Ryan DeYoung
This started as a simple stopped tub drain. On Tuesday morning, I called Mr. Rooter Plumbing and explained that I believed a child’s toy was stuck in the drain. I asked what it would cost to unclog it and was told a technician would assess the issue and provide a flat-rate quote. I was also told someone could come out within a few hours. The technician quoted $350 to snake the drain. Reluctantly, I agreed because we had standing water in the tub. After working for a couple of hours, he was unable to get the snake down the drain. He then claimed the issue must be where old 1¼" brass piping met newer 1½" PVC before the P-trap and said those sections needed to be replaced for $1,100. When I declined, the price immediately dropped to $950, which I reluctantly accepted. I was promised someone would arrive Wednesday between 8–9 AM. That did not happen. At 10:49 AM, I called and was told the technician would now arrive between 4–6 PM. At 6:34 PM, I received a text saying he couldn’t make it due to an electrical fire at his house. While I was sympathetic, I still had a tub full of standing water. We rescheduled for Thursday, 3–5 PM, and I was offered $150 off. The technician finally arrived Thursday around 5 PM. He said he needed to check his truck for parts and might have to run to Home Depot—which was surprising given how basic the repair was. Sure enough, at 5:18 PM, I received a text saying he was going to the store. He was gone for nearly an hour. When he returned, instead of removing water properly, he decided to cut the pipe and drain the tub into buckets. Despite assuring me he had enough buckets, water ended up everywhere. He repeatedly went in and out of the house without replacing the red boot covers he initially wore, tracking snow and dirt throughout the house. After reassembling everything, the drain still did not work, and it leaked. He sealed it with silicone, but the tub still wouldn’t drain. When asked if he found any obstruction, he said no—everything was “clear.” He then said the original technicians would come back the next morning to snake the drain now that the old piping was removed. Then, without saying a word, he left the house. He left behind a flooded basement area, water soaked under foam floor tiles, wet rags everywhere, PVC shavings, and a cracked tote leaking water across the floor. Instead of asking for help or even notifying us, he simply disappeared. I had to clean up the entire mess myself. On Friday morning, after again waiting past the scheduled time, I called and spoke with Britney, who patiently listened and said she would notify a manager. Later that day, a manager arrived, listened to the entire story, snaked the drain, and fixed the problem. In the end, the original clog was resolved with a simple snaking, exactly what I was told on day one. The manager asked what I felt was fair, and we agreed that $350—the original unclog fee—was appropriate. That is all we were charged. While I appreciate the final technician making it right, this experience involved missed appointments, inflated pricing, poor workmanship, property damage, and a technician leaving without notice after creating a mess. A straightforward plumbing issue should never take multiple days and this level of frustration. I would not recommend Mr. Rooter based on this experience.
