AAA Mike Counsil Plumbing and Rooter

All work was done efficiently and at the estimated cost. There was some attempt at a sell-up to replace the main line, which I declined.

I got an estimate for an Air Gap installation of $250. I thought that it was a bit high, but he promised that "if it takes half an hour of 3 hours, they will get it done". I waited for two hours and they showed up on time. The guy then took a look at the job and said $550. Because it would take a while, he said. I told him that they quoted $250 "no matter how long it takes". The service guy said that the other guy pretty much lied. These guys are lying sacks of crap. Go somewhere else.

It took more than 5 days to replace the pipe. The cost was $17,000 They also told us the whole plumbing pipes needed to be repaired/replaced at a cost of $30,000! We contacted two other "diamond certified" plumbing contractors. they said that although the system was old, it did not need any major repairs. There Was a sagging return pipe that should be re-strapped, and that there was a sink that needed an air vent to help the drainage. Cost seriousness $4000

First guy didn't show up and company sent out another guy who did a good job and eventually brought down the price. Faucet was installed and works nicely.

Called on a Friday afternoon because our water heater had water shooting out of the top, flooding the garage. Turned off the water to the water heater, then called a couple of plumbers & left messages. Called Mike Counsil Plumbing because I had seen their vans around. I got voicemail, left a message for them explaining the nature of the problem. A nice lady called back on SUNDAY. Seriously? That's how long it takes to get back to a potential customer that has no hot water? Unacceptable response time.

before they left the house. They have returned to install the grab bar that we ordered. Because the job took longer than expected they returned to remove and replace moldy grouting in my other bathroom, an extra perk. The price seemed high, yet the work was top notch. Only drawback to this company is: they provide many services in addition to the bathroom remodel. The workmen showed us other things they thought should be replaced and we were given quotes for other jobs. It seemed that there was always something that should be replaced and they provided that service. The owner and representatives are very courteous and thoughtful and try to do whatever they can to please the customer. I would have them do work for me again. Just add days to the initial estimate of time and be prepared to pay top dollar for the good work.

They told me it would be $22,000 to do the work. They only made one toilet accessible when I called them with the problem. It was very costly. They went under the house to inspect, and told us the house had to be replumbed. Everything was a sales pitch. There was a clogged line that they refused to unclog until they had done the other work first. I hired another company to unclog the line. I felt they were not upfront, and I would never use them again.

They were professional and their service was good. Update: 6/8/2012 The company, through no fault of their own, lost my complaint. Once it was brought to their attention, they took care of everything.

The crew started on time every day. They cleaned up everything, every night before they left. There was one small 18" strip removed from my lawn so the new lines could be installed. The care they took with rolling up the sod and covering it was good. The strip was replaced and tempted into place carefully. Lawn recovered within a month. Daniel has checked in with us since the install just to see how all was doing... This was reassuring!

- initial installation seemed OK. - water heater never performed to expectations; cool to cold showers - subsequent 'maintenance' visits would provide slightly better water temp, but never to advertised specs. And unfortunately I also ended up spending a lot of time on the phone with the water heater manufacturer's tech support personnel....not how I want to be spending my free time :-( - M. Counsil would say one thing, do another, make promises, and they never completely followed through. Example; oh the heavy minerals in the water is causing scaling in your water heater, causing problems. We will come back install new parts, install scaling ports, perform a descale flush with vinegar solution, and after we get the system up and running properly, if you do not install another $4,000 worth of water softener equipment your water heater warranty will be void. Of course none of this was in writing. Two weeks later had to call them to ask about replacing the parts, descale ports, and doing descale flush. After several days they showed up to do the "BIG" fix. They replaced several internal and according to M Counsil, quite expensive parts. BTW; they did not do do scaling port install, nor do a system flush, though at this point did provide a written recommendation. here's the recommendation: M Counsils recommendation: Install Pelican combo series and install descaling ports on hybrid, install to descale preexisting build up. Naturesoft will minimize calcium and magnesium deposits (we will also descale and install isolation ports on hybrid at no charge with Pelican purchase): Pelican combo series $3499, sheetrock repair $299, 1" valve main shutoff $223, total $4021. - At this point the water heater still didn't work properly. Contacted the Eternal tech support center about doing a system descale flush and installing descaling ports. The manufacturer was thoroughly confused why I would want to install descaling ports on a stainless steel system that essentially does a self flush every time you use it. Me; Ahhh I dunno, 'cuz the plumber said its a must do. - And so at this point looking at an unexpected additional $4,000 plumbing expense, decided to bite the bullet and bring in another plumber. - 2nd plumber examined the system, measured water temps at shower, faucets, etc. and recommended bringing in a local expert who was familiar with Eternal Hybrid Water Heaters. "Its simply not performing, you need someone who really knows these systems to come in and do a full and complete analysis." - And so the Expert plumber was here yesterday, and he pointed out several install 'mistakes' which might have led to water heater malfunction. - Long story short, after 3 hrs of trouble shooting and replacing numerous parts, and then lengthy consultation with the manufacturer, Expert plumber will be doing a full out replacement of the system later on today. Of course I am paying for expert plumber's time out of my own pocket. - To deal with the hard water / scaling issue, Expert plumber is installing an inline scaling screen system for $300 (not $4000 for a water softener). - Grant Hall, the company behind Eternal water heaters, is standing behind their product by funding the install of the brand new water heater system. So somewhere in this mess is a responsible and responsive company, so nice to see these days. BTW; Grant Hall/Eternal approved of the scaling screen solution, and so the warranty will remain in place. - Bottom line: + Is it just me, or does $8K seem a bit excessive for a residential water heater? + M. Counsil's $3499 for a water softener which retails on line for $1999....hmmm + Scaling ports, really? Though why? + how many times do you have the plumber come out and work on the water heater before throwing in the towel and saying, "oh the h*** with it, replace this d*** thing with an old style 40 gal water heater" - Memorable M. Counsil plumbing moments: + Plumber; Its not the water heater, the water heater is fine, its your shower head. Me; But my shower worked fine before you installed the new water heater, that doesn't sound right. Plumber; nope its your shower head, trust me I know. + Three shower heads later. Plumber; its the diverter in your shower, that's what's causing all these problems (after complaining about the shower, the kitchen faucet and the bathroom basin faucet not providing hot nor warm water). And they were quite proud of themselves that they replaced the shower diverter for free, for FREE....though we still didn't get hot water from shower, bathroom basin, or kitchen faucet. But warm water, yea we have warm water. + Its the water you have here in San Jose, and the scale from the hard water that's causing all these problems. At this point you must be wondering why they would install a system prone to scaling issues in an area where there is known hard water. Me too. Now I will admit they did talk about the advantages of having a water softener system in 'this part of San Jose'. And indeed they left me an info DVD on water softening systems when they did the water heater install.....but not having an in place screening system or softening system did not stop them from going ahead. - My Recommendation: + Save yourself time and $$. Go see someone / anyone else.

They were not the cheapest bid that we got, but things turned out very well. They were professional and the quality of the service was top-notch. The net result of what they did was a major improvement to living in our home.

We discovered our water heater was broken on a Wednesday evening. I spent a good part of the next morning figuring out what to do about our water heater, which included calling several plumbers and getting a general contractor (who just happened to be on-site for an unrelated job) to look at the issue. I also made several calls to the manufacturer to understand what might be the issue. Our water heater is about 6 years old, and the parts are still under warranty, but I discovered that the only way to get the parts is to order them from the manufacturer (they are not sold in any stores). (This is a really annoying issue.) I was deciding whether or not to completely replace the water heater (which seemed to be about $1000-$1200) OR to order the part, wait for it to arrive, and have a plumber install it, which would be $400-$500 and potentially several days wait. By the time I called Mike Counsil, I was pretty tired and frustrated with the whole thing. They had a very reasonable service call fee ($59, which was much cheaper than other places I called), and the woman I talked to was very nice. It was also a plus that they happened to be in the area at the time. So, they sent Dave, who made the diagnosis, and he said he would come back to install the part when it arrived. The next few days proceeded to be frustrating phone calls with the manufacturer (Rheem), but those are not quite relevant to my story. What is relevant is that Dave was really nice about the whole thing. The people at Rheem demanded to talk to the plumber, so Dave called them for us. When the part finally arrived (Tuesday morning), we had Dave return as soon as he could. He installed the part as well as cleaned the vents for our water heater in a little over an hour. At the end of the whole thing, we had not had hot water for 7 days (!), but Mike Counsil plumbing made the process so much easier to deal with!

Have used Mike Counsil Plumbing in the past. Called and they were able to schedule an appointment for later that day. The technician called when he was on his way and arrived earlier than the promised time. Technician verified his identity, entered the house with booties, determined the problem, gave me a quote, went back to the truck for the appropriate tool, returned and completed the job. He was courteous, professional, and efficient.

It went excellent; it was a bit expensive but was good work.

I had a large water leak in my house on Wednesday. I called Mike Counsil, and they sent a technician over right away. Daniel went into my crawlspace, and took a picture of the leak, as well as the rest of the water pipes. The galvanized pipes had numerous rust and thin areas, so, in addition to fixing the broken hot water junction, I decided to replace all the pipes in the house. They started the next day, and finished on Saturday. They made sure that the hot/cold water lines were reattached each evening. They cut holes in the drywall in the bathrooms to access the new pipe, and then re-drywalled and taped the holes. They went beyond the original scope, by fixing the hole in the ceiling in my garage, replacing the old ceiling tile with new drywall piece, and repairing the solenoids in my washer. They worked late on Friday, to be able to finish by Saturday. Overall, very solid, professional work, and a pleasure to work with.

We were happy with the work. We spent about an hour with Glenn when he did the initial estimate discussing the option of on tankless, or two smaller tankless at opposite ends of the house or a standard water heater. There are a lot of trade offs so I was glad we could go through all the details, which made it clear that the on demand recirculating pump and a single tankless was the best combination of cost and functionality. They hooked up the gas fireplace at no charge and they followed up with a site visit at no charge to get the permit signed off, which was not in the initial agreement. Glenn and Jesus did quality work and the inspector only required two very small adjustments that were easily addressed at no charge. Overall I thought the price was very fair and I don't mind paying a fair price to get quality work done with such an important piece of plumbing. Everything is working exactly as described so there have been no surprises. Everyone we talked with at Mike Counsil was responsive and helpful so they were easy to deal with.

We have used Mike Council before and they have been really good about coming in the evenings and being on time. The garage was completely flooded with water from the water heater. They came at 8 p.m. assessed the situatation and gave me a quote to do the work the next day when the replacement part was available. They gave me a 5% discount and did some extra work for me free of charge. We had an extra shelving that was heavy and blocking the water heater so he had to remove it to do the work and would've put it back but we didn't want it so he discard it for us. To ensure safety for the shelving above, he reinforced the top shelving since the lower one was no longer there. Great service and friendly which was certainly appreciated since we were sad to be dealing with this during the holidays.

On Monday (1/18) around 9am in morning the storm drain in our atrium started to back up & flood the atrium & garage. We decided to work with our home warranty company to get the issue resolved. A plumber arrived at 6:30pm to snake the drain. Unfortunately he was unable to fix the problem with the 50ft snake he had & left. I was forced to spend the night checking the atrium every hour & pumping out water when required. When we called the home warranty company around 7:00am Tuesday (1/19) they told us that our warranty was not going to cover the issue if it could not be fixed with a snake. This left me annoyed, frustrated and stressed about trying to prevent further damage to my house from the flooding. Around 8am we started to make phone calls searching for a plumber with a snake longer then 50ft & who could come immediately as storms were scheduled to roll in through out the day. We left messages & got a hold of several people. Some had the equipment, some didn't, some could make it that day, and some couldn't. Around 8:30am we got a call back from MC Plumbing & San Jose Plumbing, they both had the gear & could come out immediately, but MC Plumbing could get out to us sooner & would give a free estimate...winner! Steve showed up at 9:30am. He reviewed the issue & got straight to work trying to snake the drain with a medium duty snake, when that didn't work he pulled out the heavy duty snake & tried to clean the drain twice before delivering the bad news. He believed the drain was broken as he kept hitting a point in the drain where the snake failed to proceed or clean the blockage but produced muddy water. He told me he would need to get a camera to locate the broken section, excavate the pipe & repair it. He provided me with their price for this service & I accepted. He called their dispatch to get a second plumber & the camera needed for the job. At this point Steve & Jesus are now working on the issue. They locate the section with the camera, which thankfully was on under the lawn & not my driveway. The next several hours are spent digging & excavating the pipe. A large section is replaced along with the exit drain & cover. The ground is compacted & level correctly with a slight grade for the pipe to be placed in & buried. The dirt & lawn is then replace & compacted and then the driveway & sidewalk cleaned off. Steve & Jesus completed the job around 3:30pm right as it started to pour! Overall MC Plumbing returned our call in a timely manner; Steve & Jesus were punctual & professional. Their quick response helped relieve a lot of stress about the situation & prevented further damage to my home. They did quality work for a good price & warranty the parts & labor for 1-year. Thanks again!

They were excellent. I called them on a Friday and he was very nice. He told when he would come and gave me a 2 hour window which I thought was very nice. He called half an hour before to inform me that he would be late. He was very professional and cleaned up his mess when he left. He was good about telling me how much it would cost upfront. He was pleased to know that I got him from Angieslist. He was a lot less than I expected.

They were punctual, friendly, and very pleasant people. I was happy with the quality of their work overall, but I wouldn?t use them again. They had taken out my laundry sink to extend a line to the washing machine, and it stuck out in the middle of the room. Also, the handle of the faucet touches the shelf above when it is turned in full. They had told me that they would have it changed but that I would once again be charged for labor. They had made me wait for a whole day to have the same person come back and fix it when I was not at all particular about the same person coming back. I only wanted to have my issue resolved. That was not a pleasant experience.

They were here on time and friendly. I thought the price was a little high, but he did give me the opportunity to decline.

Several other companies (on Angie's List) had no idea what a Grundfos pump was. They claimed that they would have to install a return line. When I explained the Grundfos system to them, they did not want discuss it. Mike Counsil knew what I was looking for and did a great job.

The work was performed quickly and with a minimum of collateral damage.

The plumber(Steve)arrived within 30 minutes of our call. He was able to quickly determine what was wrong and provide a written estimate. He brought in the snake, laid down a protective mat(thank you!)in the bathroom and carefully removed the plug from the line. The work was done in less than 15 minutes with no trace of the work done except a functional drain(very clean job). The price was slightly higher than other reviews on Angie's List for similar work(hence the 'average' score in this area)but I feel that the professionalism and quality(30 day guarantee on the drain work)are well worth it.

My elderly parents arranged to have a new handicapped toilet installed in their home. The costs that was quoted was $614.70 installed. When the plumber finished the work he let them know that an additional cost for the flange replacement was $538.61. So the total job for the new toilet was $1,153.31. I feel because my parents were elderly that Mike Counsil took advantage of that. When my Mom was told by the plumber that a new flange was needed, the work had been done and was too late to discuss the price and work in detail. Also, she had a small leak in another bathroom that was repaired for $160.00 to replace a valve stem for tub. This seems too high of a price since the plumber was already on the job. All in all buyer beware with this company. Please read other comments from previous customers on this company to make your own judgment. My husband did call the manager listed on your website as a contact. She was a pistol to deal with and gave my parents $100 dollars off the price after several calls and discussions. Still with the $100 off the project is way to high of a price. Again. Buyer beware.