Barnes Plumbing Co

I was referred to Barnes plumbing by a trusted friend, so I was expecting top notch service and treatment. That did not happen. We had a gas pipe leak that needed to be addressed, and when I called I explained the situation, that the gas was turned off, and that Centerpoint Energy had been there. When I learned of the after hours price, I declined in favor of someone coming the next morning. I got a call in the morning from Barnes and I explained again the situation, that the gas was off after Centerpoint had come, and Barnes scheduled someone to come that morning. The technician said he’d need Centerpoint to come so he could complete his work, and asked me for the number they’d left, but insisted on calling them himself, because he was the licensed plumber. So he called them and then started to do the work. I received no information on when Centerpoint would be coming, nor did the Barnes technician tell me that he’s finished doing the actual pipe work and was JUST WAITING FOR CENTERPOINT WHILE CHARGING US $250 AN HOUR FOR DOING NOTHING!! I was only told this when the technician came to me 3 hours in and said he’d heard from Centerpoint that they had to divert our technician to another job and didn’t know when another could come, and did I want to keep paying him $250 an hour for sitting here. At which point I said that was never discussed and/or told to me, and absolutely not. I told him at no point was I told by anyone that the rate was $250 an hour for time spent, as opposed to work done, nor was I told of the possibility of such a thing. If I had been, and the Centerpoint technician hadn’t arrived yet, I would have told him to leave then before an additional $500 was incurred. He then proceeded to ask me who would be paying the $800+ then! (I am guessing only up to one true hour of actual work, $55 in materials, and $500 for “waiting”.) Angry, I told him I would pay so he would leave and stop charging for nothing, but that I would take it up with corporate. He laughed and said “there’s no corporate”. So I said, “well, billing then”. He laughed again and told me good luck. So I called the main Barnes number and explained what had happened with the technician, and while the woman was kind, and tried to be sympathetic, she offered me no options to fix this ridiculous error and lack of communication, except to so, “I will talk to him about that.” She even said that if she were me, she would not have expected to pay for someone sitting there either. I told her that while we had planned to use them (the reason I got the referral in the first place) for another project, I would not be using them for that project, or any other project for that matter. She said she was disappointed to hear that but said she understood. That’s it. Then the Centerpoint technician came after the Barnes technician had already left, and of course discovered that the Barnes technician’s work was wrong and there were leaks in both of the repairs made. So I had to call Barnes back and tell them to send someone back out anyway, and that the Centerpoint technician had graciously offered to get permission to stay, because he felt it was the right thing to do (thank you Centerpoint). Thankfully Barnes sent a different technician, and along with Centerpoint was able to get the repair done correctly. And also, thankfully, they didn’t try to charge me again. But I had such a disappointing experience that I cannot recommend them in good conscience to anyone - at the very least not for a gas leak repair.

Mike showed up and provided a bid to have the galvanized water pipes removed. He explained they would have the city turn off the water so they could put better ball valves before and after the water meter, in addition to replacing the water pipes. The estimate was reasonable. I hired them and they came out the next week. Brent and his coworker did an excellent job removing and replacing the old pipes. At the end of the job he went over the work that was completed with me. They hauled away the old pipes, swept up, and mopped the floor too. There have been no leaks to date. They did a great job.

Mike did the work quickly, thoroughly and at a very reasonable cost. He left the bathroom as clean as he found it. One of his employees, no longer with the company, had replaced my Symmons centerset bathroom sink faucet a year ago. The grey gasket between the faucet body and sink had not been positioned perfectly but stuck out a bit too much on one side. I’m an admitted perfectionist—it irritated me every time I cleaned the sink. I mentioned the flaw to Mike but did not ask that he address it. Turns out, he’s a perfectionist too—without a word, he made it right. As for the office staff, your scheduling and billing will be done by one of the most pleasant women on the planet. Her name is Cathy. Or Kathy. Or Kathee. Or who knows in these days of weird spellings?

The other company did the repairs and then Barnes came promptly at the appointed hour. My tenant explained that their services were no longer needed. Some days later I received a bill for $90.00 for the unnecessary service call. I live less than two miles from their business and am shocked at the high price for my forgetfulness that caused them a trip for nothing. This means to me that this company adds at least $90.00 to every bill for a trip charge. I know time is money and that it takes time to drive from one client's house to the next. I'm sure I am now on their "bad customer" list because of this kerfuffle and they will now give me lowest priority from now on. I will pay the $90.00 bill and look elsewhere whenever I next need a plumber since I know that just as Angie's List keeps records of best and bad service workers, this company keeps lists of slow pay/no pay customers and I expect that they also keep track of customers who fail to remember to cancel appointments.

Went well. Got the job done quickly and was very helpful.

Very well. Cooperative, thoughtful, prompt, fit us in quickly for a small but important problem.

Our old boiler went out on a very cold night. The next morning we called Barnes (who we have used before), and Mike came out within 1-1/2 hours. We were embarrassed to learn that the pilot light had gone out. It had never happened before (our excuse!). So Mike lite it, and also showed us how to deal with it if it ever happens in the future. He was very professional and kind enough to make us feel not too foolish.

The previous owner of my duplex "Creatively" installed the fixtures in my rental units bathroom. It required that the pipes be cut and the attachments re-sized. It was one of those jobs that went over what I thought it would cost, but the gentleman they sent out explained to me EXACTLY what he had to do and why he had to do it. I was delighted with the result, and the price was MUCH less than I thought it was going to be. My only complaint is that it took too long to get an appointment, but it's obviously because they are in demand due to the level of service they provide. I strongly recommend them.

This plumber was perfect. He called on arrival, arrived as scheduled,managed on our stairs without complaint, brought all necessary. supplier, resolved all issues. He was very efficient and billed reasonably.

Mike was on time and he installed the garbage disposal quickly in less than an hour. Barnes Plumbing is one of a handful of plumbers on Angie's List that still charges the old fashioned way - by time and materials - which is much better for the customer. Now days most plumbing companies advertise what's called "flat rate" or "straight forward" pricing which benefits nobody except the business owners. If a customer has just one item, such as a disposal install, the pricing is usually moderately less to hire someone like Barnes Plumbing but still less. However, if you have more than one item - say a disposal and a faucet repair - it will cost 2-3 times as much to contact a plumber who does flat rate or straight forward pricing. These straightforward rates never take into account they are already out there. I know all this learning the hard way - calling someone and having an exorbitant charge. That's why Barnes is one of maybe 2 companies that I will ever call if I need plumbing service. Not only do they price fairly, they don't try to sell you anything you don't need. They are an honest business who does business the old fashioned way - by being honest and giving plain old good customer service.

Great. Have used them 3 times in last 5 years. Always quick, efficient, knowledgeable and no BS.

I love Barnes Plumbing. I've used them for several jobs and they're always fast and very well priced.

Went very well. Punctual and professional job.

Extremely well. Very willing to submit bid ahead of time. Quick to get bid out and did not harass for decision (very important to me). Always let me know what was involved and where we were in the process. Obviously knowledgeable and qualified.

Austin arrived twenty minutes early ? after checking to be sure early arrival was okay. Carefully putting on shoe covers, he identified the issue. Quickly getting to work, he had the repairs done in no time. He was polite, provided advice, as well as cleaned up after himself. An overall pleasure to work with.

This went very quickly and efficiently, at less than half the price of a similar estimate.

Came out same day. Had pump in truck. Replaced pump and checked operation. I am a happy repeat customer.

It went great. I've used Barnes for several years now on several houses because the work is always well done, people are there on time, explain any issues that come up, and if something extra is needed they take care of it. Not the lowest cost plumber but always good work and pleasant professionals.

They installed an electric boiler for 2 zones of in-floor heating for our basement. They did it fast, at a good price and did a great job.

This was difficult as we had to have several appointments around other things happening like the walls and flooring. they did a great job emailing and answering my questions and getting the different things we wanted. We had an issue with the color of the shower and they listened to me and got a new one as quickly as they could. Rueben was polite and worked very hard! All construction is stressful and difficult to coordinate but Barnes did a great job and we are very happy!

The worker was a very nice man and he did a fine job fixing the pipe. We had him back a month later because whatever pipping he explained at that time on the second trip he said it should have been replaced. I wish he had told me that the second time around.

They are great. We always use the same plumber now because they do a wonderful job. They respond very quickly. If I were to call today and say that I needed somebody, they would have somebody out here next week. They are just always like that. They have just always done exactly what they were hired to do, and quickly. They are really excellent.

Excellent. They have always performed top notch plumbing services and very reasonable price.

I am selling my house and they are making it up to code. It was a complicated issue and they provided a solution. I had previously used their services for a small plumbing issue. They were quick to take of it. Their pricing was very reasonable. They are really easy to work with and have good communication.

Our renter's water bill tripled in a month. The utility company wasn't much help when contacted, so we called Barnes to see if they could find a leak. The office staff was great! She set-up a service call that worked best for our schedule. The plumber arrived on-time. He looked around to identify where a mystery leak might be coming from. We collectively agreed the problem had to stem from the outside faucet. The guy appeared efficient in replacing the shut-off valve and cleaned-up okay. He mentioned, if the replacement didn't do the trick, he could do something with the shower head in the basement (don't remember what that was). I do recall, the plumber seemed to be in a real hurry to get out of the house. Don't know if he was late for another call our what, but that didn't sit too well with me. Not sure what that was about, but I wouldn't make that a deal-breaker in deciding to use Barnes again. I would call them again and recommend Barnes to others.