The Plumbing & Air Service Co.

My hot water heater stopped producing hot water on the early evening of April 25th. Hot water is immensely important, but increases when a household has small children. I looked through google search for the first few companies and decide to go with “The Plumbing & Air Company.” I make a service call before 5pm and immediately get scheduled for Saturday April 26th between 9-11am. The technician gives me the courtesy of calling 30 minutes prior to 9am to give me his arrival time. The technician shows up and I direct him to the hot water tank in the garage. He proceeds to do a visual inspection of the tank from bottom to top which took about 3-5 minutes, and then asked to be shown the gas meter located outside. I guide him to the meter and he does a 1 minute visual inspection and we walk back into the garage. He points to the top of the water heater and tells me my water heater is experiencing a malfunction evident by the water pressure reading which is reading 105psi. I ask about the possibility of just repairing and he stated, due to the age of the unit (13 yrs old) and the malfunctioning components it would be more advantageous to be replaced. I asked him if It could be simply repaired because all I could visually notice was that the pilot light was off. Instead of going back and forth, I asked for estimates of both a repair and a replacement. After 30-40 minutes in the vehicle writing up estimates he reappears and I say, “This can’t be good because of the amount of time it took you with these estimates.” We share a chuckle and he shares the estimates with me on tankless units ranging from $7900-$9144, in addition to a direct vent unit for approximately $6283, and finally a similar gas unit to mine at $4576. I ask about the repair I requested and on the estimate sheet he points to a $3756.53 repair price, all which are “eligible” for financing. I don’t visually show my displeasure, I simply give him the $49 diagnosis fee and say that I’m going to get two additional estimates, then I see him off. One hour later I have another technician come from “a well known company” and we cordially greet. Within 1 minute of giving him my chief complaint he’s on his back troubleshooting the water heater and 2 minutes later the pilot light is back on. I ask him, “What did You do? “ he says, “ Sometimes a gust of wind or something with similar force could knock the pilot light off and It simply needs to be reignited.” I’m immediately in awe! and he smiles and tells me, “I noticed the eagle,globe & anchor on your automobile and realize someone here is military.” I say, “that would be me, I am a Marine Vet and retired Army.” We discuss for a few minutes family members he and I have in the military and he immediately thanks me for my service. After signing and initialing a few documents electronically I am shown my diagnosis and repair fee of $0! I immediately collect his information and tell him he is now my technician for any future issues. Lastly, I show him the previous estimates and he says, “WOW! looks like you were about to go for a ride, glad I could assist you in dodging that bullet.” Moral of this story is get multiple estimates and check reviews prior to calling anyone. Sometimes technicians prey on peoples desperation. Circumstances dictate the severity of that situation. The fact that it was a weekend and a resource most people are so heavily dependent on like hot water was not readily available definitively would contribute to rushed decision making. If the person is a senior citizen or a woman that may further exacerbate the scenario, which a predatory technician would welcome. Finally and most importantly, “Buyer Beware”.

The service tech, Ricky was fantastic. Extremely polite and extremely knowledgeable. Explained what was involved with AC maintenance service, reviewed the system report card and gave suggestions for the unit. No high pressure just an explanation of things to consider. I was impressed with his knowledge and his personable manner. The Plumbing and Air Company should be glad he represents their company.

If I showed you my invoice for 19,000 you’d laugh knowing the problem cost 400$ to fix. These people are predators. They saw me as a target and strong armed me into signing a loan I can’t afford. And when I wanted to cancel, crickets. Suddenly these guys couldn’t answer the phone .

This is the absolute worst HVAC plumbing company I've ever dealt with. Everything from their pricing to their management practices was unethical and unprofessional. Duke should definitely take them off their referral list.

They replaced my hot water heater through the duke rebate program. They failed to submit the rebate in the 60 day window. they claim to be working on it, and supposedly they will get it honored. I have my doubts. My advice, use anyone else.