John Baethke & Son Plumbing

Patrick Wertsmen arrived on time and handled the job very well. It was a small job uncomplicated job.

The service provider's respond time was fast, listened to concerns, and made helpful suggestions. I have a complete picture to construct my game plan around now, thanks to Patrick's thorough help.

John Baethke & Son Plumbing Inc they followed up to remind about the appointment. Steven came and reviewed everything and fixed my disposal as a courtesy. Their thoroughness gives me a peace of mind.

Steven, The plumber was extremely knowledgeable, honest & friendly.

Called in the moving to up at hot water out and a services tech (Patrice) was there by 9:45. He assessed the situation, communications and pricing and proceeded with the replacement.

The plumber, Scott, arrived on time. He was courteous, friendly, and professional. All their plumbers wear clean, professional looking uniforms. He and I discussed the problem and he fixed it right away. He was very thorough and it was clear that he wanted me to be satisfied with the work that he did. I have had work done by this company several times before, and I get consistent, excellent results. We had a pipe break and "repaired" twice by two different plumbers before Baethke analyzed, diagnosed, and fixed the problem permanently. I admit they are pricier than the typical plumber, but in my experience, the typical plumber doesn't show up on time (or not at all), doesn't care about the quality of their work, and isn't nearly as professional and courteous as the guys at Baethke. All the plumbers I've met from Baethke CLEARLY take pride in their work, and it shows. They don't just fix the immediate problem; they look at the big picture so the problem doesn't occur again.

On a previous repair visit from this company, I had signed up for a one-year plumbing service agreement. I noticed that my one year plumbing inspection term was coming to an end and decided to have Baethke come out and take a look at our plumbing in the two bathrooms, the kitchen, the laundry room, as well as servicing the water heater. The technician (Patrick) completed a detailed check list for each of these areas, and the form gave a rating for each plumbing fixture in each room (e.g. Kitchen--Sink--N/A, Poor, Fair, or Good). By point of reference, our condo was built in 2005. After completing this form, Patrick made recommendations to replace the fill valve in one bathroom and the master toilet tank seal in the other. Both of these items were marked "poor" on the report--the toilet was leaking at the seal, and the fill valve for the hall toilet wasn't working properly. To get a discounted price (called the value rate, about 15% off the standard rate) on these two repairs I also signed up for another one-year plumbing agreement term, and earned an additional 5% discount off the total repair. The tech also fixed the water pressure in the kitchen sink as part of the prepaid inspection, a big problem for the 2 years we had lived there at the time. All of this cost $356.46. Patrick explained the need for these repairs and prioritized these two as necessary in the short term. (The other repairs, thankfully, can wait). Since I have zero knowledge of plumbing, and am more interested in keeping the unit in good condition for resale, I consented to the repairs. It is hard to believe that a 5-year old condo unit could have so many plumbing problems, but I suspect this has to do with shoddy workmanship in the original construction. The work was done professionally and I would definitely use this company again. However, I am always afraid of being overcharged for home repair services. Thus, I consulted a standard construction cost handbook (R.S. Means 2009 or 2010, can't remember the year now) to see if some of my repairs were listed for comparison. These repairs weren't listed (evidently I needed a more detailed plumbing cost handbook from Means) but the handbook did list plumbing hourly labor rates by city (over $100 per hour standard for a plumber in Chicago). Thus, although the repair seemed expensive at the time, I concluded that for a major city like Chicago, it was probably inevitable. And I would rather have such an important thing like plumbing handled by a professional and a company I can trust. The repair visit was nearly a year ago, but I recall the tech was there about 2 hours.

They were efficient, clean and came when they said they were going to come. They were very reasonable and gave great service.

I think that they did a fine job, but they were a little expensive.

They were terrific! They are very clean, knowledgeable, and thorough. Our problem hasn’t come back, which is always a good sign.

Patrick, the plumber who came out, was very polite, clean, and did his job well. He actually offered to take his shoes off at the door. The work was difficult because our bathrooms are relatively small, but that wasn’t a problem for him. Also, he was more than willing to give me some helpful advice.

The water heater still wasn’t working properly after the first technician came out. Therefore, the owner came out the next day to look at it himself. He is very involved with the day to day operations of his company. Everything has been working correctly after our second appointment.

They were very patient. Steve, who did the work, is a very calm, methodical guy. He offered great customer service. The owner really went above and beyond as well. They did a wonderful job.

They did a good job on an emergency basis. I felt they were too sales oriented, and their follow up calls were annoying. However, the plumber that came out was professional and polite.

They are the most professional plumbing company in Chicago. All of their employees are prompt, neat, and clean up after themselves. They cost a little more, but it’s most definitely worth it. They are my favorite go to plumbers.

They were very good, and did great work. However, I do think they are a little expensive.

They did fine job, and I would give them a recommendation.

It was a very positive experience all the way. In fact, I?ve signed a service agreement with them. I do plan on using them in the near future for drain cleaning.

I think they have the skill sets necessary to do good work because everything was fixed correctly. To their credit, they caught an error in their own work that we wouldn’t have known about otherwise. Apparently, a part used to replace the controls of a water heater was incorrect. The owner called me that night to let me know, and they were back the next day to fix the issue. We were not charged for the second visit whatsoever. However, they are on the expensive side.

They were prompt, easy to work with, and competent.

He was very proficient and professional. My wife and I liked him very much.

Overall, I had a good experience with them. They were very knowledgeable, and went out of their way to be helpful.

We use them quite a bit whenever we have problems. They did a great job. They give good customer service and somebody always answers the phone. They can get somebody out right away if necessary and they always come without delay when scheduled. The technicians are always well-dressed and professional. They always put on their overalls when they come into your house. They are definitely a little bit above what you would expect from a plumber.

If you think they have good customer service at the Ritz Carlton, then you should definitely hire John Baethke & Son Plumbing. We needed a new water heater in our home as our previous one (that had lasted 25 years) need to be replaced. I was given a very detailed explanation of both the processes and the costs involved in replacing the water heater. It was even recommended that I go with a less expensive option which is always great to hear from a service person. When the water heater was installed I could barely tell anyone was here. Everything was clean, labeled and the entire mechanical room of our basement was in better condition than before they came. John and his team exceed all my expectations and we now have reliable hot water when we need it.

If you want to be sold parts and repairs that you don't need, and pay an outrageous amount of money for them, this is the company to call! My water heater stopped working because I had my basement painted and the paint fumes tripped a safety mechanism called the "flammable vapor sensor". As soon as it happened I knew that was the problem becuase the same thing happened when my GC refinished my wood floors a few months earlier (my GC took care of fixing it that first time, but I was on my own this time). After being unable to reset the water heater myself (the user's manual only contained that helpful advice: "call service technician") and being unable to reach the manufacturer's help line (because it was the weekend), I called a few plumbers and explained in detail what I already knew was the problem. I could only find one that would come out on a Sunday and not charge an arm and a leg. That plumber was with a different company and had absolutely no idea what I was talking about or how to service my water heater. So, I sent him on his way and called Baethke because they are one of the only Rheem authorized service companies listed in the Chicago area. At first, I was impressed because they called me right back, on a Sunday. But, the guy who called me said my Rheem water heater model did not have parts that could be replaced when this happens so the entire water heater would need to be replaced - and, of course, he'd be happy to sell me one and get it installed right away. Since my water heater was less than one year old, this just didn't seem right. So, I waited til Monday and called Rheem myself. They told me that was absolutely NOT the situation. In fact, the two parts were under warranty, so they sent them to me for free and they arrived a few days later. Because I'm an idiot (and I like to give people the benefit of the doubt), I still went ahead and scheduled Baethke come out to install the parts, mostly because I thought it would be best to have someone authorized by Rheem do the install. They wouldn't quote me a price on the phone for the install because they said they'd need to see the parts and the water heater first. I knew I was in trouble as soon as the guy arrived because the first thing he did was try to sell me a long-term service contract to service not just my water heater but all my plumbing needs for the next year. Then, he assessed the situation with the water heater and said it would cost me $800 for him to install the parts!!! He also gave me his expert opinion that I should probably just buy a new water heater since the service cost was about the same as the cost of a new water heater. And, of course, he' said he'd be happy to sell me the new water heater and install it that same day. I suppose that story works for people who have old water heaters, but I was appalled that they would recommend just throwing away a water heater that is less than one year old. So much for being green. Since I was going on a week with no hot water at this point, I asked the guy to wait while I called a few other plumbers, and a few friends, to see if my gut was right that there had to be another option aside from paying $800 to have two parts installed, or entirely replacing my water heater. After the three people I was able to reach each recovered from their shock and stopped laughing uncontrollably, they all confirmed that my gut was right. So, I reluctantly paid the $90 trip charge to the Baethke guy for doing absolutely nothing and sent him on his way. In an hour, another plumber was at my house. Two hours later, the water heater was operating beautifully as if nothing had happened. The actual install of the new parts took about 15 minutes. The rest of the time was to wait for the water heater to drain, and then to wait for it to fill back up. Needless to say, I won't be calling Baethke ever again.