I just went through a plumbing crisis, or rather, B & D Plumbing & Heating just got me through one.
Plumbing problems are always urgent.
Plumbers aren't doctors. You don't call one up for your six-month or annual examination. You call one up, because you're desperate.
This has been the coldest New York City winter in memory, and we couldn't take a hot, or even warm shower for three months. On a bitter cold day, your body desperately needs to be invigorated, physically and mentally, by a hot shower. If you can't get even a warm shower, the next thing you know, you're getting depressed, your resistance is falling, and you're getting sick.
Plumbing problems are always expensive.
Few people can fix their own boilers, which makes plumbing an increasingly rare skill. That means it doesn't come cheaply. However, B & D was fair. They did not gouge me on the price of parts, or by staying any longer than necessary. They also did not try and skip out, with the job undone. As a homeowner now on his second double-duty boiler (heat and hot water), unfortunately, I have quite a bit of experience with plumbers. I wish I didn't. You know the scene in Moonstruck, where plumber Vince Gardenia is explaining to his apprentice, Nicolas Gage, how to rip off customers by dramatically exaggerating their problems? I've dealt with guys like that, which is why I don't like plumbers. (I won't tell you what I believe some other guys did to my boiler in the past, because you'd write me off as paranoid.)
So, I was expecting the worst. And my machine was in trouble--it needed a new flow switch. Due to the old one being broken, when I turned on the hot water, the water function didn't communicate with the machine, to tell it to shut off the heat, and "dedicate" itself to just heating water, as the B & D guy explained.
But that didn't do the trick. We needed a new mixing valve, as well, to regulate the water temperature. And so I had to bring B & D back.
That's not on B & D. I'd suspected that we needed a new mixing valve, but hadn't said anything. Our valve had supposedly been replaced three years earlier, and our machine was new. And yet, we'd had problems with our hot water since before the "replacement." (Thus, my paranoia, and my retiring of my old plumber.)
Plumbing problems are often convoluted.
Our machine is a Laars Endurance. It's completely computerized, and so unlike with its predecessor, I can't replace a relay switch or anything else on my own. I don't like that. And because it's computerized, instead of everything being handled by a plumber, you have to deal first with a "technician." If the problem is above his pay grade, they call a "plumber" for a second visit. I don't like that, either, which had me very suspicious.
However, although it took two visits to solve the problem, each time a technician could handle it, and I never felt like B & D was finding excuses to gouge me. The total, for two plumbing jobs, was as reasonable as one could expect, in this day and age.
Plumbing problems are time-consuming.
However, this is a plumber, and though the workers did everything in a reasonable amount of time, and were very polite, keep in mind that you are one desperate person competing for their time with other desperate people. You have to leave a lot of time to be home, waiting for them to arrive.
Which brings me to my one problem with B & D. One day, between the two times they came, they scheduled a visit, but got backed up, and never made it. Fortunately for me, I work at home, so that did not ruin my day. Otherwise, it would have been... bad. Their office is located in Brooklyn, and I live in Queens. They're easier to get to come to your place, if you live in Brooklyn.
I am giving B & D four stars, and will re-hire them the next time which, hopefully, is a long ways off. read more
