William J Malcolm & Son

One of the best things about Cambridge and its people is that we will always love and appreciate good old local businesses. Malcolm and sons is an over a hundred year old business that had worked with generation after generation of their customers. They are trustworthy, professional, and do their best.

They are there for you when no one else can or wants to take the job.

If you have taste and appreciation for neighborhood businesses,  you I'll be very happy with them!

Thank you WJ Malcolm and sons!

If you're hoping for a friendly, kind conversation with your neighborhood plumbers, don't call these folks. The woman running the front office is rude and doesn't seem to use common courtesy.  I understand they're busy. But the attitude is off-putting.

Very responsive, professional, knows his stuff - old school, non-salesy type. Has office assistant - so you can get someone on the phone (many tradespeople don't.) Fixed a leaking toilet that another well known local plumber charged me $210 (the minimum hourly) to say he couldn't recreate the leak, so didn't do anything. Replace the freaking wax ring!! (I only figured that out months later, after way more damage to the hardwood floor.)

Anyway, he jumped right in, fixed it with no issue, done. Nice guy too.

Your van is out of control right now in mass ave. Almost hit multiple pedestrians, tailgated the heck out of a little old lady and is just causing a scene. Shame on you guys. Shame.

Dangerous drivers!
They've lost many potential jobs because of bad behavior on the road.

Doesn't want to do the work!

We're having some big plumbing issues in my very old home in Cambridge. The water board actually referred us to these guys, and we had them out to our home. They were really nice and helped us to identify the fact that the city needed to do a test.

Now, the city has fixed our meter (what needed to be done) and we called these guys to come finish the job. They told us that the job was too large and they didn't want to touch it!

So, if you have a big problem to solve, do yourself a favor and don't call these guys.

I've seen these dangerous drivers in the neighborhood for some time. Today a Malcolm van almost rear ended me, then went around me to run a red left turn signal while a pedestrian was in the crosswalk. Out of control. Several neighbors and friends will not hire them because of incidents like these and I recommend my clients find other plumbers.

We just used this company for the first time and we're very satisfied. They came and fixed a lot of different things for us that have been nagging worries. The plumber's name was Rudy and he was very patient and competent.

We called them for a long-term leak under our sink and they came the same day. Fixed it completely and price was very reasonable. They will be our go-to plumbers for sure.

I've always had amazing experiences with WJ Malcolm.  The woman who answers the phone and schedules appointments will always, always, always make sure you get seen that day- even if they are absolutely booked up.  She will also always give you a two hour window (i.e. 2-4pm) instead of the class 9-2 that other plumbers give you.  

And the Malcolm folks always do a good job- we have had all kinds of work done by them- new hot water heater, broken shut off for our washer fixed, perennially broken toilet, shower heads, leaking radiators.  You name it, they've fixed it for us, and they've always done a good job.  They are certainly a bit pricey (perhaps pricier than other Cambridge plumbers) but I've found their work to be good, and I've found the plumbers to be responsible and trustworthy.

What kind of a man refuses to loan a woman a phone when they are locked out in the cold? Malcolm's staff was working on a boiler in the basement of MY building when I locked myself out of my business. I was not dressed for this. What is this a business with misogynist?

We called them for a pretty simple fix.  They originally stopped by on a Friday and said they should be back Monday with the part to fix it.  It took until Friday of that week (4 days later) for them to get the part and come back.  They never called me to give me an update, I had to call them each day to ask if they had the part and could fix the problem and each time they said it would probably be the next day.

They also charged way more than they ever said they would.  They said the job would be 1-2 hours.  It was completed in one hour, but they forgot a part of it.  So they took another half hour to fix the mistake they made.  1.5 hours total in my house.  When the bill came, they charged for almost 3 hours of labor.  When I called they said the time included what it took to call and get the part and go pick it up.  I've never heard of a company charge for that time and this wasn't mentioned to us until we received the bill.

We had a kitchen sink stoppage which we needed to fix as soon as possible.  We first called one of the big plumbing companies that advertise everywhere.  The plumber was very expensive, seemed more concerned about the money than our problem, and in the end told us to get someone else because this was beyond his abilities (not his exact words, of course).  In the end we had Malcom come, their man was very professional and did everything he could to open the pipe, but ultimately he had to replace a section of pipe in the basement which he did in excellent fashion.  Price was not cheap, but the billing was explained beforehand (per hour) and the rate was what other firms charge.  Very satisfied.

Called last night because my furnace stopped working.  The receptionist put out a page.  This morning I removed the part (a powerpile) that was not working, bought a replacement at a plumbing supply store, and installed it.  Now my furnace is working, but I still haven't gotten a call back.

I disagree with the previous post.  This is their 2nd visit to our place in 2 days, because Dennis didn't finish the job properly the first time.  Dennis left a DISASTER in our kitchen, leaving us to clean up everything.  I realize it was an emergency call, but we expect more.  Including someone who is possibly nice to the customers.  Today two of them are back and the 2nd one didn't even bother to greet my husband.  Yeah, nice to meet you too.  My landlord swears by them... but maybe she's never had to deal with Dennis.  Either way, we are having a talk with our landlord about NOT hiring them again because the plumbers on-site just simply don't have to be that rude or leave that much of a mess.

We used Malcolm two years ago when our basement flooded from 3 days of CONSTANT rain -- Kenny (I think that was his name) spent 3 hours in cold water changing out our sump pump.  He left to take care of another emergency, then came back to finish it up.  He essentially rebuilt our sump pump while standing in several inches of freezing water, and he did a great job!

Because of all the bad reviews I didn't call them again until a few weeks ago, when our upstairs neighbor discovered there was a gas leak in our basement, and nStar turned off the power to our unit (on the coldest day of the year!)  They came out immediately -- having gotten the call at 4:00 pm on a Thursday -- and were back at 8:00 am Friday morning.  They spent 5 hours, found 7 leaks, and fixed 'em all.  They dealt with the Cambridge inspector and nStar, and by 6:00 pm we were leak-free and had the power turned on.  We had called other plumbers in the previous year because we thought we smelled gas, and everyone swore to us there wasn't a problem.  Malcolm & Son were the only plumbers who seemed willing to tackle it.

I think these guys are terrific, and if they're not always the friendliest and most polite people, who cares?  They do messy, difficult jobs and they do 'em great.  I really recommend them.  They're the only plumbers I've ever used in Cambridge who always show up when they say they will.

We've been happy with Malcom Plumbing.  They know a lot about Cambridge building and deal well with old plumbing.

I am sad to say I have to update this.  The guy we always use is gone.  They sent another guy who was surly at and left a bit of a mess.  We asked for a quote for another project.   The guy said expensive and never sent a quote...

Don't waste your time with these guys. I called to get an estimate on installing a gas stove. I was told one of the guys would get back to me. A few days later and no call. I called back & was told the same thing. Again, no call. I wound up using Absolute Home Comfort. I highly recommend Absolute. Quick response, eager to work, great attitude, great work & great prices.