American Sewer

My wife and I are purchasing our first house. We were specifically looking for a fixer-upper to build some equity. This house had what appeared to be a clogged floor drain in the basement. We hired Jonathan to come and inspect the sewer and unclog the drain. The clogged drain just turned out to be an old sewer drain that was capped. Jonathan sucked out the puddle of water to clean the mess. He was able to open a difficult plumbing clean-out cap which had never been removed. He used a camera to inspect our sewer line all the way to the city. He found that the previous owner had buried an old clean-out and helped us locate it so that it could be uncovered at some point in the future. We were extremely happy with his service. He even provided us with a DVD with a recording of the pipe inspection.

It was okay. It went fine. The majority of the work is diagnostic. They just seemed pro-active. They were on time.

John arrived within the three hour window given, and quickly laid out tarps to cover our basement carpet in the areas where he would need to roll the giant drain cleaning machine. Once he was all set up, John was able to clear out our main line with ease, and although no tree roots were growing in there, he did find a clump of wet wipes which must have been flushed down our toilet by our infant or nanny. We're glad he was able to retrieve these, as they could have made for a real blockage problem! After cleaning out the main line, I asked if John could take a look at a second drain in the house where I was having really slow drainage, and he agreed to clean out this drain as well. I appreciated his willingness to stick around for another quick job, which he managed to clear out and make our laundry sink drain like a champ! This was an overall very positive experience, and I would recommend American Sewer for any drain cleaning services.

It went well. Because of the setup of our sewer pipe, he was not able to inspect a portion of the pipe that is under our garage unless I wanted to disassemble some forced air ducting just above the furnace. We have a second cleanout cap that allowed him to inspect the portion of the pipe from the ouside edge of the garage to the street, so I just had him do that readily accessible part of the sewer line. I was very impressed with the quality of the equipment and the image it produced. His experience at dealing with stuck cleanout caps was very helpful. I'd have spent way too much time if I'd tried to remove it myself, and probably would have been unsuccessful. He had a replacement cap in the truck, so he could replace the cap at that time. He was great at explaining what we were seeing as the camera went through the line. I did not expect problems in the line, and we did not find them. I considered it a good investment in having peace of mind about something I've wondered about for a long time.

The drain in my laundry room is running very nicely so I suppose I can't say this was a failure but I think the offer is a bit disingenuous. The deal was $89.00 for one hour of drain cleaning and a FREE toilet tune up I think they called it. They man who came to my home to clean the drain told me this is the regular price for cleaning out a floor drain so no real savings there. He arrived at approx 11 AM was out of here by 11:35 AM and never asked me about a toilet I wanted tuned up or anything. In fact when he was finished he was up the stairs and out of the door so fast I didn't have time to mention it (bad knees so I take steps a little slow lol). So basically I got my floor drain cleaned for the regular price and that's it. That's fine but I think this review should include Angie's List advertising deals that aren't really deals sometimes!!! Oh well.....off to do laundry! I think the provider response was unfairly snarky. I didn't trash the company or the service. I gave my experience with the company an average rating. I don't remember giving feedback one way or the other when the man was here cleaning my drain except to note that he was the cleanest plumber I had experienced and I should note that he did not leave a mess of any kind and even wiped up my concrete floor. The purpose of Angie's list is for consumers to be able to get HONEST reviews. My review was HONEST this was an average experience and I believe the service I received was purchased at the regular rate that the company charges for the service. I believe the most negative part of my review had to do with Angie's List relying on selling DEALS for service provider rather than simply providing a forum for honest reviews of local companies and service providers which is what they aimed to do in the beginning. Most times I purchase Angie's List deals because I am looking for a new service provider and a special deal is a way to purchase a service at a reduced rate in order to "try out" a new service provider. In any case this company does not hire licensed plumber and they are simply a draincleaning service so I most likely would not use them again as I only need my floor drain cleaned ever several years or so and I have Center Point Home Service Plus to clean my main drain. My review gave average feedback and an average "C" rating. It was honest and fair and does not represent a change of any kind in my satisfaction. Note to Jonathan.....the snarkiness does not become any small business or service provider.

Forty years as a homeowner, this is the best sewer service I've ever used. Seth, our Tech, was helpful and nice and reassuring. He described what he quickly ascertained was the problem, then told me our options and sorted out the best plan of action for our house. We had recently moved to this house and still had boxes in the basement. To get access to the outside drain, Seth helped me move boxes away from his work area and to make passage for the 250 lb. drain-cleaner machine he brought in from the truck. How he got that thru our tiny basement landing and down the basement steps so apparently gracefully, I do not know. All I know is he was here under 2 hours and did a brilliant job . Communications/anybody I talked to on the phone with this company--friendly & helpful. Fast call-back; fast service. Top notch company.

Good communication regarding appointment, and flexibility. Came when expected. Called when he was on his way. Honored my Angie Deal even though I misunderstood what I was getting. I bought a deal to clean the floor drain with a camera inspection. I thought I was buying a deal to clean the main drain with camera inspection. They cleaned the main drain for me with the camera inspection. I really appreciate that. I don't know how close the two services are in price. They did a thorough job, making sure to clear out all roots that had grown into the pipe. Then finished with a camera inspection showing the condition of the pipe. Very pleased with the service. And helps me feel more secure having visual proof of the condition of the sewer line.

I asked about the possibility of snaking out the pipe beyond the house, since I am concerned about possible damage to the pipe out to the street. He said that would require a larger piece of equipment and a larger camera. He said I would have to make another appointment and pay another $125 to get the pipe cleared all the way to the street. I told him I thought that was what I had paid for with the current visit, and pointed out that there was still a half hour left on the clock (they charge $125 for the first hour). His attitude was pretty lackadaisical and he just packed up his stuff and left. While we are pleased that the clog appears to be gone, his attitude was disappointing. I am not planning to use them again.

I won't say I was hysterical when I called, but the nice woman on the phone had a calming influence and got lots of details of what was happening (e.g., shower backing up and lots of water pouring onto bathroom floor from who-knows-where). She got someone to come out the same day. I like understanding the problem as I'm a new homeowner. The technician was thorough, explained the issue and that the line needs yearly maintenance. He showed me the amazing root system growing in my pipe! I will use American Sewer every year now. They are great to work with, and very good at crisis management. Thanks guys!

They were very responsive. I called and they came the next day. Seth was fantastic! We had a significant tree root ball that was blocking the sewer line. He stayed for 2.5 hours, until almost 11:30 at night, until he was able to clean it all out. I really appreciate that he took the time to do the job thoroughly.

It went terrific -Jonathon came to our house himself to do the work. He was on time, called before he arrived to confirm he was on the way and asked where we prefer he park. The job ended up being tougher than expected, but he stayed an extra 1.5 hours longer than he planned to get the job done. He had a positive attitude and was extremely professional. He thoroughly cleaned and disinfected the drains and floor area after the work was complete. We feel like he went above and beyond to ensure we were taken care of, and we feel we got a great value for the money. We would absolutely use American Sewer again and would recommend them to family/friends/neighbors.

The work performed was quick and efficient on my rental. The man that came out to the property explained the situation and how to prevent it in the future. Very professional and clean with very little intrusion on my tenets. I would highly recommend their services!

They did just fine. One drain was still clogged after the job, but they followed up with a second visit.

Went well. Showed up on time. Clean, neat, courteous serviceman. He took care to cover carpeting that his equipment would be pulled over before starting. However, the machine leaked and still soiled the carpet, and well and the driveway. Not a big deal, it was not that hard to clean up. Next time I will ask for extra caution.

I put in an online request for drain cleaning, and was contacted by phone in about 15 minutes, and a serviceman arrived in about an hour. He worked quickly to solve the problem, and also voluntered advice as to how to repair a leak in a pipe that I have to avoid the cost of a plumber.

Overall the service went well. Nothing to report negative nor overly positive.

went good...has worked fine since the work was done

Scheduling went well and the person I spoke with was quite nice. The day of the cleaning, someone showed up at my house to do the work. He explained that the first hour was included in the cost of the Angie's Deal and that anything after that was billed. I said that sounded fine since Ron the Sewer Rat usually cleans the line and it takes about 1/2 hour. I had been a little lax. I had probably been 3 yrs instead of every other year like I usually do. After 40 minutes, the fella told me that he was done cleaning the line and did I want to bother with the camera inspection, since there was coming up on the end of my hour. Uhh....yes. 20 minutes seemed like plenty of time to run a camera through that line and see how well it went or didn't. I really just felt like he wanted to get out of there. When he ran the line, he said that it was a good thing that he did because when he got to the end, the line was almost completely blocked by a root ball that he's gotten loose that was just flapping in front of the line. He went back in to get it out. He didn't mind charging me for it either. I'm glad that the line was cleaned out, glad that I had the camera run through and disappointed in the way that it was handled. They took longer than my usual and charged me for not doing a thorough job the first time through. That's not really the kind of service that gets a repeat customer. It seemed odd to me that anyone would need more than an hour for routine maintenance and then even more irritating that I got to pay for them to go back in. I'll stick to Ron from now on, I guess. **This response didn't address any of my actual concerns. In fact, it was so irritating that I've revised my initial grade on quality and professionalism from a C to an F. My concerns were 1.) The person that came out seemed confused about how long it would take to clean the length of a standard Minneapolis city sewer line. 2.) With 20 minutes left on the clock, he was hesitant to run the camera through, though I had already paid for it as part of the service. 3.) Charged me for a full additional hour for something he didn't get the first time through, even though he had an extra 20 minutes to work on it, apparently. I did not ask for a critique on 1.) Whether or not I can read a coupon. I can. I was mentioning that it was brought up because it seemed as though right off the bat, the provider didn't think he could get the job done in that amount of time. 2.) My responsibilities as a home owner. After my first 2 years of doing it, I was advised to do every other. 3.) I could "probably write a few pages" on why antagonizing someone who already didn't care for your attitude is a poor idea. Particularly one who is now going to actively discourage anyone from using this particular provider. I didn't mention the fly infestation that took over my basement after American Sewer's visit in my first review, because I felt it wasn't fair. Maybe it could have happened with anyone, right? Even though it hasn't. In a decade. The flies went away after I poured boiling water and bleach down the drain. After the passive aggressive response, I'm convinced it was just due to incompetence. I will tell Ron and Lee hello. I'll also share the remarks about their inability to do an adequate job without a camera inspection and that their advice to clean the line out every other year was bad advice. With friends like this guy, who needs enemies?

He provided great information on general care and other ways to take care of our system. I would highly recommend him.

They did good work. No mess, no fuss.

Unclogged my kitchen sink, which was not easy because of what the previous owner did to the pipes and because my setup doesn't make it very easy to get through the pipes, but he did it. Great job. Have recommended them to everyone I know and to the company I work for. The company I work for owns and operates 24 homes for people with disabilities. Great job!

The appointment was scheduled for 12 pm - 3 pm (a little large), Rob called about 12:45 and was at my house at 1 pm. Rob was cautious when moving equipment in and out of the house. He laid down a large drop cloth around the drain, something other companies had not done in the past. He was done in about an hour and showed me the amount of tree roots he removed. He took the time to explain what he found and recommended changing my cleaning interval to every 2 years (opposed to every 3 years). Overall a very good experience, and I will definitely use and recommend American Sewer.

John came highly recommended by my neighbor, who's drain he had cleared of roots (probably the same darn tree). I was JUST on my way out of town for the 4th of July weekend and needed it done so the upstairs folks could use water (everything down a drain was backing up into the basement). Much to my delight John was able to come in and do it same day, in just a few hours after calling in fact; he really saved my holiday weekend! In addition, I have done this before with borrowed equipment.... $170 was a good price!

Very knowledgeable and thorough. Explained to me what he was doing and why. Didn't try to sell anything extra. The previous drain cleaner had a hard time cleaning and thought there was a serious problem. American Sewer had no problems at all and camera showed drain in very good condition.

Our main sewer line was backing up in our basement late on a Saturday evening. We called about a half dozen plumbers before a different plumber referred us to American Sewer. American Sewer answered our emergency call right away. They told us they could be there in 1.5 hours. And sure enough, there they were on schedule to address our emergency. When we talked with them over the phone they told us it was $225 for the visit and $80 per hour if the project ended up being a bigger project than they anticipated and had diagnosed. In under an hour they had cleared our main sewer line (which is what they had told us over the phone was the problem). They were very professional, clean, fast, knowledgeable and patient that they'd been called late on a Saturday evening before a major holiday. I'd hire them again in a heart beat. The only reason I rated them a B on price is because we were paying emergency weekend fees. But they were comparable to what others were charging and their competitors. Their competitors had told us they could be there the next day or I couldn't even reach them and they called me back a few days later which made us ever happier with the service we got from American Sewer. I also loved that he was willing to let us pick his brain on other plumbing questions as long as he was there.