Thomas E Clark Inc

Andy repaired everything quickly and easily. He came at the very end of the time frame he gave us, but he was able to complete the work quickly. He also gave us an estimate on our three toilets that weren't flushing well, and we will likely hire them to replace our toilets as well.

Had wet spot on dining room ceiling below bathroom. Thomas Clarke Plumber said that leak was from main stack seal on roof. I had a roofer provide additional sealant around vent/stack on roof. When I returned from vacation last week, I found a hole in ceiling and damaged antique table below. Had another plumber come from a different company and in 5 seconds he identified leak as coming from water supply pipe. Problem fixed. Now I am going to hire plasterer, painter, and antique restoration firm thanks to incompetent Thomas Clarke service.

We had an emergency problem that needed to be resolved the same day that I called before we left for vacation. They were extremely responsive and had someone there fixing the issue a few hours later. The drain in the basement was clogged and the plumber advised us on the problem and how much it would cost and had the drain unclogged in less than an hour.

Shower drain was clogged and water drained very slowly. Initially, I thought I fixed it by pouring drain cleaner. But after 2-3 months, it would happen again and again. So finally, in May I called Thos. E Clark, and it is now October and water still flows properly down drain without a backup. Martin was on-time, professional and friendly. In addition to taking care of everything he explained what the problem was and showed me proper way to put stopper back in my sink and explained best way to keep drains clean.

Two plumbers arrived on time. The did a great job installing the facet and garbage disposal we had purchased separately. The garbage disposal was quite a bit larger than the old one so they had to move a pipe under the sink before they could install it. They put drop cloths on the floor and cleaned up nicely when they completed the work.

Very good. the pump to remove water/condensation stopped working and the water backed into the house. The repairman was prompt, quickly assessed the problem, replaced the corroded parts and we were back in business. The price of the service call and parts also includes a return visit to do a fall servicing of the AC/heating system.

I made an appointment several days ahead of time to have plumbers look at a leaky kitchen faucet, but then no one showed up during my 10-1 appointment window. I'd called earlier that morning to confirm, and was told everything was on schedule. So when no one showed up, that was annoying. I called Thomas E. Clark and was told that they'd tried to call me but there was a problem with my phone. I found that incredible given that I'd gotten a number of calls that day without any problems at all. And why on earth would showing up depend on reaching me by phone when I'd already confirmed? So that just increased my annoyance. When the two employees arrived, I told them I'd temporarily "fixed" the leak myself with a little fiddling with the faucet, but that it was still sticking and unreliable. I didn't have a lot of confidence in my "repair," and said that I thought that the faucet cartridge or seals might be old. It's a Moen faucet, and I understand those sometimes have the same types of leaks that I'd encountered (ie. pulling down handle wouldn't stop water flow when the spigot wasn't aligned in quite the right way). I've been told by folks who have had nearly the identical problem that replacing the Moen cartridges and seals should take care of it. But since I'm no expert, I was still pretty open-minded on what needed to be done. Anyway, the plumber commented on the age of my faucet and the fact that it had a "lot" of lime. His assistant noted it as well almost on cue. The plumber then very quickly indicated that I would have to replace the entire faucet for over $400. By this point, I was more than a little annoyed. Between the late arrival and the very quick "assessment," I just wasn't ready to sign off on his recommendation. Then I got a bit of a sales pitch that actually made me even less confident about proceeding with Thomas E. Clark. The plumber lifted up the decorative cover to show me the lime problem, and I did notice a little white film on the surface of the screwed in part that provides access to the rest of the faucet. But I still didn't see how he could have figured out what was going on inside the mechanism when he hadn't actually removed the secured cover yet, and personally, I thought the surface lime was pretty de minimis. I didn't even see any on the screw itself. The faucet is about 10-15 years old, though, and I figured maybe he could see something through the tiny holes on the surface of the cover that I couldn't. Or maybe a plumber just knows that if there's lime on top, there must be a lot more underneath. Etc. etc. So again, I just let him proceed with his recommendation/sales pitch. Then he tried to remove the screw with screwdrivers that didn't fit. As in - using a phillips type screwdriver that was considerably wider than the tiny hex head on the faucet screw. The plumber pretty quickly sent his assistant out for a screwdriver that looked like it would fit better, however. So it wasn't like he did anything really terrible. Sometimes I've gotten things done with the tools I have rather than the "right tools." Still, there was just something about each step of the process that kept setting off warning bells. After he got the right screwdriver, the plumber did just a little twisting and concluded that it was stuck tight. He warned that further effort might damage the screw. Frankly, it looked to my layman's eyes more as if he was just pushing down rather than turning the screw. And I clear lime from the surface of my fixtures with lime removers, simple cleaners, and even vinegar. He didn't do anything of the sort. If the screw was really stuck, wouldn't it have made sense for him to at least properly clean it off a bit before declaring the endeavor hopeless? But again what do I know? I asked whether he already had the part. The answer was no. He'd have to get it, but it sounded as though the cost would be fixed. So at least I wasn't going to be billed for travel time etc.. Under a little quizzing, the plumber did indicate that a repair would be cheaper, but he all but nixed the idea as impractical. Anyway, I asked for an estimate in writing, but have not decided whether to proceed with Thomas E. Clark. Pursuant to company policy, there was a service charge of about $70 just for coming out to my home. To the company's credit, this is disclosed in advance as well as the fact that if I decide to proceed with the faucet replacement/repair, the charge is not deducted from the final bill. This policy of not crediting back the service charge to customers who actually agree to use the company is a departure from the way other service companies I've dealt with handle this type of charge. But at least one can't claim that Thomas E. Clark offers to waive their service charge as a subtle way of getting customers to skip obtaining multiple estimates. Even now, I don't claim that Thomas E. Clark tried to rip me off. Both of the employees were polite, and professional while on-site. But that there were a series of events that just didn't make me feel confident that I was being treated fairly. To conclude, I ended up wiping off some of the lime on my faucet and fiddling a little bit more with the handle. It works almost as well as it did before the leak. Probably still going to fail on me at some point, but for now at least, it's not leaking and no longer sticking. I'm giving Thomas E. Clark 3 stars instead of 2 because I suppose it's possible the plumber did something to help during the course of his assessment.

It went great. The plumber informed me that the his company could not repair the pipes because there was too much risk of making the situation worse. The pipes would have to be replaced and it would cost about two thousand dollars. I asked the plumber for do it yourself advice. He told me how to fix the leak with epoxy. He sold me a tube of his professional grade epoxy, Propoxy. Following his advice I was able to fix the pipe for $69 in advice, $20 in supplies, and about three hours of work. I specifically chose this plumber for it's high rating and because another reviewer reported that they give do it yourself advice. Very pleased with Thomas E Clark plumbers and Angie's list so far.

The representative was very punctual, polite, and professional, and promised me an estimate within a few days. After giving them extra time (approx 2 weeks!) to submit the estimate, I called to notify them that I never received it. I was told that they would check on it, but I never got a call back, nor did I ever receive the estimate. Perhaps they could have told me that they didn't want to do the job.

Their Plumber was exactly on time; called in advance to confirm the appointment and showed up as promised. The Plumber was polite, pleasant and informative. The work was completed on time and on target. The cost was a bit high, but it was reasonable given the top quality professional work and output. Follow-up/ Update: I reached out to Thomas E Clark again in July of 2014 for additional work before the sale of our home. Again, they did great work in responding to Home Inspector Check-Off items. Once again, the Team (Heating and Plumbing were professional, pleasant and timely. The work was great (7/12/2104)

They were wonderful. They were very sincere and they were very fair.

They responded very quickly to my call. The first guy didn't have the video camera equipment, so he quickly arranged for it to be brought over, in a few hours, and quickly found the problem. The technician/plumber showed me the problem on the video - a blockage in the sewer line several tens of feet outside the home and unblocked it. He showed me where the pipe had slumped due to ground settling. Then he recommended that he come back to do a thorough 'pipe cleaning' all the way to the main. All these services were done well and professionally. My only issue is that it seem very expensive, particularly the pipe cleaning exercise ($1300 for that portion alone); true, it did take several hours to complete this process, but still a lot of money per time.

Thomas E Clark was great. We had a plumbing emergency at a friend's house where we're staying in Chevy Chase, MD. Thought it was just a ring that needed to be replaced, but turned out that the main sewer line was obstructed. They came out on a Sunday to take a look, diagnosed the problem, then came out on Monday to fix it. Prompt, reliable, and efficient.

Joe showed up on time and diagnosed the problem quickly. He replaced my leaking expansion tank and completed the job in 20 minutes. Would use again.

I had used Thomas E Clark for a long time. 2 years ago my upper level A/C unit stopped working. Thomas E Clark came and informed me that the unit was dead and had to be completely replaced, at a cost of several thousand dollars. They explained the unit was over 15 years old, and it was normal -- it was past its expected lifetime. Not knowing any better, and not having any reason to distrust them, I gave my ok. Several thousand dollars later they had replaced my "entire" A/C system. They said the new system had a 10 year warranty. A few weeks later my lower level A/C unit stopped working. Thomas E Clark came again, and told me I needed to replace that too. They said it was not uncommon for units to die so close to each other. After all, they were installed at the same time, and had experienced similar usage. I explained that having spent several thousand dollars just a few weeks earlier I could not afford to do so again. We were at the end of the season, so I decided to wait on the repairs until later. They did send me a quote for the replacement in case I wanted to do the work. A few days later I saw the van from another company working at a neighbor's home. O a whim I walked up to him and asked them to come check my unit. They did, and told me it just needed a replacement part of a couple of hundred dollars. Took them about 30 minutes, and 2 years later the unit is still going strong. I was outraged that Thomas E Clark had told me I needed to replace the entire unit at a cost of several thousand dollars. I now suspect that the first replacement was also possibly not needed, and they just took advantage of my trust and lack of knowledge. My mistake for not getting a second opinion for the first replacement. Fast forward two years. The A/C unit that Thomas E Clark installed stopped working a few days ago. I was reluctant to call them, but since the unit is supposed to be under warranty, and they installed it, I called them. They came, and told me that no, the part that failed, the blower motor, was NOT replaced by them two years ago, so it is not under warranty. I told him my understanding was that they had replaced the ENTIRE A/C system. He gave me some explanation that the blower motor is technically part of the HEATING system, not the A/C, so they had not replaced it. My fault, again, for trusting them and not carefully reading all the technical details of the work that was done 2 years ago, i guess, but if a company with a reputation like Thomas E Clark has tells me they are replacing the "entire" A/C system, I should not have to read the fine print, or try to read the contract between the lines to realize that "the entire A/C system" doesn't really mean the "entire" A/C system. He tells me that replacing the motor would cost around $600. Needless to say I did not agree, and to add insult to injury he tells me that he needs to charge me a $69 visit fee (or whatever he called it). The same day I called another company. They showed up, and told me that the motor was fine, all that was necessary was a $32 capacitor replacement. Sure enough, that is all that was wrong and the motor is working fine as I write this. Needless to say I am never calling them again. Their so called service technicians seem like disguised equipment salesmen, who prey on the ignorance of homeowners (and the urgency to get the HVAC system repaired) to sell thousands of dollars in unnecessary equipment and "repairs". The only positive thing I can say is that they showed up quickly and on time.

Raphael was prompt and courteous. Neat and evaluated the problem. The new disposal works great.

David was the plumber who came each time and he was excellent! He first tried to make the repairs I asked for on our two toilets that had problems. After unsuccessful attempts (the toilets were 50 years old!) he recommended not putting any more money into them and installing new. He also gave us advice as to how we could make an easy repair on a third ourselves. He was honest and kind. David made the whole process fast and easy and we have two, brand new working toilets! Thank you!

On Sunday, August 11, I woke up to find water dripping through the ceiling of the family room from the bathroom above. The ceiling had a water stain, plus a long crack and bubbling where the water had dripped through. The carpet below had a wet spot that indicated the ceiling had been dripping for awhile. This was an emergency situation. I looked through Angie's list for a provider, but many plumbers do not provide service on Sunday. Then I found this nearby plumber (only 3 miles away). The office returned my call within five minutes. The technician came out to assess the damage and provide an estimate a short time later. He was very friendly and professional. The service charge for coming to my house on Sunday was $104, which seemed reasonable for such speedy service. He advised me that it would be less expensive to have the work done during the week rather than on the weekend. I took his advice and decided to have the work done on Monday. In the meantime, he installed a hose to temporarily stop the leak. On Monday afternoon, he returned and completed the work in less than two hours. This involved cutting through the wall behind the bathtub to install a new pipe; he also replaced the cartridge and springs in the tub & shower faucet. He added some caulking around the tub free of charge. I was really pleased with the work and the price. I received a substantial discount. The final price was $817.00.

The plumber was on-time, called 30-minutes prior to arrival. He quickly assessed the issue and provided various options. A couple items dicsussed sounded expensive (adding drains, etc..) and said 'let's see what we find when we open up the ceiling'. I thought there was going to be a hard sell once he got in there, but he said that the additional items discussed were not needed and provided some suggestions on how to prevent this situation from occuring again. Very courteous and professional. I will use Thomas E Clark again in the future should the need arise. Very good experience.

Warren came to our house initially and did an analysis of the boiler but also of the heating demand we had in the overall house. He provided a detailed estimate and spoke to us several times about the work he recommended to fix the problem, which he said basically lay in the poor and complex piping system above the boiler. While he said we didn't actually need a new boiler (which we appreciated) we decided on our own to go ahead and replace the boiler anyway since it was 40 years old and we didn't want to spend all this money on the piping, only to have the boiler need replacing in 5 or 10 years. The job was also a little more complicated because we had a combination of PEX plastic tubing in the renovated part of the home serving the fin tube radiators along with galvanized piping in the old part of the house that served the old cast iron radiators. The fin tube radiator repair was difficult because it was an in-floor unit and they told us it would likely require them to go in through the ceiling below to fix it. The hot water heater replacement was straightforward. Warren showed up with Jason, their PEX tube specialist and Jason's assistant Rahwan (spelling?) promptly and go to work. They had estimated the job would take 5 days. They completed it in three. Along the way, they fixed another very small leak in the system that I pointed out the day they arrived - and they didn't charge me to fix it. They DIDN'T need to go through the ceiling on the in floor fin tube radiator repair - they were able to fix it in place. The work was clean, neat and the new piping above the boiler looks simple and downright elegant compared to the mess that had been installed by another contractor 10 years ago when we added space to the house and put in the fin tube radiators (at that other contractor's recommendation). The only glitch throughout the entire job with Thomas E. Clark was when I came home and tested the system after the work was done and one of the zones didn't work. I called back, they came back immediately the next day and fixed the system and that night I got an email from the president of the company apologizing and explaining that one of the valves in the system had been inadvertently shut. I remain very, very impressed with this company and their responsiveness - they would always call before they came over to confirm appointments, their office people are very professional and Jason and Rahwan who did the work were professional, courteous and seemed to be pros. As I said above, the work they did on the piping was downright craftsmanlike on that boiler. (Whoever thought you could get excited about piping above a boiler?) They were also comfortable with and knowledgeable about the PEX tubing in my house - another company I brought in to give me an estimate for this work had never worked with it and seemed afraid to touch it. After the job was over, I had a few additional questions and I contacted them and they answered my questions even though the job was done. They also provide me with a set of instructions (that I had never gotten from my original contractor but had needed from time to time) to my thermostat system - which controls the A/C and boiler. I will never use another plumbing and heating company. They've got my business for life.

They initially had no appointments until 4:30 so they were going to charge me after-hours prices (~30% mark-up). They called soon after I made the appointment to say that they had a cancellation and could arrive at 3pm & charge regular prices. Two very professional men arrived promptly and quickly determined that there was no plumbing issue -- the pump on the dishwasher was broken and needed to be replaced. When I paid the $69 service call fee, the plumber made clear (twice) that if we had any other problems with the dishwasher or if it somehow turned out that his diagnosis was incorrect, we could call them back in without having to pay the service charge.

The repairman was extremely professional and quick with his work. I was also impressed with the fact that he cleaned up his mess.

The initial contact went well. They were able to respond quickly to my request for an estimate and within a week a rep came out to provide an estimate. The representative had a challenging task as the basement had drywall up so we used pictures from the building of the house and what he could do, to conduct the initial plan. After seeing the initial plan, I wanted to change it a little to avoid having ducting below the ceiling. The representative worked with me, but sometimes his responses were a little delayed. It took about a month+ to work out the details from the initial estimate, but finally we had an agreed upon plan. They were able to schedule a work date relatively quickly once we had the plan and the original estimator came to explain the plan, which I appreciated. The worker knew his stuff and got to work, but we ran into some problems and they proposed a new plan which was going to involve ducting below the ceiling, a deal breaker for me. I worked with the worker and came up with an alternate plan, which he agreed to. He finished the work, but because of the change and that only one worker was present, it took a bit longer than expected, although still finished in one day. They needed an additional piece which they brought back the next week and installed. Pros - They were quick with setting the dates and stuck to them. They were also willing to work with me to ensure the project avoided having ducting below the ceiling. Cons - The plan had to be changed and they used more flex ducting then I would have wished, which is of less quality in mind. However, a big piece of this is they were working with a partially finished basement (much harder than having no drywall up) so the had to make educated guesses on what would and wouldn't work. Many places wouldn't even do it for that reason or because it was just duct work and not a new complete system. Overall I'm happy with the work and would use them again.

Chris was there on time, figured out the problem quickly, and fixed the faucet.

The plumber showed up within the scheduled window as promised. A company representative called to let me know that the plumber was on the way and should be there within ten minutes. He arrived and came down into the basement to look at the problem. He then went back to his truck to call his supervisor, discuss the situation, and come up with a price. He came back in the house after about ten minutes and said the job was $1100. I balked and this insulting price and said no thank you, and that I would not be calling them back for any other work. I had a previous good experience with Thos E. Clark plumbing earlier in the year when they added a check-valve to my heating system. I mentioned that I after such a clearly inflated price I would be unable to do any further business with them, and to have a nice day. I almost refused to pay for the fee they charge ($69.00) for showing up because I thought this was not a good faith estimate but rather an attempt to take advantage of someone who they thought may not know plumbing or what things cost. The technician asked what I would pay for the job, because he didn't want to lose the customer. I said $400 seemed reasonable, but I asked what Clark's hourly rate was. He wouldn't tell me, and said they did not work on an hourly basis. Since I am not a professional plumber, I did not want to estimate how much time this would take. We haggled a bit and finally settled on $525, less than half of the original estimate. Clark's willingness to take half of their original price tells me they were negotiating in bad faith and attempting to take advantage of the situation. The repair was completed in less than two hours. The quality of the work is good, and there have been no issues since. I have a better idea than most of what things cost. Overhead and the other costs, such as fringe benefits all add up. And companies definitely need to make a profit. Otherwise what this point of being in business? But this was egregious, and I cannot trust this company to give accurate and reasonable cost estimates.