Clarke Kent Plumbing

They identified an issue with the drain pipe leaking and provided a quote to replace this section. During the replacement of the section, their repairs failed the city inspection 3 times due to not enough drop in the drain line. Their solution was to bring the drain up through the slab inside of the house (this allowed them to get the necessary drop to pass inspection) hidden under cabinets without ever raising the issue with me. In addition to this, there was standing water in the drain pipe as it exited the house, I noticed this but not knowing any better didn't think it was an issue, considering what I thought was a competent plumber was looking at the same drain pipe. I expected if this was an issue that they would have raised this as a concern of something that I should at least investigate further if nothing else. But Clark Kent not only didn't raise this as an issue, they actively discouraged me from getting my drain scoped early in the process because "it wouldn't help solve the problem." Fast forward 2 months and I'm renovating my kitchen and master bath and I come to find out that my entire drain system doesn't have enough fall in it. The entire drain system had to be replaced including a section that Clark Kent had "repaired". The plumber that identified the issue during renovations was at a loss at how any plumber could have missed this issue. In addition to that I still have some drain pipes that are coming up in the middle of the room 12" away from the wall under cabinets that I would like to remove, but can't because I have a drain pipe under them that need to be hidden. In everyway Clark Kent has been a horrible, disappointing experience and I wouldn't recommend them to patch a leak in a garden hose.

It went pretty well. Steve gave me an estimate over a month before of $1400 for a conventional heater and $2600 for a heat pump water heater. Austin Energy was offering an $800 rebate on heat pump water heaters, so with the energy savings, I went with that. On the day, they brought a model that was 10 gallons more than I had asked for. He explained that it would have been 3 weeks to get in the exact model. Given that the existing heater was a water rocket waiting to launch through the roof, I was OK with it, especially as the larger size may help the condo's resale value and the operating cost isn't significantly higher. I would have liked warning about the substitution, though. The installation took hours longer than he thought it would take: he'd estimated 3 or so and it took 8. Perhaps he hadn't considered that he was basically installing both a water heater and an air conditioner at the same time: I gather there's not yet a lot of demand for heat pump water heaters. The final work looked professional to my untrained eyes, and fixed all the code-compliance issues from the condo inspection. The final price charged was the estimated price despite the time.

Since we had already moved across the country I had to work with Clarke Kent Plumbing over the phone. Contacting them initially wasn't a problem, but I did have to check-in with the assigned plumber a few times. I wasn't able to inspect the work myself, but the follow-up inspection passed so I've given them good marks for workmanship. My only nit picks were communication (which they probably aren't used to since most homeowners having work done to their house would be home) and price (I'm sure I'm simplifying things here, but the two jobs didn't seem that difficult so the final bill surprised me a bit).

Arrived early, assessed the problem, gave an estimate, got right to work. The installation took less time than he originally thought which shaved several hundred dollars off of the final tally.

I was very satisfied with what they did and that they worked until the job was finished, cleaned any mess they made and did the least amount of damage to my yard and house in locating the leak.

Prior to move in of our recently purchased home just outside Bastrop. I had some repairs and updates done to the house. Shower head had broken off in the wall, I had some dry rotting of tank seal on toilet, and needed the water valve connection to the fridge water replaced and I requested an estimate to install propane gas lines.. Plumber arrived on time. He looked over everything and told me what he needed to do which included cutting into the drywall in the shower. Not a prob but he failed to give me an estimate. Unfortunately, I was in a bit of a time crunch and had 2 different crews doing work around the house and was a bit distracted with a septic tank emergency. I managed to get a rough estimate from Clark Kent's phone scheduler based on their hourly rate and having dealt with plumbers before; expected it to be a bit high. However, I didn't not expect the plumber to take advantage of my distractions and take 6 hours to complete work that should have taken no more than 4 hours, tops. He spent at least an hour of that time sitting in his truck on the phone. The shower head was completed to my satisfaction, the toilet tank leak was fixed to my satisfaction. The following estimate I requested & the sudden "leak" he found 30 minutes after working on the water valve to my fridge were ridiculous. I essentially paid for his time to give me an estimate, that took over an hour for him to go over, discuss with his boss, and write up. When he finally gave me the invoice for work done; it was initially around $650, about what I had expected. But then it had been scratched out and the additional time and parts for the "leak" knocked it up to over $900! The valve he replaced doesn't even match the refrigerator water connection and the fridge was there! My husband had to fix it after he returned from a business trip, thinking it was our refrigerator that was a mismatch but then found out the plumbe had actually installed a completely different valve from what was originally there (which fit). When I asked the plumber about why it was so expensive & why the price change; he stated that there was a "trip charge" because we live outside Bastrop and pointed out the additional cost due to the additional time it took to repair the leaking valve in the kitchen. In the end, I simply feel like he took advantage that I was juggling so much and didn't have time to micromanage him. I have worked with numerous servicemen, vendors, builders, etc over the month and I've had absolutely no problems and have experienced nothing but honesty, professionalism, and integrity from all except Clark Kent. I have more plumbing work to be done soon and I will definitely NOT be using Clark Kent Plumbing again.

We are pleased to work with Clarke Kent Plumbing as they are always prompt, friendly, and knowledgeable. Our service tech, Ken, arrived at our home promptly and evaluated our situation. We suspected we had a water leak in our front yard and confirmed it when we received our City of Austin utility bill. Ken was familiar to us as he has worked with us on a couple other minor issues and is assigned to our area. Ken is awesome to work with - no matter how stressful the issue may be at the time. Ken gave us estimates for repair and for replacement of our water line. At the time, we were not sure if the leak was from the main water line or the irrigation system. The location of the leak was in close proximity to three large live oak trees, which warranted visit from a City of Austin arborist. The arborist determined that one of the trees is considered a heritage oak tree and digging/trenching was not permitted around the tree. I could tell things were able to get really expensive, but Clarke Kent upheld their commitment to our signed estimate/contract despite the unforeseen circumstances. Clarke Kent plumbing sent a team to survey where the water line was located and marked the location. Next, Clarke Kent sent Austin Tree Service to 'air spade' a trench for the new water line that had to be laid as the old one would have to be capped off. An approximately 15 foot trench had to be air spaded and it was an arduous task. Ken had to remove some limestone by hand (NW Austin area) and lay the new water line in the best possible way. He uncovered an irrigation control box that we did not existed due to soil and lawn growth (the original owners did not notify us of its location). Clarke Kent Plumbing had new soil delivered and installed to cover the trench and other areas affected by the air spading. This task was a month long - no delays by any party. It was completed professionally, accurately and without any issues. We are very pleased with the work and will definitely do business with Clarke Kent again.

They handled things well and didn't make a huge mess...they were very good.

The job started great and ended great. They were on it just a few days after I contacted them and finished in about five days. Very professional, clean and punctual. I definitely recommend Clarke Kent Plumbing and will use them again to address any of my plumbing issues in the future!

They came promptly, and it wasn't too expensive. The issue got fixed.

The shower had very high-end piping. Not too many plumbers are familiar with that brand. Clarke Kent had the experienced plumbers to work on that specific brand. They were very knowledgeable, professional, and very responsive. I would highly recommend them. I paid for the material, but their labor was reasonable.

When they were fixing this, they punched a hole in the wall. Originally, the plumber refused to repair the hole. I called the next day, and the company told me that they would send out a drywall repairman to fix the hole. However, hee did not come out until the following Monday to fix the hole in my wall.

I have used them in my house before which was why I sent them out there. The service cal was $45, labor was $25 for quarter an hour and the whole bill was $293. They came in a hurry. They were prompt and took care of the problem. I have used them a couple of times and each time I have been happy with them. I think that their price $100 an hour for labor was pretty high.

My only complaint is the cost. Clarke Kent charges $45 extra if they help you on the weekends. That's $20 more than another Angie's List competitor. Plus, the industry practice of charging you for using their equipment (and listed as "materials") really bothers me.

I required a pressure control valve to lower the water pressure to my house. No problem, call Clark Kent Plumbing, they will be right out. First issue is they could not make the scheduled appt at 830 am due to too many other calls. After the show up, they quote me $650 to do the work which seems high, but I needed it done so I say go ahead. An hour later, they call back and say that I have a galvanized pipe and they can't do it without replacing the pipe all the way up to the house. New estimate is given of $2600 but they say they have to have the company send the formal estimate. Still hasn't arrived so I call. They say we'll call back. I wait and wait and wait but no call. Now it is two days later. Looking for a new plumber on Angie's list because these guys are not every going to be called agian.

It was right before thanksgiving and even though it was a holiday, the guy made time to show up. So I was very happy about that. I don't really remember exactly how much I paid but it wasn't expensive. He made time to show up even though it was right before thanksgiving. That was kind of dubious. He didn't charge holiday rates either. I will use his services again in the future.

Went really well. See above. One thing to add here is that we have been using Clarke Kent for years and we've learned ALWAYS to request Marcel. We wait until he's available unless it's a real emergency and we have to get somebody out instantly. He is extremely well equipped, punctual, personable and skilled; he cleans everything up thoroughly; and we have always been really pleased. He's repaired a slab leak for us (in 2010), another major leak at the hose bibb on our home's exterior, and other minor issues (toilet repairs, sink fixture installation, etc.). With this company, it really depends on who comes out, so you have to learn whom to ask for. One time, they sent out someone named Billy who had NO equipment on him at all except a saw; he didn't even have a flashlight and was trying to use the screen of his cell phone to illuminate pipes under the sink. If that had been my only experience with the company I'd rate them pretty low! Their prices seem comparable to others and certainly less than companies like Radiant, whom we have also used; Radiant does a good job but they are really a lot pricier than anyone else.

I spent close to $1000. The job went very well, but their price was a little high. The work was high quality. They did spend quite a bit of time. I would use them again.

During our spring HVAC inspection, the technician mentioned that the water heater was leaking; upon inspection I found a lot of corrosion of the fitting on top, and figured we needed a new water heater. We had used Clarke Kent in the past, so we contacted them via their web site (it was after hours) and the returned our call promptly the next morning. They set up a service appointment quickly, and the plumber arrived precisely on time. He inspected the water heater, and told us that he felt it could be repaired. He did not quote the work (nor did I ask for one as we've used them before and was comfortable moving forward on time and materials for a simple repair). The plumber was able to use materials on his truck to complete the repair, and he used a shop vac to pick up all traces of water he could, and asked us to look in on it after a few days to confirm that there was no leak (there was not - the repair has held and taken care of the problem). I very much appreciated that we did not have to purchase a new water heater (ours is 8 years old, so they could have very easily recommended that). The work area was left fairly clean (it's an attic crawlspace type area, so it was not pristine to begin with!). Total cost was just under $200.00 including about $100 for an hour of labor, a $45 trip fee, and the rest was parts and shop charges. While Clarke Kent is not going to go down as the low-cost provider, we have used them three times now, and they have always performed high quality work, on time, and we have felt that they have not "taken advantage" to recommend unnecessary work or to upsell us on items we didn't need.

They were responsive to the service calls. I think they are fine for services not involving ordering parts. I would have given them higher rating but I felt they ripped me off big time on the part. What a shame considering I was a repeat customer. Would likely try someone else next time.

The initial estimate was provided by a technician named Steve. I provided him with a written scope of work. Before he left, Steve provided us with a lump sum cost estimate and an estimate of the time required to perform the tasks. Later I dropped one of the tasks in the estimate for budget reasons. I wish I had gotten the estimate broken down by task as the reduction in fees was less than I had expected. After we closed on the house, I scheduled the work to be performed. I got a call on the day before the appointment to confirm and another call the day of to tell me a technician was on the way. Steve turned up on time. The initial work was performed over a two-day period due to other contractors being in their way. Installation of the kitchen faucet had to be delayed by two weeks until the countertop and sink were installed by others. All work was carried out in a professional manner. They even cleaned up after themselves - a rarity for a plumbing contractor. Once we moved in, we discovered that the gas pipe was installed in such a way that prevented the range from being pushed back against the wall. I filled out a work request on their website on Sunday afternoon and received a call on Monday morning saying that Steve was on his way. It took him nearly three hours to make the necessary changes in piping, but I was not charged for his time or the materials required. Overall I was pleased with their services and will use them again.

One night we had our toilet back up and ooze the outgoing water into the tub, onto the floor, under the wall, and into the adjacent rooms. Clarke Kent used it's TV camera snake to locate two pieces of PVC shavings that were loose in the line. We had replace the high-flow toilet with an ultra low flow toilet, and it wasn't able to get the job done like the high flow had. The plumber was able to use the snake camera to push the debris down the line until the got into the larger pipe at the street. Now it works, and no more black ooze.

Service worker arrived in a few hours the same day I called. He inspected the water cutoff and gave a fair estimate. This was the job we requested him to do. However, he finished earlier than predicted and then repaired the H/B toilet stop and fluid meter inside house without additional charge. He was professional, courteous and obviously anxious to help. The company made a followup call the next day to check and see if the job was done to our satisfaction.

Called on Monday morning expecting that the earliest they would be able to provide service was Wednesay. Was told they could have tech available in the afternoon. I told them I was unavailable until Wednesday and they offered me a 30 minute window on Wednesay morning for the tech to arrive - can't beat that. Tech was very professional and had problem diagnosed and thermocouple replaced within 28 minutes.

They came out to our house the same day I called them. They got there around 5 pm and didn't leave until it was repaired around 7 pm. The technician had to go out and buy a part and then come back to finish the job. We certainly appreciated his perserverence.