Had a Saturday afternoon visit for a toilet issue. Arrived early to access situation, left briefly to retirve need parts . Came back and efficiently and quickly completed the job and took care of our problem. Pleasant young man Henry, was very easy to talk to and easy to understand what he was doing. Pleasant experience and problem solved. RGW read more

Great customer service. Fate handled several jobs if ours and was on-time and pleasant.

Had a leak from our upstairs bathroom pouring foul-smelling gray water into our garage through the ceiling. Even though it was after hours, Henry came quickly, correctly diagnosed a failed wax ring, and finished the repair. Hey then came back with Freddie and opened the garage ceiling to make sure there wasn't any mold forming. Highly recommended! read more

Mainline backed up and flooded my basement with gray water - GROSS! Bob Oates to the rescue - I called and Sergio was here in a couple of hours. He was polite, professional and showed me on the camera where many roots had gotten in. Cleared the line with the snake and will be back with a hydro jetter to clean out the rest. THANK YOU Sergio - you saved the day! read more

BOS&R responded quickly, but discovered our basement was inaccessible for them. There was no charge for the call and they referred me to a competitor who they trusted and believed could help us (which they were able to do). Five Starts to BOS&R for great customer service. read more

Bob Oates is here for you! I love the jingle...haha. They're actually family owned and you can tell by their customer service. Very connected to the community and endorsed by The Big Dumper, himself, Cal Raleigh! read more

Bob Oates Sewer and Rooter - The Big Dumper, Cal Raleigh - Plumbing Near Me - Seattle, Washington

TJ, Joe, and the crew at Bob Oates were awesome in helping restore water service to our home when the water main between street + crawl space burst underground, flooding our garage. They acted quickly, thoroughly, and left our home in arguably better condition than before the pipe burst. Pricing was reasonable for the extent of what was involved, and highly competitive. TJ led diagnostics and options for repair. Very quickly, he identified pros/cons to each, which led to a clear best option to build a new main via directional drilling. Joe led the repair crew, which involved digging up a corner of our driveway, leading the directional drilling machine, identifying an alternate course for the pipe upon finding underground obstructions, then securing and cleaning the fix. This involved extensive, on-site excavation, backfill, plumbing itself, concrete work, and comms throughout. The result was a shorter, more logical & maintainable water main with modern materials, cleanly installed with water restored in only 2 days. They even left our paver driveway in perfect condition. Highly recommended for this type of work. read more

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Seventeen years ago we had a gas instant hot water heater installed. Ran flawlessly for all that time. As we are going to remoodel the area the heater is located, we called several companies for bids to replace the existing heater. The Bob Oats employee that came out was Oliver. He gave us a fair bid, not the cheapest, but after talking to him it was easy to see he was the one we wanted. Personable, experienced, and responsible. He did a great job! Oliver will be top of my list for anything plumbing in the future. If there is a real Bob Oats out there somewhere, Bob, this guys a keeeper. Thanks. read more

We called to have a plumber come out to install a toilet and a vanity as part of our recent renovation and to get their advice on the project. Conrad came out, looked at the project and laid out what should be done and what to expect. Thanks to him everything went off as hoped. We wouldn't hesitate to call Bob Oates again. read more

Bob Oates team provided a sewer scope, a liner and pulled permits for me. Our house was in need of this service following an inspection that roots were getting into our pipes. We compared to another company and found Bob Oates to be more reasonably priced than others. The team communicated well and was quick to help. read more

Bob Oates Sewer and Rooter - They dug this hole, hydro jetted and lined my pipe. The new clean out was also installed. - Plumbing Near Me - Seattle, Washington

I recently worked with Tallon, a plumber with Bob Oates, who could not have been more professional, efficient, and considerate. We have little ones at home, and Tallon went out of his way to accommodate our unique familial circumstances. He was a real human-being in an age of seemingly transactional interactions. Mark S. - West Seattle read more

I called Bob Oates for some help with low water pressure. Bob Oates was quick to dispatch Mykal (Michael) and Konrad to come out to take a look. The Bob Oates team quickly figured out it was rusty old pipes causing the problem and worked hard to get the water flowing again. Konrad was especially awesome in taking the time to explain the root cause and had some ideas on future prevention. Dispatch was fast, the price was fair, and the attention to detail was phenomenal. Mykal and Konrad take pride in their work and great care of their customers. Thank you! read more

I always feel like Bob Oats will take care of me. Their phone communication is excellent--they set realistic expectations of when they can come out and are quick to let me know if the previous job is taking longer (or shorter) than expected and how that may impact the window they'll show up. That helps me plan when to be home. Wyatt was especially helpful when a big brand "installed" a new fridge but left it in a state where I had to keep the water off until the waterline to the fridge was dealt with. read more

I have used Bob Oates for a variety of plumbing needs. They have always been great, and reasonably priced. I would highly recommend them. It's nice to know I have a plumbing company I can trust. read more

The U Bend on our kitchen sink broke, the day before we were going out of town. I called Bob Oates around 1 PM, they had someone out in about a half an hour. I had them look at the U bend for the bathroom sink as well, and they recommended it also be replaced. I also asked if they could replace the faucet in the bathroom sink as our existing one appeared to be on its last legs. It took them about 30-40 minutes to go out and come back with the parts. They got everything done quickly - including replacing the bathroom sink shut off valves when it was clear the existing ones weren't working. The price was great too - not nearly as expensive as I was worried it was going to be. The guys they sent out were friendly, professional, and did a great job in a timely manner! I would definitely recommend using them if you need plumbing work in your home. read more

I have used Bob Oates multiple times over the years. Recently, I had them come out when I noticed my water heater leaking. They quoted me $3,300 to replace the water heater, which is high compared to other plumbers, but I went with it for a variety of reasons. While they were installing the water heater, I looked on the Bob Oates website and saw a $150 coupon for water heater replacement. When I pointed that out to the installers, they told me they would not honor it because I didn't mention it before giving me the original price. This suggested that they would have quoted me $3,450, and then taken the $150 off, or that they were trying to play some other kind of dishonest game. On three occasions, I contacted the company to ask them to honor the coupon, and eventually they agreed to do so. In the end, I give them credit for ultimately agreeing to honor their website/coupon, but they should have done so the instant I asked without making me hound them to respond. Overall, since I first started using Bob Oates, I feel like their prices have gotten expensive and their service has decreased. I'll be finding a new plumber in the future--perhaps Jafco, who I hired to line my side sewer and did a great job. read more

At our Seattle property we typically have tree root issues in our sewer line that cause a backup every one to two years. It typically costs $500.00 to have the line roots cut and a video of the results. We called Bob Oates this year to clear out the roots causing the problem. We told the tech about the root issue. Instead of clearing the roots the tech cleared the backup for a shy thousand dollars for Saturday work and an estimate for a shy $1,600.00 to do what we had asked him to do in the first place, cut out the roots, bringing the total cost to $2,600.00+ for a job that should have cost less than a grand. read more

very happy with Bob Oates, plumbing, very happy. I called them on Friday afternoon, I was to be away for the weekend so they had a plumber out to my house first thing on Monday morning to find and fix a leak somewhere under my house. An earlier inspection had turned up a small leak in the crawlspace directly below my kitchen sink and dishwasher. Wyatt, the plumber and his assistant, arrived exactly on time after a text, letting me know they would be here in a half an hour. They inspected under the crawlspace, sink and dishwasher and found no leak. Wyatt started hunting around and found the leak was in my outside faucet. I needed a new fitting for my garden hose.. Because they were there for a free estimate I told them that I felt I should pay something. Wyatt declined but Bob Oates plumbing Has my business from now on. And my recommendation. On time, courteous and knowledgeable, and the problem was found in under 15 minutes. This company reminds me of the kind of service you used to get in the old days. Outstanding. Marsha Fine read more

Bob Oates repaired a break in my side sewer in 2023. Recently the ground was subsiding above the repair location and I asked them to re-video the line to see whether there may be another break. They said there was no break, but they found an offset joint in the pipe downstream of the old break. They prepared an estimate to repair the offset with a liner. They were very responsive in addressing the issue and did not charge me to perform the cctv inspection, which I really appreciated. read more

Their initial service was great and came fast to fix the clog. But their refusal to honor any after service warranty to reseat a toilet that was improperly sealed/seated left me breathing sewer fumes for a year and they said it was normal to experience sewer smell for a little bit and it(it never went away and they basically shrugged and said they didn't know why when hey came back to look) and water leaking into the basement i didnt realize until later when a different pro from a different company easily saw fixed the problem. read more

I trust Bob Oates. They have served us for decades, and continue to do. Ma-Pa. What's not to love?! read more

Bob Oates Sewer and Rooter - First economical 'wall cut' for re-pipe. - Plumbing Near Me - Seattle, Washington

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I had an outdoor drain emergency on a Saturday night. A real person who works for the company answered the phone and talked to me. Then Matt came out at 8 pm, worked in the dark, and fixed the problem in half an hour. I couldn't have been more pleased with their work. read more

I used them for a quick plumbing job. Very happy with the service I received. They were able to quickly come out and quick to ID my problem. I've used them twice. The first time the plumber was faster than the second plumber. the first plumber went above and beyond, so I guess Bob Oates Plumber can vary. Still second was good but first was better. read more

The kitchen faucet popped off its base and was spraying water into the air and up the wall. I called on a Friday, they answered right away, were friendly, and awesome serviceman Denero was at my house same day in just a couple hours. He fixed my kitchen faucet and also showed me how to easily fix a toilet flush mechanism that wasn't working, in seconds -- another plumber had told me that I had to buy a whole new toilet!! I asked Denero to help me schedule an appointment to have utility sinks installed in the garage and the laundry room, and he kindly took care of it on the spot. They can do all the work (get the materials and sinks, do the wall and plumbing work) so I won't need multiple vendors. Will absolutely work with this company again. Best plumbing company I've worked with in Seattle. Trustworthy, fair pricing, responsive and very nice to work with. read more

Bob Oates Sewer and Rooter - Good as new! - Plumbing Near Me - Seattle, Washington

If you have a faucet leak don't bother calling Bob Oates unless you want to buy a new faucet and have them install it for you. Our kitchen sink faucet was leaking. As someone who hasn't ever done any plumbing work before it was intimidating to think of trying to fix it myself. I called Bob Oates and told them clearly over the phone that our faucet was leaking water. They sent someone out to give a free estimate based on what they thought was wrong. When the plumber arrived he didn't touch a thing or look under the cabinet or at any pipes and said they didn't repair leaking faucets, they would just replace the faucet with a new one. Which....they could have told me over the phone and saved us all the time! I was quoted $350 for the installation (not including the price of the faucet). My faucet was only 3 years old. By calling the manufacturer and doing some digging online I found out that it was likely a problem with the cartridge. It took me 20 dollars and 20 minutes to fix myself. (For anyone with a leaking Moen faucet this is a great video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eEWALEIGJvM) I know not all plumbing problems are that small, but for anyone out there lacking the courage to try DIY on the small stuff: you got this! It's ridiculous that they didn't just tell me their policy over the phone, and it's a ridiculous policy that would have likely cost me around $600 (with the work + the faucet + tax) and put a perfectly good piece of equipment in the landfill. read more

Bob Oates Plumbing & Sewer came in November of 2021 to put in an instant hot water tank/sewage lines and gas lines to my stove but in late May of 2022 the job was still incomplete. I am on the verge of having to not only buy a new hot water tank but also having to hire a plumber to put it in because they installed the old one wrong, and it blew up in the middle of winter. Even though they promised to come out and fix the problems, I'm still waiting for an appointment to finish the job. Making sure the job passes permits and codes for the customer is not high priority for Bob Oates Plumbing. Not sure why Bob Oates walked off the job but I would think twice about hiring a company that without any kind of explanation, just walks away, doesn't return phone calls, doesn't answer texts and doesn't finish what they started. read more

I used these guys several years ago, and they were fine. Tried again in 2023, not good at all. For those reading these maybe years into the future, in 2023 it was extremely commonplace for contractors to have poor customer service, and shoddy work product. Seattle had a housing/construction boom, and contractors just didn't have to care. So, context to keep in mind. First, inspector showed up unprepared. Needed to borrow a wrench to open my sewer cleanout (standard Oatey w/ hex nut present on tons of houses). Not a big deal, I had one, just unprofessional. I clearly explained to him that the city was about to start sidewalk construction, so I wanted him to attempt a locate on the side sewer (their cameras have transmitters that you "find" with a receiver, walking above ground). He gave me his guess on location, and then just didn't do it. He didn't try to find the line, and encounter difficulties. Just didn't try. He said sometimes there's interference from utility lines, and I told him I understood (I'm an engineer), and just to try his best. Nope. Just didn't do it. For the record, sometimes natural gas lines (the only utility near this spot) are metal, but sometimes are plastic. It's not like he attempted the locate and was foiled by metal pipe. Then, during the actual scope, he got stuck at a very mild transition, that neither of the home's prior 2 inspections had any trouble with. But, *I* had to suggest to him to run water, which he wasn't doing! Luckily, I stayed with him at this point, so he didn't also just give up on actually scoping all the way to the city main. He didn't start recording until the camera's trip back (fairly standard), but the problem is that at that point, the camera was covered in ... let's call it dirt. So, all the way back, you can hardly see out of half the camera! Add to that, he skipped super fast past several of the transitions, which are the points where you normally find problems. So, on the video, you simply can't discern anything about multiple pipe joints. Now, on the outgoing trip (not recorded), he did go slow. So, he (and I) did see those transitions. But, the point of a home seller sharing an inspection is so that buyers can see the condition of the side sewer. This all would have been mitigated if they simply provided an inspection report that summarized the findings. Nothing. Just a youtube video link with no description, or separate report whatsoever (literally 4 or 5 sentences is all you'd need for this case). I had to contact them not one, not two, but three times (all after paying in full) to demand they provide me some written summary of the inspection findings, so I could share with potential buyers. Literally fighting with them over 2 minutes of effort on their part. The inspector was at my property for 45 minutes, including pre-work "quote" and cleanup. Not a lot to ask for a bill of $414 + tax, again where they didn't even do the locate I requested. After finally getting them to provide a written description, they noted a medium-sized issue that the inspector didn't even catch during the scope. It's clear he missed it because the video passes by the offset joint quickly - you are supposed to focus in on problem spots. If I hadn't stubbornly demanded the summary, this would have been missed entirely! Finally, because I was about to prep the house for sale, I didn't want dirt tracked through my home. I took the time to lay out drop cloths, cardboard, and a scrap of carpet remnant for him to travel all the way from the garage to the cleanout. Then, he rolls his equipment right along the unprotected floor, not on my carpet path. WTH, man. That path was for you. This final bit isn't about *this* inspection, per se, but I also realized a few years after the previous time I used them that after a while, they remove your inspection video. Um, that's important, because if there are issues with your sewer, and you want to track if they're getting worse, you need the old video to compare. And, no, they do not also provide you a DVD copy. So, basically, they're charging premium prices for service where they skimp as much as possible. Rush through your inspection, barely viewable video, no summary report, Youtube link until they quietly decide to remove it. Nice. read more

We had Bob Oates install a liner for our aging (100+ y/o), root-infested sewer line. The resulting work--and the process of working with them--are both top shelf. Our project manager, TJ, took the time to make sure we fully understood what was going on and what the tradeoffs were to the several options available to us. He also focused on helping us solve the problem (i.e. as opposed to just selling the work). The work crews came out when they said they would, got the job done in time (with the exception of some follow-on work that was the result of a city inspector showing up late in the day), and paid attention to detail (for example in offering to match a concrete patch to the aggregate in our driveway). I highly recommend them for sewer liner work based on their professionalism, excellent communication, punctuality, and attention to detail. read more

Second time with Bob Oates and couldn't be happier with the experience. A work crew accidentally damaged an underground water line on private property, and Bob Oates was able to send someone out and get it fixed that day. Konrad was very knowledgeable and great to work with. He replaced the damaged portion of the water line, tested and flushed the water coming into the residence, and took measures to protect that area in the future. The reception/dispatch staff, as well as the manager, were also very responsive and pleasant to interact with. Super happy that I had Bob Oates to turn to when this unfortunate accident happened. read more

Requested a quote from this company for a property I manage and was very disappointed with the service level. Would not recommend and please note, I rarely write poor reviews but feel people should be warned. The technician came out as scheduled and didn't even look at or test the appliance in question (was having a drainage issue with a dishwasher). Stated the entire air gap needed to be replaced without even checking if the air gap was obstructed or not (which it wasn't). Just said that's the "usual case". Again, did absolutely NOTHING to diagnose the problem, didn't even look at the air gap, and provided no evidence as to why they would need to do work but were happy to charge for it. After our own troubleshooting, once the technician left, we found a small piece of glass that was preventing the pump from rotating. Which would have had ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to do with the air gap. Very happy we didn't waste money paying Bob Oates to complete unnecessary work. I feel bad should someone be completely unknowledgeable in a situation and get scammed for unnecessary work by this company. BEWARE! read more

Great Company. Killer side sewer crew who gets the job done. I highly suggest using Bob Oates for any side sewer related issue

We have used Bob Oates a number of times in the past. They have lost us as customers, however, after charging us over $ 630 for an easy, ten minute job installing a filter in our sink. The company didn't do anything wrong legally as we agreed to the quote beforehand not knowing what the job would involve. Upon my complaint, they flat out refused to adjust the bill. And so we are looking for a new plumber with a more reasonable pricing approach. read more

I needed to replace pipes in my backyard. Having used Bob Oates before and thought the customer service was great, I contacted them again. TJ and his crew were great! Unfortunately, I also discovered a leaking pipe in my crawlspace. TJ said he would have someone come out and fix it. The plumber did try to call me first but I didn't have my phone with me. Later I received a text from Raya. She indicated that a technician came out to look at the pipe. The technician told her I was not on site, there was a 2 Brothers truck in the driveway and they told him they were repairing the leak. She was going to have the technician leave and I should call if I needed anything else. This is the problem: I was on site. I saw the truck drive by but the technician did not stop. I did have a 2 Brothers truck in the driveway. They were giving me an estimate for air conditioning which, I was told, Bob Oates doesn't do. He did not talk to them because he drove by and didn't stop and the two guys from 2 Brothers were in the house with me. One was in the attic, the other was talking with me when the truck went by. Also, if had stopped and spoken to them, they wouldn't know what he was talking about because they didn't know I had leaking pipe. I contacted TJ and told him what happened. All he said was that I should contact the company and have them send someone out. When I paid the final bill, I left a note about what happened and that I still needed someone to come out for the leaking pipe. I haven't heard from them since. I get the confusion of having another plumbing truck in my driveway, but had he stopped instead of driving by, I could have explained the situation to him. Sounds to me like he found an excuse to leave early. read more

THEY RUPTERED A GAS LINE!!! DO NOT HIRE! My neighbor hired them to do a sewer project and they struck a gas line while digging because apparently these "professionals" don't know how to call 811 before they dig. I wasn't home at the time, but my girlfriend had to evacuate. A bunch of firemen pounded on the door and told her she had 5 minutes to gather her things and go somewhere else for 5 hours. This was during her workday and she didn't have many options of places to go due to the pandemic. The scariest part is that if she would have turned the stove on or lit a match, the entire house could have blown up and she would have died. It has been over a week and they have offered no compensation and not even an apology. I can't believe they still have a license to operate - they should be shut down permanently. You can look up the incident on real time 911 dispatch to verify: 11/11/20 at 3:17pm - Battalion Chief 6, Engine 21, Ladder 8 F200111608 read more

Bob Oates Sewer and Rooter - Plumbing Near Me - Seattle, Washington

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What a fantastic experience I had with the whole Bob Oates team. First time out, we had a quick chat about the complexities of the clog and what the best solutions were. When snaking/hydrojetting wasn't a viable option, we moved to the next visit to discuss excavation and replacement of below grade lines (all free consultations). Konrad was excellent in preparing us for what to expect, clearly communicating about installation process, and then getting it done as promised. He directed us as to how we might assist in the excavation process to save money, and provide a reasonable quote that was within our budget. The cherry on everything, while he was replacing lines he noticed some other cast iron piping we hadn't seen before that also may need to be replaced. Instead of upselling and pushing for more work, he provided easy access points so that any plumber may be able to tie into these new lines without the need for more concrete breaking and digging. For such an intense and complex job, Konrad made it look easy. Thanks to the entire team! read more

Bob Oates Sewer and Rooter - Cut out old rotting lines behind walls and below grade, adding caps for future tie ins. - Plumbing Near Me - Seattle, Washington

Wyatt came out and fixed a complex problem with two tandem electric 50 gal water heaters. He was very professional and on time all the time. I had another positive experience with them a few years back too. read more

why am I paying money for incorrect consultation and no problem fixed?!! I had building handyman come later who fixed my sink for free since it was a small thing with air gap (I paid $60 to Bob oats for just the consultation/service - which just involved looking under the sink and turning on tap to see water drains from garbage disposal ok. They suggested they could put a snake to clean but that's another $250, but with no guarantee that it would fix the thing. We might still have to call real plumbers..?) Jeremy who came over was knowledgable and it could be a one time fluke. My problem was mostly with their pricing model. I don't think the 10 min check should have costed me the money - I would have been more forgiving towards the mistake then. read more

I initially had another plumbing service diagnose my clogged kitchen drainage issue and they didn't have the necessary tools to fix the problem so they pointed me in the direction of Bob Oates Sewer and Rooter. Just two hours after calling, Henry arrived and got to work. Because I live in condominiums and I don't have easy access to an outdoor hose hookup for the tool he was using, he went out of his way to look around to find a location that had one and went out to gather additional tools to get the job done. Henry was very friendly, easy to work with, and provided fantastic service. I highly recommend this company. read more

I've been using Bob Oates for years now. Customer service is always fantastic. They're reasonably priced compared to other plumbing outfits and they're show up when they say they're going to show up. I have nothing but positive things to say about them. Shout out to Prescott for his work today getting some lines cleared on our old building. He was transparent, thoughtful, and communicative. He told me what I needed done, gave me information and options when I asked and made sure we were taken care of. In the past I believe Noah has come out to help service the same building and he was fantastic as well. We're very happy happy customers and look forward to our continuing relationship with Bob Oates. read more

I called bob oates to come out for a sewer inspection. They came out right away. TJ Was right on time and super helpful. They found out that even though I've been paying for sewer service for the last 10 years that I'm not even on sewer and the previous homeowner hid a septic tank for the home that caused a huge flood in my house. They are going to get me the details of the inspection so I can take legal action on the person that sold me the house and also get back pay from the city for the last 10 years we have been paying for it. We will be using them to hook up this raggedy old septic system and connect it to sewer read more