Roto-Rooter Plumbing & Water Cleanup

Roto-Rooter is the type of company to try to charge as much as they possibly can for a job.

Do they do the job well? I think so. Do they respond quickly? Yes. But they charge premium prices.

I had some water restoration done. I've done water restoration before at my previous house. Roto-Rooter's work was much less than what my previous water restoration needed. Yet it was 2x expensive.

The quote was between $1500-$4000. The person who did the restoration even said since it wasn't much work, and it should be near the $1500 range. Well, guess how much they charged me when I got the invoice? Close to $4000.

As I mentioned before, my previous water-restoration was multiple rooms and a bigger job than what Roto-Rooter did. And they charged me about 1/2 as much as Roto-Rooter.

This is a classic case of a big company gouging the little guys. The work they did was fine, and the staff were friendly. But man did they really put a big hole in my bank account.

I don't recommend Roto Rooter, unless you like paying a lot. It is NOT a good-value company. Maybe if you're in a real emergency situation. Roto-Rooter should be the last resort.

A few days later, I decided to call another plumbing company for an unrelated issue and they did a great job and didn't charge me high prices.

Also, I don't think they do a good job in communicating. They seem busy (strange based on how much they charge) and don't bother calling back.

I'll give 4 stars for service, 1 star for value and price, and 1 star for communication. That averages out to 2 stars.

Kostadin came out and cleared a blockage in my water line that was causing water to back up in the shower and tubs in 2 bathrooms. When the toilets in each room was flushed, it would come up in the shower and tubs. These bathrooms are above the garage, and a substantial amount of water leaked down the ceiling in the garage, causing a couple of puddles on the garage floor.

He arrived on time, and determined the root of the problem: Toilet wet wipes! The ones advertised on the package as flushable!! He resolved the issue and schooled me on the fact that wet wipes may indeed be flushable, but it doesn't make them biodegradable like toilet paper. So they'll accumulate at the bottom of the pipes, until becoming problematic. Lesson learned. Wet wipes may be the best thing since sliced bread, just toss them in trash, not the toilet. Even the ones advertised as being flushable!!!

The issue of the leaking garage ceiling still needed to be resolved, and Kostadin was on it. He scheduled to have Adam from Roto-Rooter's water restoration team come in the next morning to assess the damage. Adam came out and helped me with filing a claim with my insurance. Roto-Rooter's came out the following day to begin the water restoration process. They completed it in just a few days, and helped refer me to another company to patch up the ceiling and bathroom tiles, etc.

I am very happy with the overall process. They were very efficient and professional, and definitely gained my trust.

I had a terrible experience with this water restoration company. Their work was shoddy and I noticed they cut corners on the job. They left a mess behind and didn't even put the doors back up. They took all of my door stoppers and caused even more damage to my powder room sink, islander, and cabinets. Furthermore, they caused even more damages than the water did.

I wish I could give this water restoration company zero stars for their dishonesty. Also, they lied on the contract they submitted to my home insurance company and tried to charge me for services that they never even performed.  They stated they used $600 worth of trash bags when they carried out the items in their hands. They even stated that their equipment was at my residence for longer than it was. To make matters worse, they left my house in disarray.

I would not recommend this company to anyone. They caused more problems than they fixed, and they were dishonest in their dealings with me and my home insurance company. Stay far away from them.

Roto-Rooter was supposed to show up for a repair estimate Monday. No show. And dispatch didn't call me to tell me the plumber wasn't coming until AFTER they had already exceeded their 4 hour arrival window.

They pulled the same thing on Tuesday. Did the same thing on Wednesday.  So imagine my surprise - when I scheduled another visit for Thursday and the plumber actually showed up.  

My technician, Rosen, was super dismissive.  He did not seem to 'take me seriously.' With regards to the installing a sink and a toilet downstairs, he literally groaned and said, Ah, ma'am, you're not gonna want to do it.  

Really? Then why'd I schedule a visit? Its not because I have some horny housewife fetish and I requested a good looking plumber with muscles, washboard abs and perfectly coiffed hair. Lmbo. When I pressed him, he told me, To give you an accurate price, I'm gonna have to get my field supervisor out here, because I can see your drain here - but once its outside the house - I don't know if it goes this way, then this way . . . or if it goes this way . . . it's gonna be too much. Maybe $5000. Maybe $7000.

When I asked if I could get a field supervisor - because I needed a definitive amount not a roundabout amount, he snapped, OKAY! You need a definite amount - then it's gonna be $7000.

At this point - I KNEW this was gonan be a waste of my time - but I figured he was here - and I'd spent all this time and energy - so I showed him the valve stem (or diverter) issue in the guest bath. And showed him where I'd like the spigot outside on the upstairs deck.

He told me he didn't understand why I wanted a spigot outside on the deck and recommended that we just keep a hose upstairs and run it up to the deck and just turn it off and on as needed.  Well, Mr. Plumber-Man - that's exactly what we've BEEN doing.  And I pointed to the hose with sprayer currently dangling from the deck.  I didn't talk to him about how we've broken multiple sprayers over the years - when the hose falls to the concrete below. I didn't talk to him about how SOMEONE sometimes forgets to go back downstairs to turn the hose off.  And I didn't talk to him about how we got an insane water bill once when SOMEONE left the hose on and the valve on sprayer failed, causing it to open - while we were out of town - meaning the water was on, unchecked and gushing everywhere for 7 days non-stop.  

I did tell him that it's typically between 9pm and 5am when I decide to clean the doggy litter box and it's really not a good look to go tromping around outside in the dark trying to turn a water hose on and off. Last time - a moth flew at me and I dropped my phone and screamed like a little girl and nearly broke my ankle running away from a freaking moth.   The time before that - I could have sworn a tarantula crawled across my wrist when I reached to turn the water off. Lol.  

Any way -

I didn't even bother to get a quote for tub replacement in the Master bath.

Honestly - I felt like Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman when she goes in that swanky salon and the staff is giving her the bum's rush.  I wanted to pull some hundreds of out purse and throw them on the counter and scream, I got money to spend in here! Lmbo.

About the only project he seemed interested in was the screaming valves or diverter in the guest bath.  And even on that one - he told me that he felt like the noise was not a big deal and kept warning me that if it was the diverter, he'd have to cut into the sheetrock in linen closet and I'd need to pay someone to come back to fix the sheetrock.  I explained to him that the previous technician had played with it and now it was only making that noise when you turned on the diverter - but before that day - the pipes hissed and screamed when the hot water was on. When the cold water was on. When water was diverted to the shower. When water was flowing from the faucet. It made it nearly impossible to shower without wearing hearing aides.

I felt like he was trying to talk me out of every project.  

He also didn't provide me with any written estimates (not on paper or via email).  

He did seem to warm up a little about 2 seconds before he left, when he presented me with his business card. He'd written in an amount of $3150.  So apparently, Roto Rooter, sent me the Good Will Hunting of service technicians - I guess he'd added up the numbers in his head - but for the life of me - based on the numbers I'd written down for the guest bathroom faucet and the outdoor spigot - I have no idea how he arrived at this number.

Roto Rooter may be a great company in general - but it's clear from these reviews that your experience is going to vary greatly dependent on your technician - and it's clearly the luck of the draw!

SCAM ARTIST ! Consumer BEWARE !

PROTECT YOUR PARENTS especially if they are elderly .

There should be an option for a negative star  since I'm forced then we will give one for them  showing up .

Plumbing issue :

Soft tissue build up as a result of possible tree roots in the pipes
Clients : My parents .Elderly couple . My Father has advance stages of cancer and in desperate need of a working toilet .

ROTO ROOTER

-charged over $800 for initial inspection
-removed toilet and ran a camera  down pipes
-said they could go no further because of blockage
- pipes would need to be replaced
- Did not get toilet flushing
Estimated Price to complete work : Over $25,000

PLUMBING EXPRESS 3050 Presidential Dr #202Atlanta, GA 30340
Phone: (770) 464-5696Email: [email protected]
plumbingexpress.com

-charged $39 for inspection
-ran camera from sewage pipe in the basement and cleaned out some roots .
- Why not through the toilet ? Because there are too many curves and the camera will stop .
- They got the toilet flushing and at least workable for my father
- After further inspection of outside pipes only a small section needed replacing and roots fully removed with plumbing fully restored in a timely fashion.
- COST a little over $3500

Guess which company we went with ?

I also asked Roto Rooter to NOT have my mom fill out the financial application and to call me to discuss the work  since I had to leave . They did the opposite .

Told my mom who is freaked out about not having a working toilet for herself or husband that it was best to be on the safe side to fill out the application. That they were master plumbers which both men kept repeating and the pricing is based on the book value which they also kept pointing to .

Roto Rooter is a franchise and they are not about plumbing but about sales. There is over 3000 consumer complaints in regards to this company and their pricing.


Do not use them.
Do not recommend them .
They will take full advantage of the situation and try to get as much $$$$$ as possible.

These people have a weird business model that results in them charging more than other similar services. I needed some changes made to the gas outlet that feeds my dryer because of buying a new dryer. I called two other places and got immediate phone estimates ranging from $159-240. But RR would not give me an estimate without a visit. On the visit, they give the estimate, but you pay nothing if you don't like the estimate.

They called to let me know they were on the way and arrived 30 minutes after the call. After a quick look, they quoted me $285. They have to make up for the travel time to make these estimates, I guess.

Do not use.  Dishonest service.  The technician came over for an issue with the water heater.  He only wanted to know how old the water heater was because it would likely need replaced.  Seems odd to know it would need replacing without diagnosing what the issue was.  He then quoted me $2200 for a new water heater and quoted $1900 for repair of the gas valve.  I was told that repairing the gas valve would require reassembling the whole unit.  I didn't quite believe the technician so I had another company come out.  Not only would the gas valve not require the amount of work stated, I was told at max it should be $200.  Additionally, a new water heater was not needed.  The pilot light needed to be relit.  Simple as that.  Dishonest at best.  Scam at worst.

Stay away from roto-rooter. It's a total ripoff !!!!!!!! The two guys came to my place to replace two O-rings on bathtub faucets, and took off in the middle of the work and came back one hour later. They charged me about $680 for the job that they spent less than 30 minutes working on. The guy actually working was also very careless  and forgot to use silicon to seal off the gap in the wall and I was lucky enough to catch it and remind him. Totally not worth the money..... Please, please go to other companies if you care about your wallet and your house. You'll be better off staying away from rotor-rooter.

Do not call these guys. They came out because we had backed up in our bathroom. The technician showed up and said that they would snake the drain and throw the camera in for free video for free. He then had to call his manager to bring the camera in. He was at the house in 5 minutes. They ran the camera and found a piece of tile and wanted to charge us $4200 to descale and hydro jet. They would not provide the video of the pipes because they said that was on us doing the $4200 repair. Another plumber is fixing it for less than the $670 they charged us to snake the drain and run a camera which they did not give camera footage on. If you want to flush money down the toilet, call these guys other wise find a local plumber.

I called on Roto-Rooter to replace five angle stop valves and fix a drippy kitchen faucet.  The plumber said that the faucet needed to be replaced, and went out to Home Depot and brought back a faucet...with no sprayer.  I asked why it was missing the sprayer, and he dismissively said that that one didn't come with one.  I had one before, and I don't know why he chose to downgrade me.  For this and the angle stop valves, a few hours of work, he charged me $2014.47.  Yes, you read that correctly.  (I looked up the faucet he had bought on Home Depot's website, and it is almost the cheapest one they have in their listings.)

When I told Roto-Rooter how unhappy I was, they sent out another plumber.  He did  not seem to have gotten the message that this was to fix an earlier plumber's work and said I would have to pay, though the people at Roto-Rooter had told me that I would not have to pay a second time.  He got on the phone with them, and they explained the situation, and he replaced my faucet with one that had a sprayer.  So, I got what I wanted, but considering what I went through and how much I paid, I will not be using Roto-Rooter again.

I had a water valve break in my business on Friday night; I would not be able to open for customers the following morning.  I called Roto Rooter in hopes of having it repaired that night, as they advertise 24/7 service.  They were not able to dispatch a technician until after 8am Saturday, though their after hours phone receptionist tried very hard to make it happen (Four other 24/7 plumbing companies also could not send anyone)

Alex, the technician who arrived promptly the next morning, was professional and knowledgeable.  He completed the job quickly and thoroughly, with explanation of his work and solicitation of my input when appropriate.  

I was surprised and disappointed at the price, which was about twice what I was expecting to pay.  I was in a bind and needed to restore the water to open my business for a busy weekend; if I had been able to I would have solicited another estimate.  Alex told me the price in advance.

I was happy with the service and finished product from Alex.

When my renters called at 6pm on Friday night, I needed someone right away. We called Roto Rooter and Ray Diaz was able to come out early the next day. We was very professional, explained what happened and how he fixed it and was able to fix the same day. When we had problems at our own house the very next day; we called him and had him come check out our issues and was able to fix within a reasonable amount of time for a reasonable price.  I will be calling him again!

This company has been around for a while and I've always considered them to be a go to company, but I must say that I'm very disappointed with them after this last visit from them. I had a line that needed to be jetted and the tech took care of it fairly quickly but afterwards he told me that he scratched his line in the pipe and that I'd have to pay an additional amount so that he could replace it. Now this is new to me because I've been working in the residential maintenance field for over twenty plus years and if I broke a tool on a job site I would never charge a customer for the replacement of any of my tools.

Paid $110 for a tech to look through a view hole on my 10 month old water heater to tell me I need a new thermostat, then told me I need to find and order the part, but will only charge $516 for the installation. Would not recommend, not for the diagnostic fee but the exorbitant rates they charge.

If you have an emergency, they are large enough to come out immediately. While they may be a little more expensive, they come quickly, make the repairs and get you back in business. More importantly, they stand behind their work and are more than willing to resolve customer issues which sometimes arise from a large undertaking.

Run away!  Home sewer backed up so no sinks or stools.  The 7x24 advertisement is total BS; called at 10pm and they could not send someone until between 8am and noon.  The tech showed up on time the next morning and was awesome but could not find the problem. Pre-paid $520 to get a camera crew out same-day (to be followed by another tech visit) but they did not show up.  When I called, the dispatcher said that whoever I spoke with should not have made that commitment and the camera would be out the next day.  I cancelled.  Found another plumber who solved the problem (and laughed when I mentioned Roto-Rooter).  Since then, I have been trying to get my $520 back. Multiple people assured me it would be done but it does not get done.  I will NEVER use them again.

I have had two minor issues in my rental and Ray Diaz has helped me both times. Great customer service! Very friendly and helpful in explaining to me what he was doing. He stands by his work. Also very prompt in arrival. Would definitely recommend!!

-Erika in Sandy Springs, GA

Quick to respond and quick to fix.  Great price and friendly service too.  24/7 calling and a 30 min estimate on when the would be here.  They were very prompt to arriving too.  Would reccomend!

I called 4 different companies in hopes of getting my toilets reinstalled after getting my flooring redone in my home. Roto-Rooter was the only company responsive and available. For that I am appreciate. They had same day service available as well.

The tech came promptly and on time. They called ahead, which was also helpful. The tech was professional and respectful of my home, wearing booties on his shoes.

The only reason for the low rating is because I believe their pricing to be a bit high. To re-install one, I repeat, ONE toilet, he quoted $600. I needed three toilets completed that day. No way I wanted to pay $1800 for toilets. He worked with me and got the price down to $1200, which I also appreciate, but still felt was highway robbery.

He worked quickly and the toilets were installed within a few hours.

I appreciated the fast response but doubt I would use them again.

John Sotherland was great!  Excellent customer service and he explained everything that he was doing along the way. I was not aware of efficient drain care products until John told me about them. I will definitely Roto-Rooter for all of my plumbing needs in the future!!!

Professional, courteous service received in Alpharetta area! Would refer services to friends and family for plumbing needs.

Be aware before you agreed on the service proposal by this Roto-Rooter office. The technician did a poor job assessing the what and where the real problem of my sewer line stoppage. Insisted on the only way to fix the stoppage is to excavate & replace all 80' of the line. It would've cost me $8500. However, I have it fixed 10X less by others.

Overall I was very pleased with the timeliness, professionalism and knowledge of my technician.  He answered all of my questions and fixed my problem with no problems. The only negative comment I will make regarding this company is the cost.  I felt the amount I was charged to stop a dripping shower was excessive.

I'm located in Chamblee. We had a toilet leaking the day before we were supposed to go out of town. We called Roto-Rooter and they came out the very next morning. The serviceman was on time, polite, and efficient. I'm not sure about prices - I didn't do a price comparison - but it seemed to me like a fair price. He did not pressure me into any more services. Very pleasant experience.

Technician was at my home in less than two hours after my call. Very courteous, explained the job and pricing up front, overall very good experience.

Overall I had a great experience with Roto-Rooter. Ray Diaz out of the Norcross office offered nothing but professional and courteous service. The scheduling was straight-forward, and accommodating to last-minute scheduling. If you are looking to have something fixed in a professional and convenient way, I would recommend them.

If there was a rating lower than one star I would have given RR that instead. Had them replace the main water line from the street to my house (about 525 feet). The $3800 charge seemed fair considering the scope of the job. Day 1 two techs showed up with a bobcat with a small bucket (not a ditch witch) with, get this... no water pipe! They spent all morning shopping for the black plastic pipe and then decided to take a nice long lunch. They returned with the pipe at around 2:30 pm and proceeded to dig up the old line. They made a bloody mess of my yard because the bucket could not cut a nice neat line like a ditch witch. When I asked why they bought 2 pieces of pipe instead of one they said it was all they could find. I didn't want two pieces because the last thing you want in a water line is a splice underground where it could break and leak massive amounts of water. Day 2 they showed up in the afternoon and worked into the dark (around 9:45 pm) to finish up. They promised to return following day to clean up. Day 3 no-show. Day 4 no-show. I finally called the supervisor to complain, but to no avail. I finally resorted to issuing a stop payment on my check for full payment to get their attention. It worked! They sent one poor fellow to do the clean up and he actually did a fairly decent job. Although he spent the entire day telling me how underpaid he was and dropping HUGE hints that a TIP might mitigate his plight! I paid RR in-full for the job. Fast forward one year later, the water line broke about a week ago. Called and left messages asking for my line to be repaired under my 5-Year warranty. Never got any call backs. Finally resorted to repairing it myself. Bottom-line... this company will call you back if there is $$$ in it for them. If not... go fish! Their warranty isn't worth the paper it is written on. The supervisor I dealt with was named Norbert. He became impossible to reach once the deal was signed. I would not recommend this company to anyone, EVER!

I had an issue with my sump pump in my crawlspace not pumping water out..  i called around  9 pm and they guaranted service within 4 hours!  I was so happy as it kept raining and i was sick of dry vacuuming my crawl space out to avoid damaging my home.  As it turn out, i did have to wait for 8 am the next day, which was disappointing.  The next day Ray out and did a fantastic job.  He got all the water out, took my pump out, confirmed it was broken, and got me a brand new pump installed.  Thank you roto-rooter!

The technician fixed the issue we had. We had to reschedule our appointment from the previous night to the following day due to the technician running late.

Absolutely horrible and unethical company. Do not, I repeat DO NOT use them unless you want to be ripped off. If you do decide to use them, at a minimum get a second quote/opinion and get an idea of the labor and material breakdown.

I called them to diagnose a leaky faucet sink. The tech arrived and said the entire faucet needed to be replaced. The quote was $600 to repair the faucet, not including materials or the cost of the replacement kitchen faucet. When I questioned how long the work would take the technician was very vague and said it could take five minutes or five hours. Which is complete BS because it's a standard faucet replacement in a new home. I essentially stated that based upon standard rates that $600 seemed exorbitantly high but I was not going to argue on rates and decided not to proceed.

I then called another company who came and looked at the job and laughed after taking off the handle. Apparently the handle cartridge just needed to be tightened. I was charged $75 and everything was fixed. No faucet replacement needed.

I believe Roto-rooter purposely tries to do more work than is necessary which is completely unethical. Also a $600 quote to replace a faucet which should take an hour is a complete rip-off.

If you want to use them I definitely suggest getting another quote and also requesting a labor and materials breakout. There are standard hourly rates for plumbers that you can compare with and see if it's fair or if they are trying to price gouge.

I have been having issues with my plumbing for a week now and I got on the Roto Rooters website and easily made an appointment.  I got a call when Kostadin Bogdanov was about 30 minutes away.  When he arrived he was pleasant, friendly and wonderful.  He got right to work and was finished in 30 minutes finding my issue to be a cap from my shaving cream had gotten stuck in the pipes and when i had previously snaked it i had flipped the cap like a flap so the snake didn't get it.  I have never had such a pleasant experience with a plumber or utility professional before.  I greatly appreciated him fixing the problem, explaining it to me and doing it in a timely manner all with a smile on his face. thank you roto-rooter!

Called me at 11:00am to tell me they MIGHT have a free technician available mid to late afternoon, I asked him if he was going to acknowledge THAT MY APPOINTMENT WAS FOR 8:00 AM!!!!!
He didn't want to talk about that, told him I've seen enough of your company, anyone who company is so poorly run and so discourteous can't possibly expect me to let them touch my house, cancelled immediately.
My recommendation is to call anyone else, they might at least show.

Great job and value for money!  David Mospanyuk was our technician and he did a great job.  Very dedicated to solving our issues.  David was both empathetic and thorough in his explanation of the problems we were having and the steps required to solve.  He hustled throughout the process knowing that we needed the problems solved going into the weekend.

Very honest, very professional and cordial and incredibly hardworking.  Thanks to Roto-Rooter and David M.

I came home to a plumbing nightmare: sewage flowing up into my bathtub and flooding my bathroom. I called Roto-Rooter, and within an hour, Ray Diaz came to my aid with kind and honest service. He kept me updated throughout the process and went above and beyond the call of duty with my situation. It wasn't cheap, but I'd pay top dollar for this quality of service any day.

Moved into a new house.  Day one we had super low water pressure and it took 10 minutes to get any hot water.  

Kostadin with Roto Rooter came out late.  He was friendly and explained everything I needed and why.  After a new PRV and replacement of a 15 yr old water heater I can sleep easy that my basement won't flood.

Kostadin and Tony were honest and wonderful to work with.

Raymond Diaz is quite cordial and prompt. I awaken to find a leak that had resurfaced. I called Roto-Rooter regarding the problem.

Mr. Bruce, who is AWESOME visited my home three days earlier to fix a leak in my upstairs bathroom. The problem needed some adjusting; So I called Roto-Rooter again.

A technician, Mr. Diaz, reported to my home immediately. He was polite and quite professional. Mr. Diaz was able to replace an old part and the leak stopped instantly!!

Again, I must say that Roto-Rooter is the BEST for plumbing needs. The technicians are prompt, courteous, and knowledgeable. When in need of a plumbing repair, call Roto-Rooter

Even though the job turned out to be more involved than they anticipated, I was not charged any more than originally quoted. I appreciate the time and effort that Stephen put into his work. He assured me that he could get the problem fixed and he did!

Roto Rooter came to my house due to a toilet back up on 6/26/20 and they charged me $680 to clear my main sewer line and by pulling up the toilet (that is it they did nothing else).  Then they charged me $520 to put camera down the sewer to see what the issue was.  There were roots in my sewer line.  The issue I had with this how much they charge was just to get a diagnosis of the issue. Now I have never had this type of problem before but I really feel that they over charge just find out what the problem is. I happen to think that $1200 was not reasonable to find out what the problem was and then suggest $10,000 repair solution and that I need a new toilet before installing the toilet back in place. I choose this company because they were on the Better Business Bureau website and I thought I could trust them.  I suggest that you shop around before using this company.

I had a toilet back in my house, and the water caused a huge amount of damage. The day it happened, I called Roto-Rooter and they came out within the hour. The plumber called their water restoration guys and they went to work. Over the next week, they got the blowers out to dry everything and ripped out the contaminated stuff. They were definitely my advocate throughout the entire process. I would use them again in a heartbeat!