Benjamin Franklin Plumbing of Silver Spring

Israel did an outstanding job! He was professional and explained everything clearly. He also showed up with a positive attitude. I would definitely recommend him.

I had Benjamin Franklin Plumbing come out to replace our electric water heater with a tankless water heater. They gave me a great estimate compared with other plumbers and did a fantastic job. I plan to use them for future plumbing work.

Chris gave expert service in installing a new reverse osmosis system. He went above and beyond in obtaining the correct connector for the RO system to the ice machine in the freezer. He and his apprentice Cody were also very neat in cleaning up after the installation.

Called them over for a water heater that had stopped working. They wanted over $800.00 to fix it which is outrageous. The part that was needed to fix the unit cost me less than $150.00, I ended up looking on youtube for installation help, super easy to do. So we ended up replacing the burner assembly on the ao Smith ourselves and saved over $700.00. I wish they would be more honost and understand that if they are fair with the prices they might end up getting better reviews and more business. Their quote probably included stuff I did not need like an expansion tank and changing put some lines. All I wanted was a cheap way to get my water heater working as it used to.

We hired them based on a recommendation from our realtor agent and will never again. The issue we had was banging pipes and they just recommended interventions to make money vs. fixing our issue (flush water boiler and change the anod rod). I had no experience in plumbers so trusted them and gave them $500!!!! For that. Total rip off even if the rod change was needed. On top they broke one of our fossetts and had to send another guy the next day to fix the damage the first crew had made

Total agree with the review from Jack. H on 11/2/16. Overprice plumbing job. I got mine water heater replaced from the one located at Mt. Airy. I paid over $1800.00 and when I got home saw the invoice (my husband stayed home with the repair) without itemize, I called them up to request that. Didn't get call back after few weeks. I called again and then I got a call from the business owner. (Mr. Collins). I expressed my concern about the price and told him that I got the rough estimate (about $1000)over the phone when I called their customer service to book the service appointment. This is way overprice! He then offered to look into it. Over the phone, I requested to have the itemize on labor, tank price and warranty per year (cover 5years) I thought that if I got this information, I may consider only want to get one year warranty instead of 5 years. He emailed me back with all the nonsense about how much his company truck cost, how much the material in the truck cost and etc. Didn't even answer my question to provide me with the itemize pricing. I emailed him back with very clear and simpler request that I could possible put down - Please provide me with the itemize price of tank, installation labor and warranty per year. When I opened his 2nd response email, all I can think of is this guy is something! In his email, he provided me the breakdown with how much the labor cost, tank cost, & the most crazy part is the overhead cost that he put down as over $800.00. (Which I had to pay for) he stated in his breakdown that his company profit is only $101.00....The 2nd most crazy thing I never heard of when I ask him the branch name of the tank. (I was at work when I email him and forgot to check myself the branch of the tank myself) and his response was - "The brand of water heater we use is proprietary to our Franchise, so I don't think you will be able to look it up on the internet" REALLY? He also stated in his email that he won't consider to reduce the cost of my invoice unless I pay a visit to his company facility in Mt. Airy during business hours, introduce me to his administrative staffs, and let me examine his company P & L statement. Then this is what he stated in the email. "After doing this, if you can explain how we have overcharged you, I will negotiate a price reduction with you. As I have already stated, I have utterly nothing to hide, and you won't find any other plumbing/HVAC company willing to open their books for you!" So Should I pay a visit to his facility in order to get price reduce? Lesson learn and I hope my review will prevent the next person to become the next victim of this overprice plumbing company.

Ben Franklin came to my home twice to assess a 3" pvc roof vent pipe leaking at the right angle joint in the kitchen ceiling. When it rains, it leaks. We cut a hole so they could see everything. They got it wrong TWICE even given ample opportunity and evidence. Their first visit notes say the PVC pipe was leaking, and to wait for rain. 5 days later (after rain) they returned and said they thought it was a roofing problem -rain coming down around the outside of the pipe and down through the walls and "collecting on the lowest spot of the pipe" (to quote one technician). They cut an extra hole in the kitchen ceiling and another upstairs in the master bath where the pipe butts up directly to the drywall. They charged me $158 (minus $25 discount) and said to wait until it rained again. But there was NEVER evidence of any moisture at all on the walls upstairs, and NO moisture on the plywood butting up against the pipe coming through the kitchen ceiling. The pipe was only wet only at the joint- not above it. (after the fact I learned that the purple primer was visible and the joint was not pushed together enough- hence the leak- WOULDN'T A PLUMBER SUSPECT THAT?) Simple solution was my husband put a $9.00 cap on the vent pipe where rain was coming in. (Like putting and umbrella over your head when it rains.) They recommended a $507 pipe replacement once they were convinced it was not a roofing flashing problem. I gave them a chance to apologize... But I just talked with the manager who agreed with their hasty and erroneous actions, stating that one of them worked there for 20 years and asked, "why did you let them cut holes in your wall?" Lesson learned: years of experience do NOT guarantee that a plumber will always be correct and customer service goes along say to repair broken wallets and lack of trust. But not with Ben Franklin! I'm out $$ and have to pay for repairs.

Horrible. I am forced to give a star. I have never written a review in my life but I felt obligated to share the fraud and overpayment this company supports. Our 50 gallon hot water heater broke but was still under warranty. My husband removed the broken water heater, returned it to Home Depot and picked up the new one. He transported the new 50 gallon water heater home. The plumbers hooked it up (no transport or removal needed) and charged us $3,100!!! My elderly mom was home to manage the visit because I had to work. She signed the charge amount and that's how we were scammed. I have since called around for other quotes to see if my concern is off base. I have not received a quote more than $2,000 and that includes the cost of a new tank AND removal of the old one. I've since learned they run on commission which makes sense as to why they would overcharge so incredibly much!! I am still trying to get in touch with management about the cost but they take several days to respond. I am considering legal action but will wait to see what comes of my discussion with the manager. I know legal council will cost money but at this point it's about the principle of things. They will continue with this predatory practice if not otherwise stopped. Please, for your own safety and self preservation, avoid this company at all cost. Also, when I called to get an Estimate to see if it came out to the same amount, I wasn't able to unless I spent $98 for a service assessment visit. They keep their cost close to them because they gauge people that don't understand the system. My mom said she read $1700 when they presented the onsite estimate. It was actually $3100 when the 50 minutes of work was done.

Absolutely Phenomenal! This was our first time using Benjamin Franklin Plumbing company (BFP) and we were so impressed with the service completed by Israel, we decided on the spot to invest in the total polyurethane pipe replacement in our home of 30+ years. Our Replacement project started 2 weeks later at our request, on schedule with Israel and Jerry and Chase Chase-who is one of their new young rising stars to the team); he is impressive, talented and hard working, and takes the craft/skills very seriously. From start to finish each team member took their time and approached /performed our home project as a work of art as they quickly determined the most efficient way to remove and install new piping while limiting/minimizing the opening of walls unnecessarily taking everything into consideration. Israel, Jerry and Chase always maintained professionalism, dedication and worked together as a team to accomplish the job at hand. The team always provided 100% customer service, answered our questions in detail (whenever we asked), kept us updated on project progress, and the step-by-steps they took to ensure we were able to have water and access to a bathroom throughout the project. Israel, Jerry and Chase work was unlike we have seen in many years they are a true asset to the BFP company. Their dedication, expertise /knowledge in every-way was on full display as they worked together daily for the success and completion our home pipe replacement project. Israel, Jerry and Chase with Benjamin Franklin Plumbing are the absolute best of the best! We cannot thank Israel, Jerry and Chase enough! Highly recommend them…

I had 4 things I wanted to get done. Toilet replaced. Kitchen faucet replaced. Video inspection and cleaning of the the drain pipes. Look for a leak going into my neighbors. I only paid for the toilet to be replaced. I'll start off with the good. He showed up between the times he said he would. He wore booties over his shoes when he came in. He replaced the toilet and pointed out that a small leak might have come from there. He seemed very knowledgable and got the work done quickly and professionally. Now they bad. The toilet seat is crooked and he pointed that out to me. I'll give him a pass and chalk it up to manufacturer defect. I was quoted an $80 service fee just to show up and that would be waived or used toward the work being done. When he showed up, that wasn't the case and I had to ask for it to be waived. I was told over the phone that the company couldn't give me an estimate of the work I wanted done. When he arrives he has a booklet clearly stating the cost of everything. $800 for a toilet install if you don't have your own and $350 if you do. Kitchen faucet install was $250. Home depot charges half the amount. Snake and then video inspection was $650. Cut a hole to look for the source of the leak but not repair/replace the hole was $250. The plumber was great but the prices are awful. The whole telephone conversation was like it never happened and you get sticker shock once they arrive.

What's the saying -- "a sucker is born every minute"? Well I guess I was the sucker the day Benjamin Franklin came to check my leaking kitchen faucet. The faucet in my perfect, almost new kitchen was leaking and I was afraid the water would damage my beautiful wood cabinets. Benjamin Franklin is punctual and the technicians they send are courteous and helpful so I arranged a service call. The technician arrives to check on the leak and discovers a line connecting the faucet under the cabinet has a pin hole in it. But he has an exclusive line of faucets that are guaranteed for life--lucky me! So, wanting to protect my beautiful cabinets, I pay an absolutely ridiculous amount of money for this wonderful faucet. Ooops, a year or two later the wonderful new faucet starts leaking. Out comes my technician with bad news/good news. The bad news--the manufacturer of life-time faucet found a flaw -- but the good news, for just a few hundred more dollars I can get the new and improved faucet. So what did I do? I bought the new, improved faucet. What an idiot I am. And now a few years later the new faucet is the biggest piece of garbage ever--the "metal" is actually peeling. I'm just going to have my general contractor install a very nice Moen faucet from Home Depot--I don't want to deal with Benjamin Franklin ever again.

Too expensive!! I haven't had to call a plumber in ages, so maybe their price is competitive, but it was a bit of a shock nonetheless. The woman I spoke to on the phone was a very good salesperson. She said that the plumber would come, evaluate the problem, and give a flat rate that would guarantee that the job would get done. She said they normally charge $74 for the plumber to come out, and then whatever other work they do is on top of that. She then said that since it was our first time, they would waive the $74 if we get the work done (in other words, if we said "no", we'd still be charged $74 minimum). We had a stopped up drain in our laundry room, and the plumber took a look, and said that he could try a snake, but that he couldn't guarantee it. To guarantee the job, he said he'd have to replace a major section of our old pipe, and it would cost over $600. Just to try the snake, with no guarantee of success, he wanted $240. Ouch! I was confident the snake would work, so I told him to do that. He did and it worked. Very glad we didn't go with option A. I think for $600 I can probably find a good plumbing class for the wife. :)

It took almost five years for their shoddy work to become apparent and now I'm having another (real, reliable) plumber fix it. Originally I called BF plumbing when the mechanism inside the back of my toilet finally broke and I couldn't fix it myself. The plumber who came said it wasn't easy to repair because it was so old but a new toilet would be not that much more. Great - I got a brand new toilet that wasn't going to break! Fast forward several years and the toilet has just come loose from the floor. I had time to make an appt with an actual local plumber to come see what was up. He showed me how the original installer had literally glued the toilet to the floor and then glued bolt caps onto the toilet so it would look as if he appropriately bolted it down. He also didn't actually seal the toilet down so there was five years of water damage to the subfloor. The new plumber is fixing it and all will be fine but never calling BFPlumbing ever again. They seemed like a good deal because there was a coupon and they could arrive quickly but it's not worth it!

Stay far far away from Benjamin Franklin. They were called out to my home this summer to relieve a sewer backup. They ended up charging me top dollar and when the problem came back were unwilling to come back to even diagnose what was going on without charging me all over again. I hired another plumber and finally figured out there was a piece of snake coil stuck in my line. When I notified Benjamin Franklin they denied any wrongdoing, did not take responsibility, and did not offer any money towards the cost of fixing the mess they left me with. The only responsibility they did take was verifying the information they had given me regarding where my sewer line runs was incorrect. Meanwhile I had to foot a multi-thousand dollar bill to fix my sewer line and was not able to live in my house for 3 months! I hope this review helps others avoid the catastrophe that our family faced with this company. Benjamin Franklin is pathetically inept, not willing to take responsibility for their mistakes, and very arrogant to boot. Stay far far away...

It's a scam. I became a bit suspicious when I called to get an appointment for someone to come out to the house to fix a bathroom leak. After taking my information and setting a time, the receptionist said that for $99 I could "guarantee" my appointment -- meaning that I could pay them $99 to make sure that they actually showed up at the time that we had just agreed they would show up. I declined. Second red flag is that they charge $75 just to come to the house. They said that this fee would be folded into the final bill after the work was completed. When the guy got out to the house, he looked at the small items we wanted done (that we've since had done by another firm for $700), and quoted a price of --I'm not making this up-- $3100. I had to laugh. I now realize their scam is that they only want to collect the $75 first visit fee. If you actually contract to do the work at their absurd prices, then they make out like bandits. But even if you don't, they'll pocket the $75 and move on to the next sucker.