saturated the ceiling underneath, and a plumber was called. He was presumed to be reliable, because he advertised in the church bulletin [no search for recommendations].
The plumber arrived promptly [so far so good].
He started to investigate by ripping the wet ceiling out [no tarp or dropcloth to contain the wet sheetrock].
He continued his investigation in the bathroom upstairs, disconnecting the toilet, and dumping it at the curb. It was replaced with a builder's level toilet kit he had on his truck.
He then removed the copper toilet and shower drains, and replaced it with plastic. The shower trap for the new drain ended up about an inch below the ceiling level.
He cautioned my parents that the RTV silicone [the actual leak repair desired] would take a day to cure, and demanded payment.
No itemized invoice was provided at the time payment was demanded, and no estimate or quote was discussed prior to cutting the existing piping or removing the existing toilet. The plumber said 'his brother' would be by on monday to fix the sheetrock, for an additional $400. 
When I inspected the job, I saw used schedule 40 plastic pipe [brown stains] connected by glue fittings - and connected to the house's main drain stack by rubber compression fittings [I have not checked the local codes to see if that is permitted]. 
And some background - about two months prior to the incident, I needed to clean up after a clogged toilet overflowed. Since I had the ceiling off below the bathroom, I inspected the drains and fittings. There were no problems with the toilet [no signs of any leaks around the wax ring, and the copper was sound]. There was evidence of a minor leak at the shower pan, and thought that replacing the shower in the spring would be on the agenda [new base, surround and valve]. I was planning on starting the Saturday after this incident - and did not know that the plumber had been called.

Couldn't finish the job same day. Had to return next day to complete.
Good quality work but price seemed very high.
Wouldn't give itemized bill.

He was great. He called me right back and he showed up on time. He did good work. He got the job done with no mess. I would absolutely recommend them to others.

The work was done on 6/27/08. The price was $395 for a faucet that I could get on the internet for $120 and it only took him 35 min to complete the job.

On a follow up visit Ken was scheduled for a repair and never showed up.

Ken and his partner were on time, friendly, fast, and efficient. I highly recommend this plumber!

I REALLY LIKE THIS COMPANY. I THINK THE MAN DID A FAST AND GREAT JOB. I ALSO FEEL THAT THE PRICING WAS GOOD FOR THE QUALITY OF WORK THE MAN DID. ALL THE NEW UPDATES MADE A BIG DIFFERENCE IN HOW MY BATHROOM LOOKS.