Al's Plumbing And Heating Ltd.

Scope of work: Toilet drain pipe and closet flange (lead) replacement due to leak. Drywall and insulation underneath was already removed and the leak revealed, so the job was to cut out of the old lead pipe and replace with new ABS. Overall 1.5ft section of lead pipe tied back into cast iron main stack. Details of the issue with pictures and videos was provided. Fixing the drywall and repainting was not in scope.

The Good:
1. The workers arrived within the next working day, early and on time.
2. Cleaned up the area after finishing the job.
3. I had the chance to speak with Al over the weekend when the issue occurred and he was very responsive.
4. Skill did not seem to be an issue.

The Bad:
1. The total price for replacement ended up being $1100+. This was roughly 2x all other quotes I got. Al's didn't give me quote and suggested they only quote an hourly rate and not for the full job.
2. There was a team of two workers sent and both were billed against the plumber hourly rate of $98+tax. The replacement pipe section was small enough to not require two people. The reasoning given to me for this was that one person needs to stand below the pipe while the other cuts it from above. This sounds like an excuse, the pipe section being cut weighed 3.4kgs. We didn't have floor access from above so the entire task was done from below except for the toilet wax seal and flange replacement. My wife who was home at the time reported that she only saw one person doing most of the job while the other was watching.
3. It took 3.5 hours to do this replacement, which included 2 hours of going back to the shop to get materials and or lunch break. Note the details of the issue with pictures was already provided to remove this ambiguity. I was billed for 4 hours, times the two workers, plus materials and truck charge.
4. I reached out to the scheduling manager with these concerns. He told me the price is the price and there is nothing that can be done.

Conclusion: I paid but subsequently cancelled my next appointment booked for the other property, went with another plumbing company for the next repair.

I had a plumbing emergency when I called and I was in a state of panic. They had someone come to my house in couple of hours, we reviewed my options on the repair and I was able to make an informed decision on how best to proceed. Once I decided on the fix I was looking for the repair went quickly. Thanks Johnny for the excellent and professional work. I will use them again and would recommend to anyone having plumbing problems.

Great work, had a stubborn clog downstairs in the laundry room, and a few other problems, all fixed, and even installed my dishwasher on the fly. i called in the afternoon, and they had me in for the next day. Top notch customer service, very professional, and great rates.

Came within an hour of my call at an extremely busy time for them. Tyler did his best to not have to take apart my entire wall to find my frozen pipe and he cleaned up incredibly well afterwards. The price was reasonable and well worth the service. I would call Al's again if I had another plumbing problem.