Benjamin Franklin Plumbing of Silver Spring
Plumber · Silver Spring, MD · Open 24 hours per Google listing
Our verdict
Benjamin Franklin Plumbing Silver Spring — 4.8 stars on 440 reviews but low consistency (0.343); 24% negative sentiment with 19 of 100 analyzed reviews at 1-star; individual techs like Chris and David are excellent but pricing complaints are frequent and sharp.
Scores are our editorial reading of published customer reviews — not a verification, license check, or guarantee.
Our opinion, based on the 100 reviews we analyzed from Google, Yelp and BBB · Analysis updated Jun 2026 · How we decide ↗
Advertises 24-hour service on its Google profile — no reviews we analyzed mention after-hours response either way.
What reviewers praise
Chris handled a midnight gas shutoff emergency — arrived earlier than promised, communicative, flexible, and efficient.
1 cited review
“Washington gas tagged a leak at the meter at midnight and shut my gas off without informing me. I called BF at 11am and was told I'd hear from them that evening. However, I heard from Chris shortly thereafter with a plan. He arrived early than they originally said because he called to say he'd finished another job earlier. Friendly, punctual, communicative, knowledgeable, flexible, efficient, respectful of my space and time... Everything you want in a contractor.”
David cleared a Sunday kitchen clog days before Christmas, worked efficiently, cleaned up thoroughly.
1 cited review
“David Laboskie did a terrific job. Our kitchen sink stopped up on Sunday afternoon, just days before Christmas. David was able to come that afternoon. He unclogged the line very efficiently and cleaned up thoroughly so that there was no evidence of his work or the gunk that came out of the line. Besides his competence, David was also a very pleasant, friendly guy.”
Cited in 2 of the 100 reviews we analyzed — 1 cited review not excerpted here.
Ira diagnosed and fixed a pipe leak fast; workplace spotless afterward.
Cited in 1 of the 100 reviews we analyzed.
What reviewers report — the concerns
Other directories bury these. We think you should read them before you call. Every concern below comes from the reviews it cites.
Red flag
Charged $3,100 to hook up a customer-supplied 50-gallon water heater (no transport or removal required) — elderly homeowner signed under pressure while customer was away at work.
Cited in 1 of the 100 reviews we analyzed.
Red flag
Slow response documented: 4 of 100 analyzed reviews cite slow_response; 3 cite surprise_fees.
“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.”
Pricing significantly above market — one reviewer paid $1,800 for a water heater and found the verbal estimate was less than half the final bill.
“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.”
Flat-rate system lacks transparency — invoice provided without line items; owner was difficult to reach when itemization was requested.
“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.”
Keep it in proportion: these concerns are cited in 2 of the 100 reviews we analyzed. Most reviewers report positive experiences — see the full rating picture below.
The evidence — in reviewers' own words
Critical
“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 …”
“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 …”
“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 …”
Positive
“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.”
Quotes are reproduced verbatim from public reviews on the platforms shown; we select which to feature, and selection reflects our editorial judgment. Report a quote that doesn't match its source ↗
The rating picture
Our sample skews heavily toward critical reviews — it disagrees with the Google average shown above.
Newest review in our sample: Mar 2026.
Across platforms
Google 4.8 (440 reviews) significantly inflated vs. Yelp pricing complaints; 24% negative sentiment in 100 analyzed reviews and 19 one-star reviews signal a meaningful quality gap that the Google rating masks.
Should you hire Benjamin Franklin Plumbing of Silver Spring?
Hire if
- You need high-quality work that holds up over time
- You need fast same-day or after-hours response
Think twice if
- You need rock-bottom prices with zero flexibility on the quote
- You need airtight scheduling and guaranteed arrival times
Look elsewhere if
- You're highly price-sensitive
Advice derived from the review analysis above — how we decide.
Own Benjamin Franklin Plumbing of Silver Spring?
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Find plumbers near you
Benjamin Franklin Plumbing of Silver Springisn't in one of our ranked city guides yet — the nearest covered markets are below.
Nearby: District Heights · Annapolis Junction · Reston