Altstadt Hoffman Plumbing
reviews and complaints

I hired Altstadt Hoffman Plumbing to perform a pool inspection. Due to the previous concerns addressed, I wanted to be there in person to oversee the work. I had booked a time slot with Altstadt a week in advance specifically for the pool inspection and scheduled the time with the seller for the pool inspection. I scheduled half a day off of work hoping a four hour window was sufficient for Altstadt Hoffman Plumbing to perform the inspection. The morning of the appointment, I was told by Altstadt Hoffman Plumbing they would try to make it out that morning. Later that morning, I received a call they were busy on another job, but they would be out in an hour. A few hours later, I had to leave to return to work. I got a call then in the afternoon that they were available to perform the inspection. I had to make arrangements with my Significant Other to reschedule the appointment. Unfortunately my Significant Other dealt with the same level of rudeness and inconsiderate scheduling to perform the inspection. She was given a 30 minute notice in the afternoon, two days later, of when they would be at the site to do the work. She graciously canceled a prior appointment to accommodate Altstadt Hoffman Plumbing's availability. In my mind, the business model should treat the customer with more respect. When she met Altstadt Hoffman Plumbing, they were 15 minutes late and worked 5 minutes past the next hour. She clocked Altstadt Hoffman Plumbing doing 50 minutes of work and yet they billed me for over an hours worth of work! Additionally, they charged me a truck service fee of $25 and Nitrogen fee of $40. When questioned about these extra fees and inquiring why Altstadt Hoffman Plumbing couldn't provide a realistic quote with a breakdown of the known fees upfront, I was just told that the fees were part of their policy. Working in a lab for 7 years, I know how much a cylinder of high pressure nitrogen costs and I was definitely up charged on the Nitrogen cost. I am very disappointed with Altstadt Hoffman Plumbing's professionalism and service. I will definitely look elsewhere for all my plumbing needs.

The purchase was supposed to have taken place less than a year ago, approximately 7 months ago. I was informed that there was a warranty included, but unfortunately, I did not receive one. I contacted Altstadt Hoffman Plumbing to let them know that the product was not functioning properly, as it was leaving a film around my toilet. Additionally, I was unable to figure out how to change the settings despite their assistance. This was surprising to me, as the owner had explained that the water softener was supposed to be top-notch, comparable to a Cadillac, and it cost me $1500.00.

During the purchase, I had mentioned to the owner that I couldn't afford to pay for it all at once, which was the reason for my decision to buy it. However, I was never provided with any payment arrangements, and I did not receive the bill right away. Approximately 2 months ago, I received a call from their receptionist. I explained my situation, including the financial difficulties I was facing due to Covid. In response, she mentioned that they were considering involving a lawyer. I asked if I could make a partial payment of $50.00, but she declined. I also informed her that I was waiting for a stimulus check or would be willing to return the product since it never worked properly. She promised to call me back but unfortunately, she never did.

At this point, I am in urgent need of a replacement for the faulty water softener.

At the end of June , I noticed water coming up from the ground and running down my driveway. I called the water company to shut off my water at the meter while I arranged for repairs. I called Altstadt Hoffman Plumbing to fix the leak from my exterior water line. When the plumber showed up, I showed them where the water was leaking at. The plumber started unloading equipment for what I expected was repairs. He later called me out to show me where the water was leaking and told me he would have to call in someone else for an estimate. I looked at him and asked, "so you cannot fix the problem?". Another person from Altstadt Hoffman Plumbing came out and after I showed them all of the same things, such as where my water line came into my house and how it was routed in the basement, they gave me an estimate of $2,000 to $2,500. The work was done a week later, but there were leaks that required three trips to fix. I was charged $238.75 for the first person to "find" the leak that I had already shown him. I do not have a final bill.

On August 17th a technician from Altstadt Hoffman Plumbing came to our home to install a new toilet. For this they charged us $189.89. Not even two months later on August 7th we had to have a different company (XYZ Plumbing) come back to fix the toilet install because it was rocking back and forth. This new plumbing company told us the original tech from Altstadt Hoffman had just used as much wax as he could and not properly leveled the toilet, therefore the original install never would have lasted. We contacted Altstadt Hoffman Plumbing explaining their technician had done the job incorrectly and we would like a refund. This began what has now been a three week back and forth with someone named John Smith and an endless list of excuses, dodged emails, and unreturned phone calls on why he could not refund the money. First he claimed he could not read the invoices he asked us to mail to him in the mail. I emailed him the invoices and had to follow up multiple times before him saying now he needs ME to contact the other plumber for a written reason on why the toilet needed to be reinstalled. All I want is the invoice I had to pay to fix Altstadt Hoffman Plumbing's technician's poor work. Instead, I am getting the run around and having to spend a lot of my time to get this resolved, I'm assuming with him hoping I will just give up instead of actually doing his job and helping me.

Damage done with the first service which resulted in a busted drain pipe was repaired the following day. I called Altstadt Hoffman Plumbing on 4/30 due to a clog in the drain. They promptly sent a plumber who was very professional and pleasant. He assessed the sink and noticed that it was not draining properly. He informed me that he would retrieve his machine from the truck to fix the issue. The plumber successfully snaked the drain for about 30-35 feet. While observing the process, everything seemed to be going smoothly until he had to use both hands to retract the snake towards the end. At that point, the drain started to drain properly, and he checked to ensure that it was not backfilling into the other side of the sink. I asked if everything was good, and he assured me that there shouldn't be any problems. Unfortunately, I later discovered that the drain was now draining into my wall. The next morning, on 5/1, as my daughter was running water upstairs, water started flowing straight down into the wall and crawl space, splashing against the glass window access panel. It was clear that there was a significant leak somewhere. I immediately contacted Altstadt Hoffman Plumbing again to explain the situation, and they added me to their list for someone to come out and assess the damage. Another plumber from the company arrived, and I informed him about what had happened. He acknowledged that the issue was caused by their previous service and assured me that this visit would be free of charge. After examining everything, they contacted the owner/manager who stated that snaking a drain carries inherent risks, and I would be responsible for fixing all the resulting damage, as well as the broken plumbing. Not only would I have to pay for the repairs, but I would also be charged by the hour. The plumbers had to leave to obtain the necessary materials from the supply house since the office had mistakenly categorized the request as a water line issue, and they didn't have the required supplies for drains. I inquired if this time spent on acquiring materials would be included in my repair time, and the plumber confirmed that it would. He also mentioned that if I didn't want them to proceed with the repairs, it was fine. Unfortunately, the broken or leaking portion of the pipe couldn't be removed without further work involving the drywall, as it was located within the wall. Therefore, it was impossible to determine the condition of the pipe or the cause of the busted drain without visual inspection. Just because the pipe wasn't made of PVC doesn't mean that I should be held responsible for the damage caused by a professional who came to unclog the drain. It is recommended to call a professional to avoid plumbing damage, which is precisely what I did. I could have rented a snake, accidentally damaged my own pipe, paid for the repairs, and it would have been much cheaper than the current situation. So now I am facing a bill for both 4/30 and 5/1 because I sought the assistance of a professional to unclog a pipe. This was my first time using Altstadt Hoffman Plumbing as a new customer. At no point on 4/30 was I informed about the potential risks involved in snaking a drain. The only ticket I was asked to sign was the one after the plumber had completed the snaking. I have not yet received the bill, but on 4/30, I was informed that the initial hour would cost $120, with subsequent hours charged at $80 each. Additionally, on 5/1, I was given an estimate of $250-$350 to fix the damages. Therefore, my total charges could amount to $400-$500.