We've never had to use the services of a plumber before, but when our 16 hot water heater started to show it's age recently, we decided it was time to check out our options for replacement.
Not knowing exactly where to find a good plumber we could trust, I decided to check out reviews on Homestars. Jason and A Better Way Plumbing seemed to consistently rank high in customer satisfaction, so I decided to give him a call and set up a consultation.
Jason's a busy guy, but even so, he came over on the weekend to talk to me — no charge. He is personable, professional and very knowledgeable of his craft. After listening to our criteria for a new hot water heating system and inspecting our place, Jason recommended a tankless hot water heating system. He answered all my questions and gave me a rough estimate of what it would cost. The next business day, I had an official quote.
The system is a fair bit more expensive upfront, so it took us a few weeks to do our homework on hot water heaters — to talk to a few people, and compare the pros and cons between the traditional hot water tank system and the tankless systems which are still largely a novelty here in North America, but which have been the standard in Europe for decades now. After weighing the pros and cons, we agreed with Jason's recommendation that the extra money upfront to install the tankless system was worth it in the long run and contacted Jason's office manager, Chelsea to book the installation.
Just a little note for anyone considering a tankless hot water system: Not all tankless systems are created equal. Do your homework! The Eternal hot water heaters that Jason specs are impressive, solid, high quality units with a 15 year warranty. They are made of stainless steel, 98% efficient (exceeding Energy Star recommendations) with 'ultra-low' emissions, and can easily handle what our family of four will throw at it. And with the recirculation kit, you can pretty much have 'non-stop hot water on demand.'
The installation went seamlessly. Jason and his crew were onsite a little late, due to an emergency service call-out (which he let me know about in advance), but when they arrived they went straight to work. Even though Jason works as a sole-proprietor, I was impressed at the team of professionals he called in for this bigger job — assistants, electricians, and an expert in calibrating these units. By the end of the work day, the new system was in, fully calibrated and working perfectly.
Two days later, Jason was back to take care of a little housekeeping work and we now have a fab, reliable, energy efficient hot water heating system that will last us a very long time. Jason even includes free annual maintenance on the unit for the first two years!
Now this is my chance to also give a shout out to John, who was the fellow that calibrated the system. John is impressively knowledgeable in his craft, with seemingly endless information and experience on hot water heating systems. He was a pleasure to talk with and provided us with all kinds of information and tips!
All-in-all, I am glad that I took a chance on A Better Way Plumbing and I have no problem highly recommending Jason and his team. I'll definitely be calling him again when it's time for further plumbing upgrades.