In 2017 I had estimates from 4 licensed HVAC professionals for improvements to my loft's heating. Richard came out & came up with a very thoughtful plan that sounded like the best of the 4. He even considered aesthetics, which the others didn't. His price was fair, work was fast & result was wonderful! Now in 2024, I'm selling, and called him at the 11th hour in hopes he could do an inspection on a potential leak. He was fully booked, and at first said he couldn't but would call a colleague (totally unusual & over the top, in my experience). The colleague couldn't, but he came out & took care of it, anyway! On top of his quality work, great work ethic, he's a genuinely nice guy. I'd call him for everything heating & plumbing related! read more

We contacted Richard's team to get a quote for replacing our furnace as we had a newborn in the house and we were concerned with the age and poor efficiency of our existing furnace. Daniel stood hands above all other estimators in his consultation and he suggested relocation of furnace to crawl space after learning of our plans to remodel basement to free up valuable floor space for development. He also suggested zoned system to allow future tenant to control heat independently from main floor. Pricing was very competitive and working with the team was straightforward and professional. They showed up on time, consulted with us regularly on progress and left work area spotless. Daniel and team also worked closely with us throughout the install process to accommodate our needs to minimize any potential rework once our remodeling took place. End result is toasty home that is much more comfortable with more even heating at lower cost and we have an additional 100ft for our studio remodel. Thanks Daniel and Richard! read more

Richard's Plumbing and Heating - 96% efficient in crawl space - Plumbing Near Me

Replacement furnace after old furnace had a bunch of faults. Also did new AC, duct work to fix cold spots in the house and improve efficiency. Indeed - cold spots were fixed, for less money than another few HVAC companies that had significantly higher quotes. AC has been fantastic over the summer. After a year the AC unit started having problems on the hottest days. Richard's team came in several times until the fault was figured out and fixed, all covered under parts & service warranty. AC works great again. Good pragmatic service and advice, good price, excellent crew. read more

I asked Richard to come and give me and my partner a quote for a large job. He suggested 9am this Saturday morning (earlier today) and was there pretty much on time. I wasn't at the house then, but my partner whom he exchanged emails with to settle the time and who gave Richard his phone number was there, but out of earshot of the front door at that moment. When Richard knocked and got no response, he phoned me and I suggested maybe my partner could be out of earshot or snoozing and that he yell. I called my partner immediately. He was in fact awake, so I told him Richard was there and he ran to the front door only to see the van disappearing. Richard hadn't yelled or called my partner or waited. I kept calling trying to get him to turn around but he didn't call me back all day. I would have expected at least a call back, but apparently Richard has just dismissed us as not worth dealing with further. Possibly he is so great that he doesn't need the work, but I find his behavior distinctly unpleasant. You will need to have all your ducks in a very neat row if you're going to have the privilege of doing business with this guy. read more

It's an axiom that competence and honesty are generally present in inverse proportion in plumbers, mechanics, and members of other professional trades. Richard Grodecki proves that's not always true. I've worked with a dozen or so plumbers in my life, and never have I met someone so devoted to performing quality work, bar none. Richard installed a state-of-the-art tankless hot water heater and completely re-piped my 1920s-era Berkeley bungalow, and every detail showed his commitment to providing me with a solution that will last a lifetime. Every permit was taken care of. Every finish on my house was restored to its original state or actually improved. Even when the job went past his original time estimate, he never once brought up the idea of charging me more. When I asked about it, he simply said "Unless something truly unexpected rears its head, I stick to my estimates." Wow. That integrity alone is worth its weight in gold -- thank heavens he's also the best plumber in the Bay Area. Hire this man. read more

I did not realize that plumbing was an art until Richard worked on our building. He completely re-piped the entire building, replacing our 1928 pipes with copper. And it looks GREAT! Richard and his crew were professional, courteous, excellent and all things good. Richard pays attention to small details and brought some other issues to our attention. When all was said and done, we couldn't have asked for or expected more. Thanks Richard! I *highly* recommend this crew for any major plumbing needs. read more

If you are looking for a respectable, genuine, artisan for either your heating or plumbing needs, Richard is your guy. You can stop looking. Trust me, Richard and his team is quite unbelievable AND came in less than both the other bids. I had 2 other bids by reputable companies. Richard arrived, asked to look around and survey the system (neither previous company did so). He then recommended a solution and defended why he thought so. I was impressed. He finished the work yesterday and it ended up being a work of art. It was a significant amount of work. Because he wants everything done right, he goes beyond the call of duty to ensure so. Everything was cleaned up and removed. As for Victoria's comment below, I just don't see it. I certainly did not have all my ducks in the row, and he handled everything gracefully. Not sure what happened, but you can see by the rest of the recommendations, yours falls out as a clear exception. I only write yelp comments when I feel strongly one way or another. Richard is a class act and a master of his craft. He is also a really nice guys. I give my absolute highest recommendation for his services. read more

Richard's Plumbing just finished replacing my 50 year + furnace and duct system in my house and he did a fantastic job. I now have heat in my house and very pleased with the results. Richard is patient and explained many options and even recommended moving my heater to a different location to maximize comfort and I regained a sizable chunk of my basement. He and his crew actually left my house better than before fixing one of my doors unrelated to the heating job. Rarely have I met a contractor who is as honest. He also explained that since I replaced my windows last year and already took $1500 tax credit, I didn't qualify for the stimulus money this year. This was said by any other heating company contacted during the process even though I mentioned my windows in each case. Instead all the others emphasized a net price which included $1500 off the top. Richard was the only one who told me that I didn't qualify at this point for a second $1500 tax credit because the maximum for 2008-2010 was $1500. This took some courage since his price might not otherwise seem to be the lowest price. read more

Richard is truly and honest, easy to work with. We had an in line water heater and a washer in dryer in an upstairs tiny room. Our young boy is going to need a room of his own soon, and so we decided to coopt this room. I was so impressed with the solution Richard came up with, the loud water heater went up into the attic, the washer and dryer went on the first floor under the stairs. The whole job took two days and the guys keep the place clean and put everything back when they were done. I can't recommend Richard more, AND he came back when I admitted I couldn't figure out why the tap wasn't turning off completely at the kitchen sink. And he didn't make fun of me when it turned out it was a simple right in my face issue! Not only professional, but completely nice too. I'm just going to amend this because we lost contact with Richard, after a few calls to tie up loose ends with our system, we ended up going with another plumber. Sad, cause I really enjoy working with Richard! read more

Richard & his crew are pro's...it's clear the minute you start discussing your project with Richard and it's even more clear as you get to talk to him and the crew as the job unfolds and ultimately as you see the work complete. He clearly is focused on getting the job done right when many of his competitors are either focused only on selling you a furnace or fancy air filtration system or doing fast, cheap and poor quality work. We contacted Richard to add a heating vent to a newly finished basement and then fix a few of the shortcuts the previous owner (and contractors) took. Richard fixed them, found a few others and managed to take care of the original project + all of the additional fixes all in a day. Not to mention - he and the crew did all of this on Memorial day which is is by all definitions going above and beyond for the customer. I highly recommend Richard's Plumbing & Heating - I plan on calling him again but suspect I'll have to wait a while since he fixed everything the right way. read more

Just got off the phone with Richard. Really nice guy and very honest. I called Richard based on the reviews here and referral. His price was way lower than quoted by others five star rated plumbers. The only thing, he doesn't serve my area. What a bummer! read more

Very thankful for Richard and Daniel. I had a time sensitive gas line project that they worked hard to help me with. The job could have cost me thousands, but Daniel and Richard found a way to do it safely and efficiently for less than $1,000! Daniel showed up on time, worked with a smile on his face, and kept me informed along the way. When the gas line project was complete, Daniel came inside to test my pilot lights and make sure they were lit. In the process of lighting my furnace pilot light, Daniel noticed that some screws were loose on the furnace cover, a big safety hazard. Without me asking, he brought in a drill and some screws, and secured the furnace cover properly. I'm a little embarrassed to say that the furnace cover had been loose/unsecured for over 2 years! And Daniel fixed it in about 5 minutes. These guys are honest and they understand how to make customers happy! Will definitely be back for future projects (which hopefully won't be needed for awhile). Thanks Daniel and Richard! read more

Richard is an awesome plumber! He changed our old pipes to copper pipes, upgraded our water system, and he also installed a gas shut off valves. He returns your phone calls, shows up on time, and leaves the place clean. I highly recommend Richard. read more

Richard replaced my heater this week. It turned out that the old heater in my 1898 farm house was simply under-sized. Richard researched solutions and e-mailed me a quote along with a link to the new heater unit he recommended. I called him one day, he called right back, came by to take a look, provided a quote in a few days and then agreed to do the job right away. Richard installed the new heater this past Wednesday and I am much more comfortable in my house. I LOVE my new heater. Richard did a super good job and was very easy to deal with. I already recommended him to my sister for a heater repair job! read more

Richard is the best contractor I have ever used! He and his crew replaced my 80 year old furnace with a high efficiency model and new thermostat, redid the ducting and added a new duct to one of my rooms (which was tricky). Richard is very polite, informative, and his word is golden. His bid was very reasonable, he explained everything completely and clearly, and he and his crew were always on time. Richard also took care of the rebate and tax credit documentation. The crew were exceptionally neat and well mannered and they left the areas they worked in cleaner than they were as they began the job. He found a way to move the location of the furnace to under my house which opened up huge additional space in my workshop. You can completely rely on Richard- he is honest, professional and a truly decent guy. Look no further for a heating or plumbing contractor- this is THE one! read more

Best experience we have had with home improvement. Richard and his team are straightforward and professional. They installed a new furnace, new duct system and set up two heat/ac zones in our house. The process was fast and easy for us and Richard is a pleasure to work with. Price was very reasonable. read more

Simply put, Richard saved us from a variety of disasters at a critical time, and was our hero. We just bought a old fixer-upper house with no furnace, no fridge, no dishwasher, no stove, no washer, no dryer. I was 37.5 weeks pregnant, it was 2 days to Thanksgiving and our new house was very cold at night. Initially, we contacted Richard for a furnace quote. He came right in the middle price-wise, with the most comprehensive description of 2 types of furnaces and the applicable rebates. He also was very friendly and not pushy with his business. We decided to go with him, and felt validated right away as he explained options that came up with positioning heater vents so that we understood and agreed with his recommendations. We were incredibly happy with the job that Richard and his crew performed. They were timely, very clean, very organized, and very professional. PLUS, Richard was able to install the furnace a week early! We were ecstatic about this because the baby could come any day and a house with no heat is no place for a newborn. Furthermore, they even finished the job early! After the furnace installation, when our regular handyman was not able to come to install our appliances, Richard was able to get one of his guys to come and install all of them. This includes a very special-requirement Bosch dishwasher - Richard was already perfectly knowledgeable with the brand's peculiar and important installation requirements. And then there was the hook up to the semi-maintained vintage gas oven. For Richard and his guys - no problem. Finally, they were able to come a day earlier than they had originally thought. It was fantastic for us, because after Richard finished with us, our new home finally became "livable". Richard and his crew are truly a first class business; the service he provides is top of the line and he is a very kind soul. Plus, he basically hand feeds you the rebate information... which, when you are moving in/moving out and due any day, is VERY helpful. We would not hesitate to use Richard again. Other bonuses: he is readily available via both phone and email and takes credit. We are happy to provide our highest recommendations for Richard here on Yelp and help him continue to provide great professional service to the Bay Area. read more

We received an estimate for a new water heater and minor gas re-work from Richard and another highly rated, local plumbing company. Richard's estimate was timely, fair, and detailed. He is very professional, does quality work - including a very detailed clean-up. What I appreciate most about working with him is his follow-up and timely, thorough communication. read more

I was lucky to find Richard 4 years ago to help with our first house. Richard has helped me replace the furnace and ductwork, all the piping and helped install my new basement bathroom. There are too many reasons why I think Richard is great............on time, dependable, knowledgeable, honest....I could go on. But the fact that he is flexible and cooperative and really understands your needs is truly a gift. I wouldn't even consider going anywhere else with my plumbing issues. In dealing with the multitude of contractors out there, Richard is a rare find. read more

Richard and his crew replaced my 90-year old gravity heater with a forced air heater in March 2019, and I could not have asked for a more congenial contractor or successful home project. Working with Richard was enjoyable from start to finish. He was like a knowledgeable, patient friend who got his head around what I wanted and made sure I got the best heater for my house. He gave me several heater types to choose from, entertained others I considered, and patiently answered all my questions until I settled on a Coleman heater that is just right. He and his crew were friendly, efficient, and considerate, and everything went just as he said it would during the four days. Every day, Richard informed me of their progress and what to expect the next day, and the work area was neatened up. His crew was friendly and extremely knowledgeable, and they also patiently answered my questions. Before they could take out the old heater, I had to have Synergy, an asbestos-removal company (see separate review), take out the ducts with asbestos. Richard coordinated with them so that the removal could be done in one day by both groups. At the end of the heater installation, they left my basement neater than before. Going from a gravity heater to a forced air heater feels like going from the 19th century to the 21st century: I'm now enjoying a heater that heats my 1,100 ft bungalow to the correct degree within minutes, and that can be turned on and set remotely. It is so efficient that I have been using it during this cold spring and summer and my gas bill is miniscule. This is an overdue thank you to Richard and his crew for bringing me into the 21st century in such a gentle and successful way. read more

Richard was amazing and his crew was very professional. This was my first home purchase and I had an ancient furnace. He was very patient and understood I was on a budget and suggested a few options so I could choose the best way to spend my money. Added bonus? He's a plumber! Was able to fix my water heater issues while he was there and install my faucet. Extremely trust worthy and did great work, would recommend him to any of my friends and family! read more

Called twice and left messages. Never even got a call back.

I'm really pleased to be able to give Richard another 5-star review (he installed central heat in a house I used to live in-- a 1921 Craftsman). This time around he has done another fantastic job installing central heat in my quirky mid-century home. The job involved locating registers and cutting the floor, and cutting some porcelain tiles. He did the job to perfection, was tidy, on time, and right on budget, and really worked with me to make sure I was happy with the location of some of the registers (a few were tricky to place because of an unforeseen foundation issue, but he was cheerful about working with me to resolve everything). The work is pristine, my house is warm, and I can't thank him enough. The bid was ALSO several thousand dollars less than I was quoted by the contractor sent to my home by the big box home improvement store that shall remain nameless... I've also had Richard install a water heater in an emergency (and he did it on short notice on a Saturday!). He's a totally stand-up guy and a reliable, tidy, courteous, and diligent contractor who goes out of his way to make sure the job gets done correctly. I'm happy to recommend him. read more

Richard and his crew recently installed a Gree ductless A/C and heat system in our home. He saved us $7000 by going with this system versus your standard central heat and air. He and his crew were nothing but professional and courteous 100% of the time. Richard has also been readily available for any questions/concerns since the installation. Would definitely recommend him for your heat and air needs! read more

The 40+ year old furnace in our 1939 home needed to be replaced. I was first going to go with the quote that the seller of the house had received, but when I called them, they asked, so, you just want the 80% efficient furnace then? I told them that their quote indicated it was for a 90% efficient furnace, to which the person on the phone replied, "oh, that's a typo". Time to find someone with a little more integrity. Happy to say, Richard is that guy!! He was able to come out right away, and took the time to walk through the whole house and understand what our needs were. Because the house is spread over multiple levels (not a lot of square footage, but upper bedrooms are 3+ floors above basement office), Richard highly suggested that we go with a 2-zone system, which would allow us to better "fine tune" the heating needs in the basement, so that the upper levels aren't overly hot when heating the lower levels. He felt so strongly, that he even included the added cost ($425) of the 2-stage furnace at not cost!! The installed furnace has a 96% efficiency rating. He also provides a 5 year parts and labor warranty on all materials and workmanship. I don't think you can find that anywhere else. The finished job looked like NASA had dropped the furnace in place! Foil covered ducts everywhere, small, compact furnace - very clean and nicely done. Total job took about 5 days. In addition, Richard also pointed out that our water heater was not properly strapped to the wall, and included proper strapping in his quote. He also suggested that when it comes time to replace the water heater, that we move it to another wall to make venting easier/more straight forward. Good, practical advise. In addition, he took a quick look at a bathroom faucet that seemed to be leaking (he determined it wasn't), and also suggested that we install a water main shut off that is accessible from the exterior of the house (now only accessible in the basement). Price-wise, he came in at about the same as other generic quotes (obtained from other local (bigger) companies that quoted without actually seeing the house); though he stuck to his original quote. I'm certain that these other quotes would have increased, once they actually set foot on site. I felt much more confident that Richard knew what he was doing and actually CARED about what he was doing. He's very personable, takes his work seriously, and will do all that he can to leave you a happy/satisfied customer. He's easy to get in touch with by phone or email, and responds very quickly. I will definitely use him for all of our ongoing plumbing/heating needs. read more

Same-day furnace repair for the win! Richard sent Nick out to fix our furnace about 2-3 hours after I called. It's December 21st and no one else could help us for at least 5 days. Nick did the job quickly and courteously. Couldn't ask for anything more! Thanks for restoring our heat, guys. read more

Richard has a great manner. I didn't end up using him to replace my leaking water heater because our schedules did not allow for the appointment. He was still so helpful and gave me advice on what to shut off until I could get someone out here to replace it. I will definetly call him again for any plumbing needs. read more

We were lucky to have Richard and team's help with both plumbing and heating issues we had with our house. Richard replaced a gas wall heater (with a lower bid, more detailed estimate and same-week speed), has plumbed drainage lines and created a washer/dryer hookup. He was very fast, pragmatic, approachable and has very fair rates. It's often useful to understand how contractors respond when things _don't_ go a perfectly as you'd hope. Richard and team installed shut-off valves for our washer/dryer hookup, but when we went to turn them on, they leaked. He responded to our call immediately, sent instructions if we wanted to check it ourselves (we didn't - were afraid we'd strip them and start a flood!), and then fixed them on the next business day. He was apologetic about the problem, responsive and reinforced his trustworthiness when fixing the problem. We're really happy to have finally found a reliable "go to" resource for plumbing (and have used about five other contractors in the ten years we've owned our house) - Richard is a gem. read more

Richard is great - he came by with his crew today to install a new gas-line and washer/dryer in my home. I actually had my phone on silent because I'm a Luddite and missed his call four times (an apparently a knock on the door). I was horrified and apologized, but Richard didn't even seem too mad about it - he came anyways and did a great job and even helped me with a little issue with my gas stove connection free of charge. His rate was very reasonable and he got the job done in just a handful of hours. I will absolutely be calling Richard's Plumbing and Heating for any plumbing/gas issues I have in the future, and would highly recommend him to anyone. read more

Richard Re-piped our 1100sq ft home in Oakland, Ca. He also installed a tank-less water heater. Him and his crew were fast and courteous and everything about the install was high quality. I recently just called Richard again as we are selling our home and needed a few plumbing issues fixed after the inspection (not related to the re-pipe). We had a limited time frame and Richard had no problem working within it. I would recommend Richard's P&H to anyone. read more

These guys are great. I hired them to install a new tankless water heater, plus run a gas line to my fireplace for a new fireplace insert. Things were a little rocky at first, since Richard was struck ill and had to postpone the install date, but he made it up to me by installing a earthquake value, free of charge. Richard is one of the friendliest contractors I've had to work with so far, very amiable. And the other workers that came for the job were also very polite. They did good work, and even looked into some other small plumbing issues I had while they were here. Highly recommended. read more

Its taken me a couple weeks to get to this but I had to..when service is bad I feel I have to write..but when its great like this its a pleasure to write I recently purchased an older house, it had been empty for a couple years and had only one small wall heater in the middle of the house for heat, I wanted to remove the wall heater and install central heating and ducts through out the house. Based on other YELP reviews I e-mailed Richard, he responded with a phone call the next morning and came out the following day to give me an estimate. I was very apprehensive about what the cost might be, the house had never had any ducts..and only had limited crawl space under the house to place a heating unit and run ducts. Richard worked up an estimate the next day..which was VERY reasonable and we worked out a schedule a couple weeks later ( at my request as I had other contractors working) during the Thanksgiving week to do the work..even though I happen to know he had a close family member in the hospital that week for serious surgery, he called me the night before the date and was ready right on schedule. I cant say enough about the quality and integrity of his work and the 2 men who work for him..Daniel and Hector..they arrived early early and worked late every day..they were friendly, personable, worked clean and finished a day ahead of schedule, and with in the estimate. They really worked their ASS's off in that cramped , damp, dirty crawl space. Years ago I was an Electrical contactor myself..so I went down after to check their work..EXCELLENT, It is so nice to find a contractor who does what he says..on time..and for a reasonable price. I would highly recommend Richard, Daniel and Hector for any plumbing heating work..you will not go wrong. P.S. 2 weeks later at 10pm on a Sunday night my heater would'nt go on..I reluctantly called Richard at home..he was at my house with in 30 minutes ( 10:30 on a Sunday night) he crawled under the house and was out in 2 minutes..the furnace on...just a loose fuse..its worked great ever since. Thats what a call a professional who stands behind his work!! read more

Richard and his crew are awesome! We had a brand new heating system installed in our old 1929 home. In addition he replaced our existing water heater with a tankless one. He removed our existing old boiler/radiator system which was no easy task. Richard and his guys were always prompt and courteous and always worked around us and our schedule. The house was cleaned up each and every day at 5:00 PM without a trace that work was being done. His bid was fair and he took the time to explain, both in email and via phone, all of the options that we had. I would definitely recommend Richard's Plumbing and Heating! read more

Richard was my plumber for a remodel on a fixer I bought. He upgraded all the pipes to copper, and installed a high efficiency forced air furnace including all the ducts, etc in my crawlspace. He also installed all valves and fixtures, put ducts for kitchen and bathroom fan through ceiling and roof, faucets, new dual flush low-flow toilet, sink and shower valve. In short, he did all the plumbing in my house. He was always very quick to respond to calls, reliable, friendly. If he is delayed, he calls, and often is there even before he says he will be. He is flexible, quick, and efficient. When there are bugs, he comes promptly to fix them. I recommend him highly and will use him in the future. read more

Richard's team installed infrastructure in my old house for a washing machine so I could join the modern era. With elevation and various other considerations, it was quite a complex situation. They did outstanding work, from the quality through to service. I cannot recommend them highly enough! One of the other reviewers summed it up best - fast, efficient, friendly and no surprises. read more

Richard and his crew as awesome! Richard came over, listened to what we needed and discussed our options very clearly. The guys that did the work were quick, thorough, professional and nice, happy guys! Wouldn't go anywhere else for our plumbing and heating needs! read more

It's been great working with Richard. He and his crew replaced our furnace and duct system and added a register in the living-room. Later on, once we were settled in, Richard came by to do a walk(or crawl)-around and explain what I needed to know. All along, he's been very helpful, honest and available for questions. He even managed to squeeze in the installation earlier than planned to accomodate my schedule with other contractors. Highly recommended. read more

Richard did a great job on a furnace replacement in our Alameda home. We had an ancient gravity furnace and asbestos taped ducting. Richard recommend Quality Asbestos for the removal who came the same week i called and did a thorough clean job. Then Richard's team came in and were so professional and clean. It was almost like they weren't there. He was on time, on schedule, and on budget. I would highly recommend Richard's Plumbing and Heating. read more

We were new homeowners recently moved into a 1921 craftsman with no furnace (!!!). Richard came highly recommended by a friend whose opinion I trust. Not much to say except that Richard was calm, measured, and always appeared to have the situation well in hand. He volunteered consistent, detailed updates about progress and made us feel at ease throughout. He and his team cleaned up after themselves each day and, overall, did an impeccable job. And, in addition, his bid was very competitive. For those interested: we installed a 2-stage forced-air system in the attic with registers in 7 rooms and a Nest thermostat. We would hire Richard again, no question. read more

We highly recommend Richard and his team. We called several local businesses for bids, and while Richard's wasn't the lowest bid, he was willing to negotiate to a price that we felt comfortable with without sacrificing quality of workmanship at all. He and his team are prompt, courteous, and helpful, answering all of our questions with lots of patience. They removed our old furnace (along with an asbestos wrapped duct), suspended our new furnace securely to the beams in our basement that resulted in freeing up a massive amount of space and replaced our duct system. Their workmanship is great - in fact, shortly after, I had another contractor over to give a bid for another project, and he was complimenting Richard's workmanship. We have an exposed breezeway that connects an addition to the main part of the house, and we didn't have any central heat in our master bedroom. Richard added a register to our bedroom in a creative and unobtrusive way. When they opened up the wall to see where the duct would travel, they decided that the register would have to be in a different location than originally planned, and took off several hundred dollars from our agreed upon estimate because it was a location that was easier to access. Our new furnace is more efficient and we love it. Thank you! read more