Empire State Plumbing Inc

Angi does not certify Empire because Empire is either evil or incompetent from my experience, when Empire tried to rip me off for over $3000 on a simple $15 part fix on my hot water heater. AVOID EMPIRE. I paid'm just to get out of my house

They were excellent. Very fair. They did not charge us for the visit.

I was most impressed with my first experience using Empire State Plumbing Inc. We needed a 50 gallon electric hot water heater replaced the day before the Fourth of July. I called that morning and spoke with Tom, the owner. After a discussion about my requirements Tom said he would check on the availability of the water heater and get back to me that morning. He called back less than a half hour later and quoted me a price which included installation of the new commercial grade water heater and removal of the old unit. The price was reasonable and I agreed to proceed with the installation. To my surprise and delight he was able to come over that same day at a time I was available. By 2 PM that same day I had hot water again. Tom and his helper Pat were courteous, prompt, and professional. What more could you ask for?

Our natural gas hot water heater stopped working and required replacement due to defects and damage to the tank and vent.  Apparently, for the type of hot water heater that was installed in out home prior to us buying the house (improperly and damaged I might add), consumers cannot buy parts on their own. 
We called Empire State Pluming base on a recommendation of a coworker.  They squeezed us in on a Friday afternoon before a holiday weekend.  Tom and Rick arrived on time and made quick work of removing and installing a new hot water heater.  We could not be more impressed and satisfied with the service that we received.  No more shopping around for a plumber for me.  I will be calling Empire State Plumbing for all my plumbing issues in the future.  I would absolutely recommend them to everyone without any reservations whatsoever.

Two junior employees were sent to do what was a fairly small job - the repair of a bathroom shower faucet (the handles had broken). They misidentified the main shut-off valve for the water, using a secondary shut-off instead. They then informed me that the shut-off wasn't working and that they would need to put in emergency sharkbite valves to do the work.
After they had done this, the head plumber / owner arrived and immediately identified the proper shut-off, used it, and admitted that the valves were unnecessary. He finished up the work his men had begun. He then proceeded to charge me for the labor and parts that were unnecessary.
To make matters worse, I recently had a new plumber come to do some work and he discovered that these unnecessary valves had not been put in straight and that they have begun to slowly  leak water into my ceiling and insulation.
The head plumber was quick and capable in the work that he did (it did not hold up well, but I suspect that was because the fixture was 30 years old). However, when his men made mistakes he should have 1) not charged the customer for them and 2) checked their other work.  He would not be my first choice for a plumber in the future.

Called them on a recommendation.  The total service call took all of  40 minutes and they charged me for a $60 diagnostic fee, a $125/hr. labor fee and $70 for the part plus tax.  I consider the diagnostic fee and labor fee double dipping.  They also arrived about 2 hours late.  Please note that I told them on their arrival that the problem was either the thermostat or the relay.  They a,so incorrectly wired the thermostat on the first try.

I have used Empire State Plumbing on multiple occasions, both at my house and my rental property.  Most times Josh is the tech that arrives.  I have had great service from them. They are responsive to emergencies and their prices are fair.  They are always willing to give me all my options and the costs associated with each.  I have not had a bad experience yet.

This provider went to Home Depot and good a free replacement tank for me since it was still under warranty.  I was only charged for the installation.  He called a company to remove the water for me.  He also installed my water line for town water.

I would recommend this company to anyone.  Tom and team were great to work with and really worked to get our system back up and running quickly.

We found that the trap in our sewer line had a hole in it causing an unsanitary condition with a very unpleasant odor.  The trap was encased in cement under the basement floor and the scope of the work required a professional.  I could not fathom how such work would be done and the time frame required for completion.  I did realize that this needed immediate attention so I checked Angies List for local plumbers.  I called Empire State Plumbing and within 15 minutes Tom Darling returned my phone call at 12:30pm.  By 1:30 Pm he was at my door and inspected the area, explained how he would fix the problem, gave me a quote of $900.  My wife was shocked by the price but I agreed immediately as I expected a quote well over $1000 and a time estimate of several days.  Tom said that he could fix the problem today, but he would have to return to his shop to get the needed tools, including a jackhammer.  He returned in about an hour and then began working.  The guy works like a madman, but a very skilled madman.  I was amazed at how quickly he cut out the floor.  From start to finish the entire project took less than 5 hours.  We spoke on several occasions as I checked on his progress but that did not stop him from working as we were talking.  I was in awe that one person could do what he did in that amount of time.  He earned every penny of the $900 with his experience level and work ethic. And he left the area cleaner than it was when he arrived.  My brother and I had been diagnosing the problem, and trying to find a solution, and we made a mess before he became involved.  I feel very lucky that I chose his business and will keep his business card handy for the future.

They are awesome.  Their price is fair, they are knowledgeable and fast.  They improved the efficiency of our boiler in our apartment building.  That was good.  He even repaired the previous providers work.  He is a great boiler guy.

Very responsive and punctual, works with owners to save some money on parts.

Emergency repair on frozen leaking water pipes - same day (emergency) service provided and restored heat to the home. Great Job

Tom did a site visit and provided us an estimate within 48 hours.  Tom knows his craft and the local ordinances in Albany too.  His proposal for the work was preferred over a previous proposal we had done by another area contractor.  He followed up via email after we were slow to respond.  Tom was always available on phone and email and responsive to our questions.  He also provided us with suggestions on where to find and have our radiator painted.  When we were ready to move forward he stopped by with contract (he was very flexible - as we had to reschedule this to later in the evening).  Tom also took care of the local permitting, going to City Hall and meeting with the inspectors.  He and his crew arrived on time and they were all polite and professional.  They cleaned up at the end of the work days and again after the project was complete.  They even worked beyond their normal time in order to get the project to the finish line.  Not only does the system look great, it performs beyond expectation.  They team did all the little things too which makes a big difference and less stressful as homeowners.  We are thrilled by the system, the work, and the people.  We know who we'll call when we need any plumbing work.

Tom was quick to return my call for an estimate, provided the best overall guidance in where to run the necessary piping, and fit us into the schedule very quickly.    He was not the most prompt but he did call to say he would be late, and gave us 100% when he was on the job.  He was personable, respectful, and efficient.  He was also not the cheapest plumber, but was very knowledgeable and offered the best scenario based on the mechanics of our home and our future updates.  This made his work the most valuable of the three estimates we received and a no brainer when it came time to schedule the work.

They did a good job, I would recommend them.

They came on, found the leak on the inside of the house, made sure they were replacing the existing equipment with like equipment ( my spigot was frost free), and replaced it. I had a leaky pipe in the basement and they looked at that then tightened
/ cleaned it up at no additional charge.

He was professional very business like.  The work was not done satisfactorily.

Late and did not check their work before leaving.

We had several pin hole sized leaks that turned into nail hole sized leaks in the water line as it comes into the house. It got really bad, as usual on a Sunday. I called first thing Monday when they opened at 8:00 a.m. and he was here within 3 hours and began the repair. He cleaned up the water with a shop vac, not only replaced the pipes, but rerouted them so that I could now reach the shut off valves that were previously unreachable behind the water softener and brine tank. It was his idea, not mine. I am grateful that he was thinking, just not doing. Cleaned up too. Hard to tell I ever had a pool of water in the basement. If you want quality and are fine paying for it, call this company. I will again. And he didn't go really slow to increase the labor charge like another plumber I used.He stayed in touch with his cell phone, giving me a courtesy call just before he arrived (as scheduled). I honestly could not ask for more!

Although there was some initial delay in getting a printed formal contract (unreturned phone calls, incorrect contract was emailed), the actual work completed went well. They arrived on time and began work immediately. I was responsible for the demo of the previous shower and all associated carpentry work to frame for the new tub but they assisted in laying the piece of subfloor that needed to be fit around the new drain that they installed. The work involved cutting a hole in my living room ceiling to access the drain because there was no other access panel. Although I knew this was likely, I don't believe Tom even mentioned it during the estimate process. They located the water shut off valves without any trouble and were able to turn them off even though the handle was previously broken off. Both were very pleasant and professional and willing to answer the many questions that I had about the work being done. The job took approximately 6 hours to complete from start to finish. Unfortunately, the drain to the tub does not work because the drain lever isn't long enough (fault of the drain manufacturer/depth of the tub - not the plumber) but this wasn't discovered until the very end of the job when it was too late to do anything about.

Update: (10/08/2012) It has been approximately 4.5 months since the work was completed and the caulk that was installed has failed and caused a water leak along the edge of the tub onto the drywall (see attached pictures). This should never have happened if the caulk was installed properly. In addition, I have spoken to several people (including those in the field) who have all advised the drain lever issue as described in the initial review (not long enough) should have been addressed at the time it was installed. They all advised that an experienced plumber would have known how to fix the problem (attaching a small turnbuckle to extend the length which I learned by calling the manufacturer). Due to these problems, I can no longer recommend Empire Plumbing and will not use them again in the future.

We knew that the pipe was broken somewhere near the kitchen sink.  When we ran a lot of water in the sink, water backed-up through the floor and saturated the carpet to the left of the cabinet with the sink in it. We later discovered it had been going on for a while before we noticed it as the damage to the carpet was extensive.

Empire Plumbing was the third plummer we called to give an estimate.

The owner Tom arrived with his apprentice/assistant Josh. They were confident, knowlegeable, and professional, and said they could do the job by drilling under the cabinets. They gave us a verbal estimate of $2,600 that would cover up to 4-5 feet of breaking up the slab AND they would repair the slab.  Tom said if they discovered that the whole pipe was rotted and needed to dig further, the cost would go up and he would discuss that with us ahead of time.  He also found a small leak in the hot water pipe under the sink that he said he would fix. We scheduled the appointment at that time. 

Both Tom and Josh arrived at the scheduled time. I was a little surprised/worried to learn that Josh would be the primary person doing the job as I liked the idea of the owner being the one taking the lead.  Tom assured me that he had full confidence in Josh and that he would be in and out to check on things. Well, he was right. Josh was hard working, skilled, professional and extremely polite. And true to his word, Tom was in and out throughout the job checking on things and helping. Tom works like a whirlwind, they both do. As it turns out the break in the pipe went in an unexpected direction. They had to move the refrigerator and break up the slab underneath and under a closet to repair the full section of broken pipe. It was a lot of hard, manual labor. Josh  broke up the slab with a large jackhammer, ended up removing and putting back together the end cabinet and then must have lifted and mixed eight small bags of cement in the slab repair which was done perfectly. They even resecured the carpet.

They explained everything to us at each step of the way, and with my Angie's discount, came in under estimate at just over $2,550.

I would strongly recommend Empire Plumbing again. This was a major unexpected expense for us and their quick response, knowlege and professionalism was so appreciated.

In retrospect I should have asked for a written estimate. However, the invoice was very detailed and I was able to use that to give to my insurance company who paid to replace some of the carpet.

It went well. Not cheap, the quality of work was very good.

They came right away. The guy worked very efficiently and did an excellent job. He solved the problem but it was very expensive. For this type of thing I want the work done well. They were very expensive but they did a very good job. I would probably use them again.

Tom came and gave us an estimate on the work. Someone came at the scheduled time and did the work. The actual charge was higher than the estimate. I contacted Tom and he was very quick to explain and resolve the issue.

Tom has been to our house several times this year. He works really hard to solve a problem.