Nicholson Plumbing Heating & Air Conditioning Inc

I was not told before performing whatever services (which was really just cleaning a tube) how much they would cost. The person who came in to perform the diagnostic service just went ahead and did something and told me only later that there is an additional charge of $200 on top of the Angie's list deal for the fix.

The technician who came was extremely nice. When he got to my house, he called me on his cell because he couldn't get to my front door to ring the door bell. (Yesterday had a foot of snow) I let him in the door next to the garage door. After he completed the work he shoveled a path to my front door! WHAT A NICE GUY. I not only would use Nicholson again, but I'd ask for the same technician again! The installation job was much more than I expected, but I decided to go ahead just to have it done.

To change a faucet I was quoted $1000+. A visit to get that quote cost me $50. I got it done through another lic plumber for less than $250.

Like I said, I didn't go with Nicholson because of the slightly higher price point. But it became clear once I went with the other vendor that I should have gone with Nicholoson. Nicholoson's recommendations from the estimate were a better solution and it only became clear only after the work was done to install my new vendor (the vendor did not include the correct 2-stage thermostat, and a few other minor issues). At the end of the day, I should have paid a little more and had it done right with Nicholoson. But, I learn from my mistakes. I now use Nicholoson for the yearly maintenance of my HVAC system. They are great!

After quoting a price for the visit of $75.00 the company owner, Mike Nicholson arrived at my house and informed me that even though I was quoted $ 75.00 a Major diagnostic was required and it would cost $149.00. It is also important to note that despite allegedly being a trained specialist on my heating system he did not arrive with a service manual and used his smart phone for information. After about 1 hour on the phone with Navien he determined that they would send a warrantied circulator pump and I would only have to pay for the labor to replace the pump. He quoted me a price or $648.00 to replace the pump,as he said it was a considerable amount of work. He further indicated that my heating system was improperly plumbed and the Navien boiler unit was in poor condition and should be replaced. He indicated that a typical installation similar to what I had was around $12,000. It should be noted that the system was installed in September 2010 and was only 3-1/2 years old. He also said that the system was not properly sized. I contacted Navien to determine what they would estimate for time to replace the pump and also spoke with a plumbing supplier and (2) other contractors. The installation time is typically less than an hour. The person I eventually hired did the repair in under 45 minutes and actually showed up with a service manual. I also asked the honest contractor his opinion on the system condition and the overall system design. In his opinion the boiler was in excellent condition, and the system was designed per Navien's specifications. He further added that he's never heard of any contractor recommending replacement on a unit that is still under warranty. Do not use this contractor, he attempted to charge $648 for a repair that took less than an hour and actually cost $170. He also recommended replacing a 3-1/2 warrantied boiler and associated plumbing that did not need repair at a cost of $12,000. In my opinion he is not a respectable business person. The only positive from this experience is that the women who work in his office are the nicest people and I hope that they are not aware of the unethical services that he offers.

Edit: I was contacted by the owner who made this right and it was acknowledged that it wasn't handled correctly previously. Had I talked to him the day after the plumber came out I would have gave a higher rating but I docked some points due to the miscommunication. I would have given an A for Responsiveness and Professionalism if I had directed to the owner after complaining originally as I am confident we could have worked out a solution. As acknowledged my issue would have fallen under their 100% satisfaction guarantee which would have meant my issue would have been fixed within a day and made it a much more reasonable repair. The original review below with updated notes in parenthesis: We had the toilet in our finished basement back up on a Sunday morning and partially flood the area. I knew right away it was the main sewer line so in my panic I jumped on Angies List and picked the highest rated plumber in my area and gave them a call. I of course made a few mistakes right away - I called a general plumber and I didn't call around. It was a Sunday morning and I wanted it fixed quick but I paid the price. A few of the positive things to get out of the way: 1.) The plumber was prompt, punctual and well mannered. He covered his feet in the house and was not rude in any way. In fact he was so pleasant it gave me some reassurance that I was paying a fair amount. (Naive on my part) 2.) I fully accepted the $85 emergency charge - I knew it would be a bit more due to it being a Sunday. I would have paid that extra amount with any other plumber as well. 3.) They let me know the price ahead of time and I agreed as I was naive about its competitiveness. Anyway, the plumber snaked a couple of times and water was flowing. He didn't use the clean-out which meant extra charges (but the owner clarified today why he had to do that) After nearly $800 the backup came right back that night. It would be another $800 for them to come out again. I called around and got multiple quotes for $225 - $270, all with a 90 day guarantee. I called Nicholson back as I thought they had actually made an honest mistake and got a Customer Rep who talked nicely but basically said it was a fair price and that's what you pay for the job to get done right. They were quick to say those charging $250 are going to hike their price and potentially break something. This gets me the most since that wasn't the case at all when I called a second plumber who completely fixed it. They have also said repeatedly that the price they charge is because they are more experienced and have a 100% satisfaction guarantee. I wasn't satisfied but nothing was going to happen (Again, this has now been resolved) The second plumber (drain specialist) was able to quickly assess that our main sewer was actually disconnected from the street line and leeching into our yard. Nicholson was cordial and professional but that came at an exceptionally steep price. They seem to have a great reputation with more complex plumbing work but for something like a main drain I may have better with a less experienced provider.

The staff who handle the calls are extremely pleasant. Every time. That's the beginning of the 'A' grade they deserve. They were able to send someone over the same day to diagnose the issue; the motor on the furnace was not working and needed to be replaced. The employee who came, Johnny, told me the issue and that they could order the part and have it installed within 24-48 hours. They offered to supply space heaters at any time if it became too cold...amazing! They returned in 48 hours only to discover that the part was damaged and would have to be reordered. The office staff offered the heaters again and told me to call any time to request them. They came today ( Johnny and Charlie) and completed the job, leaving no trace of their presence on my cream colored carpet as they wore shoe covers. They think of everything. Really. In short, I cannot recommend this company highly enough. Their customer service, employees and workmanship are exemplary. They could give a seminar on how to run such a company.

Steve did a great job at explaining it all and was very professional and competent.

Technicians Johnny and Charlie were extremely professional. Explained what they were doing and asked at the end did I have any other questions that they could help with. Their window time of arrival was exact.

The provider was very prompt in contacting me to set up the service appointment. The technician came on time and was very professional. The follow up call with their office was very pleasant - the agent who answered the call understood the issues well and worked diligently to solve the problem. Room for improvement: 1) the initial call to set up the appointment - I mentioned problems with steam showers, but only when the technician came to the house, was I informed that they could not repair steam showers. 2) I am not sure how they differentiate diagnostic and repair services. One of the sink disposables appeared to be jammed, and the technician showed me how to reset the motor. It apparently worked, but for only about 30 minutes after he left the house. I was told that for them to diagnose and potentially repair the disposable, they would have to charge another category of service fees. 3) I was told replacing a faucet might solve the rattling noise problem when it was switched on. The technician shut the faucet off. Before I spent hundreds of dollars to buy a new faucet, I was only told that the replacement might solve the problem. What if it does not? Again, further diagnostic work would need to be done?

They were professional and courteous in my home. They seemed to be very knowledgeable. Scheduling went well and they were somewhat flexible. They are not the cheapest but you definitely get what you paid for.

Mike Nicholson came to my house to give me a quote on a new furnace. He seemed very knowledgeable, answered all my questions and even explained how a couple of the problems I have always had relating to the general heating of the configuration of rooms could be solved. His quote which came in the mail in a day was in line with the others. After visiting a neighbor and hearing a detailed account of her positive experiences with Nicholson, I decided to have them install my new furnace. It hasn't been done yet...is scheduled in a couple of weeks...but if his, and his company's professionalism holds, it should be good.

Appointment scheduling was prompt, courteous, and responsive (kudos to Jessica). Tyler was dispatched to my home and thoughtfully diagnosed the problems and laid out the repair options, together with realistic best and worst case scenarios with pricing. The issues with my situation were a bit complicated, involving access to restricted spaces and a mystery leak. Tyler showed experience and insight that I've not seen in several other plumbers/GCs, and found a problem that others had missed repeatedly. Once a plan was agreed, we set up two follow up appointments for the necessary repairs. These were executed smoothly, punctually, and professionally with excellent communication during the process. So far so good with the repairs, and Tyler was actually able to repair the Saniflo under original estimate. Would strongly recommend Nicholson and Tyler in particular. While not the cheapest rates, there is a tangibly high quality of service from scheduling to execution, and I expect they will stand behind their work should any problems arise.

Both the repair and installation personnel from Nicholson were extremely polite and professional. Work was done on time, in an orderly fashion and the work site was perfectly cleaned when the job was done. I would certainly choose this vendor again for my HVAC needs.

Well I would say kinda of a Rip OFF after they charged me 331$ to replace a Thermostat. But my fault I am a first time home owner and asked them to come look at it. I also asked for a quote to lay out a extra heat line [ approx 15 feet ] of plumbing to be laid for it - he actually asked me 880-with service plan and 980-with out the service plan . I would say is you call these folks please take more than one opinion on the quote they give you. Although they are pretty professional and punctual.

I called to set up an appointment. Once the appointment was scheduled, a customer service representative called to say the did not have my information, which already had given them. They then asked me to schedule an appointment, which I had already done ( the appointment was for the next day)! After saying they could not make the appointment I had scheduled, they called back to say the owner himself would come. He did in fact come the next day, apologized for the confusion and quickly fixed the problem ( air in the forced hot water pipes). After explaining how I could bleed the air out myself, he said he would not charge me for the call because of all the hassles involved. I appreciated his professionalism and his willingness to leave a good impression.

See above. Three other companies' technicians came to inspect the furnace, but charged far less - $50, $135 and $75 - even though they too spent a bit of time examining the furnace's various parts, coming up with nothing too.

This was a great experience from the initial visit to the proposal to the actual completion of the project. The initial visit by Mike and Steve was very informative, concise and straight forward. The installation was led by Steve who was professional and open to questions. The team was fastidious about cleanliness including using drop cloths and booties to cover their shoes when in living areas. Even when there was a small glitch with a setting, Mike came over and fixed it immediately. Our basement has never looked cleaner! Both my wife and I were vry pleased with the whole project - from start to finish.

I purchased a big deal for $140 of services for $99 and was contacted right away about my needs. 2 plumbers showed up on time and gave me an estimate for my job by looking in a book for what these jobs cost. I was very shocked at the price but assumed it would be a very detailed fix and worth the cost. We set an appointment for the next week for the fixes. The same 2 plumbers showed up on time to complete the job and I settled in expecting a several hour affair. To my surprise they were done after about 30-45 minutes. Great that it was quickly done but $1000 for 45 minutes of work? I know who I won't be using again.

Went well. Technician arrived on time and diagnosed our issue.

The office staff is great. They are able to look up the customer account and 'get it right'. I did not have to explain again and again what I calling about. Getting a call back the same day was a welcome change after dealing with three other plumbers and waiting for a call back over night or a couple of days. The furnace works well and is much quieter than the fifty year old unit it replaced. As most people will buy one or two heating units in their lifetime the furnace 'is what it is' as far a quality goes. That would leave installation for my 'B' rating under Quality. I can see each installation is a unique job and requires custom fabrication at the job site but when I got a good look I have four items I think could have been done better. Two are minor and I fixed them myself, a factory sheet metal hole with an electrical wire passing through (I put in a rubber grommet), the incoming gas pipe touching (rubbing) the hot flue pipe (I pushed the flue pipe back giving a quarter inch gap). Two items I can't do anything about except keep an eye on it. The old unit was removed and the bricks it was setting on taken out leaving a depression the size of the old unit about an inch deep. The new unit was placed not on bricks but on untreated pine boards set in the depression. The new unit is several inches more narrow but deeper than the old unit. If the boards rot the sheet metal of the new unit will be on the floor as there is less the a quarter inch gap to the concrete. The other item I will keep an eye on is a factory sheet metal hole for the gas supply to pass through is making heavy contact with the gas supply pipe.

Johnny from Nicholson called and arrived earlier than scheduled which worked out well for me. After a brief chat he began work on inspecting and tuning up my gas furnace. When done he explained to me all the things he checked and tuned up. He also repaired a small leak I had on the outside of the furnace. I was pleased with the work and would use Nicholson again in the future.

We were extremely satisfied with the result. This is a very professional company. Mike, the owner, explained everything in detail beforehand. The somewhat complicated work was supposed to take an day and a half but Steve and Brandon, the crew, worked for 13 hours to get it done all in one day. They did great work, were very pleasant and thorough, and really tried to keep everything neat. We would definitely recommend this company.

Johnny from Nicholson arrived right on time. He got straight to work. He was very polite, friendly and professional. He was able to diagnose the problem right away and fix it within half an hour. I asked him for some advise on another matter and he was honest and very helpful. I plan to call on Nicholson again with any further problems,.

Nice 2 hour arrival time; very punctual, obtained the motor by the next day and installed it. Great company, will hold on to them!