I called Urban due to their high ratings on Yelp and I had seen their trucks in the area. I was in a bit of a rush as it seemed my water heater was leaking, and the person I would typically use for this kind of thing retired recently.
When I called, Chris was polite. He shared that their price was a flat fee and was based on using water heaters that are superior and more expensive that those at the big box stores.
Pros:
When we spoke, Chris indicated that the job would take an hour and a half which it did. They arrived (two people) when they said they would. Price upon completion was as quoted so no surprises. Were polite and respectful during their time in my home.
Cons:
My older water heater had quite a bit of sediment built up in it which made it hard to drain. This resulted in quite a bit of spilled water in the area which they attempted to clean using materials I had on hand. There was quite a bit of water left behind when they departed...I didn't realize how much until I started cleaning after they left.
I texted Chris afterward and he called me to discuss. His position was that maybe "1 in 200" water heaters has the scaling issues mine did so it rarely happens, and "no plumber" carries towels or a means for cleaning on their truck. He conveyed that the time spent was "twice as long" as expected due to being on "hands and knees" cleaning with my towels but the "flat fee" for install was meant to account for that. They were not here for 3 hours which would have been twice the time quoted so maybe I misunderstood his point.
I mentioned that I was surprised they didn't have a wet-dry vac on their vehicle and he mentioned that they did but he forgot about it. I also mentioned that if they'd told me how much they were struggling, I would have shown them to a wet-dry vac that was in the same room as the water heater.
When I indicated that the experience wasn't what I expected he asked if the last water heater I had replaced had the scaling issue and water etc...When I shared that it did and that the plumber took some precautions, he apologized that I wasn't happy with the experience, offered to come back and clean up (which I told him wasn't necessary at that point) and we ended the call. While I don't think he agreed with my position, he was respectful and polite.
Overall, they delivered as promised, seem like good people, and are a little pricy. If the cost was lower, I'd have been fine with cleaning up, but I felt that for the price, I shouldn't have needed to. read more
