S & D Plumbing

Our guest bathroom toilet was not working so we knew it was time to replace the internal parts.  We contacted S&D on a Saturday and we were happy they were able to come out the same day.  Our technician Esteban Corral explained in detail what needed to be done and provided an estimate and made the necessary repairs in a timely manner.  We would recommend S&D for any future plumbing issues.

Firstly, I want to congratulate this business for its stellar communication. They kept in contact with me every step of the way. They were able to schedule my repair on a weekend, which was deeply appreciated.

I live out of state. This property will be our retirement home sometime in the next decade, but right now we have a tenant. The lack of hot water was an urgent issue and not something that I could wait to get several quotes before acting on.

Next, I had concerns about the scope of the work once the technician arrived. This property was built in 2020. The technician offered the opinion that my water heater was old and that it was typical to see this kind of breakdown given its age. I'll admit this is my first experience with a three-year-old water heater in its death throes. Maybe the builder installed sub-standard equipment, but I felt uneasy with the assessment. Especially once it was strongly recommended that I replace the unit. The quote given was $3300 for a new water heater and installation. It's a small home--less than 1500 square feet--I can't imagine the water heater was specialized enough to merit what seemed to be an inflated price.

I was cautioned that by fixing only the valve more parts could break during the repair. It was a reality I would need to accept beforehand. I did.

Luckily, the work was completed and the valve was replaced without further damage. The entire cost amounted to the originally quoted $513 to repair the valve. I'm told the water heater is now functional.

I was provided pictures of the work and an itemized invoice. They accommodated me and fixed the appliance in a timely fashion.

S & D PLUMBING was hired to clear a bathroom commode which required removal of the commode to get at the blockage.  The technician who arrived to service the problem brought with him an assortment of equipment which at best had seen better days.  He moved to do what was requested of him and then we got into a semantics discussion of what CLEAR means.  Unfortunately, this plumbing company defines CLEAR as simply restoring some flow.  Not actually removing the obstruction.   He spent a bit of time scoping the piping to determine what the obstruction was.   He then proceeds to secure a ROTO ROUTER to remove the obstruction.  This is what I thought I was paying for.  Unfortunately, the ROTO ROOTER was broken, NOT USABLE.   Sans, having the proper equipment he used the scope to restore the flow but did not solve the basic problem.  REMOVAL OF THE OBSTRUCTION.   He then informed me that we should not use the commode since it would most likely block up again under normal usage.   Having restored the drainage (never having cleared the blockage) he collected his equipment, received payment and left; it was evening.    The next morning, I called the office to discuss the work done.    They acknowledged that it was a problem and sent out the technician again (with some marginally workable equipment) to complete the job.   He explained that there would be an additional charge to complete what needed to be done (CLEAR THE DRAIN OF BLOCKAGE).  After a bit of discussion regarding exactly what my expectations were, we agreed on an additional sum for him to complete the work.  To complete the work, he had to re-prep the area, remove the commode, set up his equipment etc.   This was time consuming and replicated what he did the previous day.  In a nutshell, 3 hours later and a day late he accomplished what could have been accomplished initially.   The cost to me for removal of the obstruction was about $2000.   We are a couple in our 80's, do I think I was taken advantage of YES.  

I do not normally respond to requests for review of service; however, I think that any future customer needs to be aware of who and what they are dealing with.   THIS IS NOT A COMPANY I WOULD RECOMMEND FOR PLUMBING SERVICE.



H REITER

LAGO VISTA TEXAS

APRIL 8, 2023.

I had a water heater pilot light would not stay lit. S & D went out and wanted to charge $250 to diagnose the problem. The water heater is 10 years old so I asked for a quote for a new one. His quote was $4300 to replace a 40 gallon Natural gas water heater($650 at homedepot).  I told him to get out that is over twice what it should cost!  I am a Property manager and have had many water heaters replaced over the lst 20+ years.  

Do not trust these guys they apparently thought I was as novice that did not know what a water heater should cost.

This company is very expensive. Nearly $500 just to come look at and diagnose the problem. Found another company nearby. They were astonished at how much we'd been charged as were my relatives. Also, very sicky sweet customer service (How can we make you smile today?Give me a major break). I wish I'd called more companies first. PS - we were NEVER offered an estimate. Judging by the defensiveness of the owners' replies I believe they well know they are ripping people off and just don't care. Watch, they'll probably write a highly reactionary response, if they respond. Again, VERY EXPENSIVE!!!

I woke up to soggy carpet, my husband and I started cutting into our almost new living room carpet to discover a wet foundation and a soggy carpet pad. I immediately started googling foundation leaks etc. For the next few hours I was repeatedly told NO, no and no. Then I stumbled on S & D plumbing. From the first encounter on the phone to later that same day, S & D has been so helpful, polite, and extremely professional. Melvin and Carson diagnosed the issue and worked OT to make sure we had hot water for the coming days. Melvin and Carson both reminded me of the old days of excellent service, reliable and honest work. I highly recommend this company if you are looking for a reliable, knowledgeable and professional company for any foundation leak identification and repair. They restored my faith in GOOD people and have left a fantastic lasting impression!!! S. Hickey

I am BEYOND happy I chose S & D for this job because holy moly was it a fiasco and I doubt most plumbing companies would have had the patience and kindness that they did (specifically Noah).

Austin Water showed up at my door saying the leak at the street is coming from us confirmed. I said what do I now? He said Call a plumber! Cool.

I chose S & D initially because they are family owned and had great reviews.

First Raul came out to try and locate the leak, he saw the dirt was soggy not far from the street/meter and figured at that T was where the leak was. However, after a bit he hit rock (travis country, go figure) and so we had to get two quotes: one that was not to take time to locate the leak and just replace the entire line and the other for an hourly rate with the right tools to deal with the rock to locate the leak. My husband and I also felt the leak was right there and not far so chose to pay the hourly to locate the leak.

The next day Raul and Noah came out to start digging up that rock. Noah had me come out one hour later with some not so great news but he did a great job explaining the whys AND I'm super glad he only spent an hour digging. They got the point where they thought the leak was and the water was coming FROM BELOW MY PIPE! Ouch. So, it likely means the leak is between that point and the house and could take hours to keep digging. We decided to replace the line at this point.

Phew, okay. So the following day - seriously they were so fast and the office staff was super kind and nice on the phone keeping me aware - the digging crew came and dug up the entire line. With the dig, the pipe burst so the water was shut off a little earlier than planned, but we get it.

Noah later came to the door and once again was sad news and he was super perplexed.... Ma'am, so your water has been off for over 5 hours and I don't know how to say this but the leak is Austin Water's leak. WHAT?!?! I was furious at Austin Water.

The line was already all dug up and since it broke digging up we replaced the entire line. This was Thursday. August water said they'd be out that late afternoon/evening and so Noah even sat outside out house waiting for them. They ended up cancelling last minute and said they'd be out Friday.

Friday came and went.... our street has a lovely stream coming from our yard and neighbors are loving it - said no one ever. Then they said maybe the weekend, nope. Early next week, NOPE. In fact, my neighbor came out and yelled at Noah like a crazy lady and he handled it so gracefully.

Austin Water FINALLY shows up Tuesday and Noah came back out since the inspector inspected the new line. They started filling back in the trench to clean up and of course gets rained out (poor guys). So they still didn't take the final payment since the job was not 100% done and came back out today to finish it. They even took the pieces of bush they had to cut off for the job. AMAZING.

I can't stress enough again how awful of a situation this was and how EVERYONE was kind, empathetic, informative and helpful.

100% GO WITH S & D!!!!

RIP OFF!! The company charged $660+ to pull and auger our toilet initially at the end of May. I called a couple months later when there was a leak from the base of my toilet again (which they reset and sealed themselves the first trip) and they GUARANTEED A FREE TRIP unless further repairs were needed to be made, not related to original job. They pulled the toilet, said the concrete needed to be chiseled before they could replace the flange and reset and that it would be $1000 for that and $3850 more if that didn't work to replace the concrete slab. They also said I would need a camera run for $500 and hydro-jetting for $1100. After telling them it was fine and I would figure something else out, they charged me $225 for a diagnostic fee since they hadn't caused the concrete damage under the toilet. The concrete was the same as it was the last time they reset the toilet and there were no new repairs made from the trip. I went to Lowe's and got a new flange and ring and reset the toilet myself for $30, which saved me potentially $4820. It hasn't leaked from the base anymore because that wasn't the problem.

I then called and hired a plumber with Mr. Rooter who investigated the issue, found out there was pipe breakage behind the house and potentially roots that their auger wasn't able to get rid of. He was here for an hour but I paid $0 (would have only been a $29 trip fee and $90 for the augering) since they didn't solve the issue and they're coming back tomorrow with the proper tools to fix at a way lower cost than S&D.

Lesson learned the hard way, call Mr. Rooter instead!

We are in the process of selling our home. There was a minor issue with the water pressure. Our realtor suggested S&D and we were very happy with the results. The technician (Dustin) came on time and walked me through the issue. Thankfully it was one simple valve to be replaced. He took care of it that day and worked to put the yard back as neatly as possible.

The pricing was fair and the work was done well - the issue is resolved. As well, the next day the office staff called to check up with me and be sure I was satisfied. That is a nice touch.

Definitely recommended.

We needed to do a full repipe of the ground floor, and a friend recommended S&D. I'm so glad they did. Their bid was not the cheapest, but it was in the same ballpark as the others. The deciding factor for me was the demeanor and knowledge that Melvin showed on the initial visit to prepare the quote. Once the job started, his team of Nick and Lorenzo did a fantastic job - Nick kept me informed every step of the way and they were very thorough and clean in their work.
As a final touch, they came out on Friday before the big freeze to hand-fill the trench for the new water inlet. This combined with the great job Nick did on insulation, helped keep our pipes from busting.
S&D are definitely my go-to guys for any future plumbing needs.