Reel Rooter Services

These guys did our sewer inspection when we bought the house, and came out to give us a second opinion when we’d been given bad information from another vendor.
(See my review of another company from the south and west)
Steve remembered our house and our «pipes», said off the top that the recommendation we’d gotten from the other vendor was not viable.
Scoped the system, showed me the «reel» problem, and prescribed a solution.
I should have called them first… and will do so in the future.

I am a huge fan of these guys. My neighbor highly recommended them. I had a problem with my sewer system and needed it rootered before company came that night. My call was returned that morning and an appointment was made for just a few hours later. They came within the window of time as promised and were great to work with, very friendly and listened to me. They used the back bathroom instead of going through the roof to save me money. They were half the price of a big business we went with years ago, and so pleasant to work with. I would definitely use them again!

Receptionist picked up the phone right away, scheduled for the following. Very good initial contact. The worker, Josh was awesome. Very helpful, taught me about the industry and traps not to fall into. Would definitely use again.

they’re prompt, professional and quick to diagnose. I’d call them again.

I have got to say, that while they weren’t able to get the entire root ball out (Northshore Utilities District had to do it from the 8″ pipe end… and it was huge), I will be using Reel Rooter in the future. Steve was onsite with Josh, and they tackled that mess with their entire arsenal. They were able to cut the root at the source which was integral for the utility to flush it out. Steve recommended that I call the City to see if they could tackle it but I live in a part of the city where I’m serviced by Northshore. But that was exactly the information that I needed from Steve to get a completely cleaned out main.
Steve was extremely fair and generous on the price of the job that they did. The company that I had initially called drilled a small 2″ hole in the root ball to start clearing the drain. Then they were talking about a $ 7500 excavation job. Josh did a fantastic job cutting the roots from the source and doing everything that they could to push it down as far down the line as they could.
Tonight I am breathing a huge sigh of relief because I went with Reel Rooter. I cannot say enough good things about this company.

These guys are top notch. I had a grease block in a sink. Beacon came in and misdiagnosed it, did not solve it and charged me double what Reel Rooter did. Reel Rooter came in, diagnosed and solved the problem in about 30 minutes. They also gave me good advice to prevent it in the future by using a septic system enzyme 1−2X year with hot water to activate the enzymes to dissolve the grease. You use it at night so the solution can sit for 8 hours.

Last week I had a clog in my basement bathroom and another plumbing service came out and said I first needed a scope put down my pipes starting at $ 700 and then an abestos and raditiation company (one they referred) to come check for abestos starting at $ 500, then my foundation and the broken pipe replaced starting at $ 5000. My second opinion was Reel Rooter Services and Josh was there the next day, friendly and on time and within 8 minutes had the clog out and my drain running clear. Josh was awesome!!!

After reading Unilocal reviews it was an easy decision to call Reel Rooter Services to clean out a main sewer line. Response time was more than adequate and the tech rep Anthony arrived at the beginning of the time window I was given. Their hourly rate is more than reasonable. When Anthony arrived he started working straight away and it’s evident that this young man takes pride in doing his job correctly. Special attention was paid to ensuing that the surrounding area around the clean out was covered to prevent sewage spraying the area while inserting the rooter and extracting it. In about 20 mins my drain was open and Anthony continued to snake the sewer line to the street. The job was completed within an hour and I could not be more satisfied with Anthony and his work ethic. If you have a need for Rooter Services, you should as I did make this your 1^st call. Also, Reel Rooter Services is a family owned business, which is a plus in my book.
Reasonable, Quick Response Time, Knowledgeable, Family owned! I will definitely use them again.

Fantastic service! Josh called to let me know he was on his way and ended up working for nearly 7 hours on what turned out to be a much larger pipe clog problem than anticipated. He was very professional and friendly, introducing himself by name and knowing my name when he arrived, making sure to check that it was ok to continue working when it became clear that the work would take longer (and thus be more expensive) than originally thought, keeping me updated on progress, cleaning up after his work, and even ringing the doorbell when he needed to come upstairs to ask questions. I would recommend Reel Rooter without hesitation.

Are you reading this because you need a plumber? Well you found the best one as far as I’m concerned. Here are some facts; 1) Their website clearly states their hourly rates. 2) They answered the phone when I called (instead of voice mail for others I tried) and were able to schedule an appointment as we spoke. 3) A friendly technician called me 20 minutes before he arrived in a well equipped service van and promptly set up his equipment and fixed our main sewer. Thanks Josh.
Kudos to Reel Rooter… this is how you run a successful service company.

Steve literally saved me thousands of dollars and I will never call anyone else again. I had two big-​name companies give me bids on a badly clogged main-​waste drain pipe, and they both quoted me several thousand dollars (at the minimum) to dig up our septic, yard, and pipes. Steve and Anthony came out and were determined to clear that pipe. It took them 2 ½ hours of sitting in our tiny crawl space, getting God-​knows-​what out of that pipe, but they never gave up. The other guys wouldn’t even go in the crawl space! The total bill… only $ 500! I am so very grateful and can’t recommend Reel Rooter enough. Don’t waste your time or money on anyone else.

Steve deserves 10 stars! I can’t say enough good things about him. If you are unlucky enough to have sewer problems, you will find that this kind man will show up, practically immediately, and fix things for a reasonable price. I’ve recommended him to many, many people and all have had similar experiences. An honest business person these days seems to be a rarity. Write down his number now.

WOW! Great work by Reel Rooter today.
I had a stopped up/​slow mainline and called Mr. Rooter. They came out and quoted me $ 560. I asked the «dispatcher» to provide a ball park price knowing that they try and get people at the house to make it harder to say «no», a deceptive but known practice, but he coudn’t provide one, only stating that they have to diagnose first. I then I said there has to be a baseline price, whether Mr. Rooter is there for 10min or 1hour they have a minium and I wanted to know that. Again, the run-​around without a price given. I had them send a guy anyway knowing that I could always take my business outside if necessary. The guy game, told me he has 50Ft or 75fton the line and if they needed to run more it would be an additional X$ for 50ft.
I had none of these issues with Reel Rooter and Steve. His prices are listed online. They didn’t unnecessarily try and sell me on a cam inspection, etc. They came out, ran the line, the clog freed and everything was great. Not to say that it will always be this easy or a customer won’t need a camera scope, but I didn’t feel like I was being upsold to nor felt as if there was any deception.
They did a great job so I had them install my new toilet for another $ 50, something I could have done myself, but would rather have given them the work/​business.
In addition I asked that Reel Rotor be here at 9, they were here at 9. Just another plus, when so many other people don’t show on-​time or show late without a phone call.
Nice job all-​around.

Reel Rooter is now at the top of my list! I had backed up drains and they did their best to accommodate my schedule, (like, right now!), were efficient and got the job done right. I also got some helpful advice to prevent recurrence. This was my first time using their service and the price was substantially lower than I paid last time to a nationally known company. I’m so pleased! I highly recommend them. Next time I have a plumbing problem, I’m going to call someone who cares — Reel Rooter.

Steve Branam is my first and only call on all of my plumbing problems. Steve has helped me out three or four times over the last ten years. He is reasonably priced, time-​efficient, and a good guy to boot.
I hesitate to recommend Steve as highly as he deserves because I want to be able to call him with my next problem drain and know he isn’t booked so far in advance that he can’t come to my house.
Steve gets five stars only because Unilocal doesn’t offer more than that. Thanks again Steve.

Steve of Reel Rooter Services did it again. Wanting to avoid future root ball blockage sewer problems after the 2008 Snowpocalypse, we scheduled Steve for a six-​month maintenance checkup. Good thing we did, as he found another huge root ball in our system. Was he successful? You betcha. He also cleared another drain on our condominium association’s property.
Steve deserves ten stars and a Unilocal salute.

I have known Steve for years and I have never had a plumbing problem he couldn’t fix. He is the best at what he does! We own several rental houses and he has worked on all of them. He is always friendly no matter how long his day has been. Thanks for all the help Steve!