Sam & Sons Services

I have been meaning to post this for quite some time. I would also give them a ZERO if I could. I am a Realtor for over 14 years and grew up with an engineer and Class A contractor, and am NOT your typical person that doesn’t have a clue about home improvement and how homes are built. That said, I needed a few contractors to come out and survey the potential water source in my basement. I had an idea about what was going on, but needed confirmation before any future renovations started. The technician sent out barely spoke English, and what he did tell me was that I had MAJOR MAJOR PROBLEMS and the entire foundation wall along the front of my townhome was going to need to to be dug out and cost me over $ 12,000 to «fix». In between telling me what my «problem» was, he is «oooooohing and aaaaaahing» and making dramatic sighs as if his vocalizations are going to freak me out and get me to sign off on his proposal. Ummm… I knew better. I wanted a REAL solution as I’ve had a client that truly had to have their entire single family home fixed the way he’s suggesting and it cost as much as he quoted for just the front of my townhome. So I called an actual engineering firm (Drainage and Erosion — if anyone needs someone seriously smart that knows what they are talking about.) It was just as I thought — the recessed neighboring townhome needed a drain spout extension/​pipe to run out past my foundation wall to avoid the serious mud and puddles being created. A FIVE DOLLAR FIX — NOT $ 10 000+. So, these guys = TOTAL RIP OFF!!!
After the ridiculous visit, I called to speak to the manager/​owner and was given their voice mail after describing the issue. I left a voice mail and explained I would eventually seek to write them up and tell every single person I knew about their unprofessional tech (and subsequently uncaring business owner) that apparently like to just make up bs for the average person that would not know better. He did not call me back to discuss. He never made the effort to discuss what happened to assure that his service folks are being honest and not giving them a bad rap and this was a mistake or a new guy or at least — something! So I can only believe that the owner is in on the gig and totally in support of the lies and ignorance being spread. So here I am. I truly hope everyone that is considering using their services sees this and thinks twice. As a matter of fact, look me up on the web and I’ll refer you to some amazing contractors in all kinds of services from engineers to carpenters. These guys are a joke.
BTW, Nina R. must have had the same tech — guy pokes around for a few minutes and finds a solution and quotes some BS «find fee» when told it would be a free estimate — such bad business practices!!! I feel bad I didn’t get this post up sooner to prevent her issue.

If I could give them a zero, I would. I made the mistake of calling them for an estimate because a neighbor recommended them. I asked over the phone before scheduling the visit that the estimate was free. The guy came out and found that the leak wasn’t plumming related, but instead that it was the exterior waterproofing of my basement was worn out and the leak is through the wall when it rain very hard. All he did was look around and in a few minutes he figured it out. Then he wanted to charge me $ 125 for finding it. I told him that was a rip off because no one warned me over the phone.
He asked me to call the main office and they put the boss on the phone whom tried to railroad me and I told him to take a hike. If it is their policy to charge for looking for a leak when there is actual labor involved, but in this case there was none of that. The guy was such a jerk too. Don’t call them!

Buyer BEWARE! Sam & Sons were supposed to install a tankless hot water heater on Friday, called that morning to say they didn’t pull the permits for Arlington County, said they would be there Monday morning. Wife and mother waited all day Monday and no one ever showed. Called Tuesday and they claimed they showed up and no one was home, said they cancelled the order, returned the heater and it would be another week until they could do the job. Were very aggressive in blaming us for the problem. Don’t waste your time and money with Sam & Sons.

They will try to rip you off and not even be polite about it. DO NOT WASTE YOUR TIME. I could have saved myself a lot of time and insult had I read the Unilocal reviews first. I had a small metal pipe stuck in my garbage disposal. Tried getting it out myself but couldn’t so I caved and called these guys because I had their magnets on my fridge (get $ 25 gas card for using them). I have since thrown the magnets away and warned all my friends about them.
Rich, the plumber arrived late and seemed annoyed to be there. He went straight to the disposal and asked me where the switch was. I pointed to it and he told me to turn it on (even though there was no water in my sink). A loud clanking sound came out and he told me to turn it off. Then immediately, he told me that he recommends a new disposal since the medal stuck in there has dulled the blades AND he cannot guarantee that he would be successful in retrieving the part. He said he will go to his truck to write up two quotes.
While he was gone, I googled my exact garbage disposal and found out it costs $ 99 at Home Depot with a two year warranty. When he came back, he quoted me $ 225 to try to retrieve the medal part stuck in the disposal and he added «if possible.» to the quote meaning he can charge me $ 225 and not even be successful. (WTF?) If a plumber can’t retrieve the part, who the heck can?
Then he quoted me $ 569 to install a new disposal with a one year warranty. I told him the part only costs $ 99 and it comes with a two year warranty. He said their warranty covers leaks. I told him if he installed it correctly, there wouldn’t be any leaks. He said disposals leaks all the time. I mean the guy was very arrogant and condescending and told me all this with a straight face. he couldn’t even smile. So of course I did not use these people. I called my friend, who is NOT a plumber and he turned on the water before turning on the disposal to dislodge the part and within a minute, successfully retrieved the metal part!!! I am simply amazed that Sam and Sons are still in business. I promptly threw their magnets in the trash can. BTW, I am sure they add the $ 25 gas card X 4 into every quote they provide.

I had a busted pipe in a bathroom after the recent cold snap. There was no damage but the pipe was tricky to get to. They said it would take two days to fix and gave me an estimate of $ 2,500. I went ahead and had them do the repair, which took them one day. State Farm is saying the job cost should have been $ 1,374, meaning I’m out most of the cost for this repair.
The pipe re-​froze one week later, so I can’t say I got great service, despite being massively overcharged.
Dave F
Falls Church

This company sucks. I had water leaking. Called them, charge me for $ 235 just for showed up, the technician spent about 15 minutes could not find the where is the leaking, and tell me to charge another $ 385 to identify the where is the leaking and the repair is not included. Complete rip off, stay away from them.

BEWARE of this EVIL company! A $ 5600 estimate for a job I paid $ 575 for!
I recently called 16 companies for some roofing work. 9 of them made appointments with me, 7 showed up, and 5 sent me estimates, plus an estimate sent by someone who wouldn’t even come out, which I wouldn’t even consider. The 5 estimates were $ 575, $ 825, $ 975/​$ 1075, $ 1150, and $ 5600 (Sam And Sons estimate).
We got the job successfully completed for $ 575. Had we chosen Sam And Sons, we would have gotten the same work done, but been out AN ADDITIONAL FIVE THOUSAND DOLLARS.
***** In all my life, I think this is one of the most evil things any company has ever tried to do. They tried to charge us ALMOST TEN TIMES what the job was worth. *****
It is now my mission to save people from this evil company by posting this.
My GUESS as to what happened? The guy actually had the gall to ask me if I inherited the house — I guess I wasn’t dressed nice enough for him to think I earned it myself at age 24. So, figuring I was a spoiled brat who didn’t know the value of a dollar, he tried to screw me.
Your plan backfired, bud.
I can only imagine that this company probably takes advantage of the elderly, who in their dementia also often lose the concept of the value of a dollar. I can only imagine what would happen if I was the type of person to only get one estimate.
Just so you know I’m not lying, here is a scan of their estimate:
If you follow that link, it will also include scans of our other estimates.

Sam replaced our attic fan a few months ago. Recently the roof around the fan started leaking. Sam at first claimed the fan was installed properly, and we needed a new roof. We got estimates from five roofers. They all said the fan was badly installed. Sam finally sent someone to caulk the roof around the fan, but they still refused to correct the rest of the installation.
Bad job. Avoid them!!!

This company charged me over $ 600 to fix a bathroom light switch and reinstall 2 bathroom lights. After 6 months the light came down from the wall.
I hired my handyman to install 2 new light fixtures and it looks great. The cost was $ 150. It has been working for over 4 years now.
I would not use this company again.

I needed a new sump pump and called Sam & Son to come out and take a look. The plumber showed up late and parked in neighbors spot. When I made the appointment I made sure to let them know if they could not find a visitor spot, call me and I’d move my car. Instead, the plumber parked in my neighbors spot and told me had found a visitors.
Things got worse when he started the work. After standing around talking on his phone for a ½ hour he finally got to work. Unfortunately he didn’t do much work; instead he tore out the old pump (making a huge mess in the process) and then realized that he didn’t have a sump pump on his truck. I was stunned.
The plumber promised to return the next day at the same time with the pump, which meant I had to take half a day from work. Well I waited around the following day and the plumber didn’t show. I called up the office numerous times and kept getting the same response «your plumber is on a job that is running late, you are his next call». I gave up and decided to find another plumber.
The following day (the day after the missed appointment) I find a note on my door from the plumber saying something along the lines of «I stopped by today to finish the job. I waited for over an hour. Please call the office to reschedule». I couldn’t believe it. I immediately called the office and asked to speak to a manager. I informed him of the problem and he was very apologetic. He tried to find a way to keep me as a customer but I was done.
The only reason I gave this review two stars was because the professional and polite manager I spoke with. Otherwise, it just seemed like a lot of confusion and incompetence from the people who take the calls to the plumber they send to your home. I would not recommend Sam & Son.

Rip-​off.
$ 605 estimate for a small leak in the toilet and some hair in the drain.
Came the day before the appointment for electrical problems I never had.