Today is 12/9/15. I'm going to keep this much simpler than my Yelp review.
On 11/16/15 Slade's was hired to snake our drain. According to the invoice, the snake was run 65 feet, definitely putting it into the city sewer. The snake got stuck in the drain. This could be due to a collapsed pipe, but the point is that the plumber said he would try to come back within the week to give it another shot. He also said the boss was out of town for the week.
On 11/18/15 I instructed my girlfriend to call Slade's and get a specific date for them to come and do what they said they would do: Attempt to get the snake out of the drain. She called twice somewhere between 11/18/15 and 11/25/15, as well as an attempt to contact the plumber directly via text.
On 11/25/15 after no response, I called Slade's and left an angry, but not unreasonable, voicemail. Within 5 minutes Danielle called me back, stating that she was out of the office and would call me on Friday (11/27/15) to secure a morning appointment for 11/28/15. She also informed me that she had been out of town, that her father (the owner) was still out of town, and that the plumber's wife was in the hospital. I understand and you have my sympathies for various family issues, but it still amounts to all of these things being excuses that the customer doesn't need to hear. The correct answer is I will do everything I can to make this right, and not, here's why we haven't been able to make it right. What was most surprising, in retrospect, was that she was able to receive company voicemail from out of the office. This tells me that Slade's actively chose to ignore the first 2 calls that my girlfriend made.
On 11/27/15, Danielle did not call me.
On the morning of 11/28/15, no plumber showed up at the house.
In the afternoon of 11/28/15, the plumber called my girlfriend and informed her that the more powerful drain cleaning machine was in the shop and that he did not know when it would be available. He also stated that the machine he was carrying on the truck had been acting up, and that he basically didn't trust it to get the snake out. Sounds like another excuse. The call ended with we'll call you when we call you.
In the meantime, the drain (which IS flowing by the way), is seeping sewer gas into the house. We've covered up the cleanout with a rag, but I hardly think it's enough to stop the gases coming up from the sewer. I've become sick, tired, coughing profusely, and I genuinely think that this is somewhat to blame for my current ailments.
I'm trying to not be unreasonable, but so far everything indicates that Slade's has no desire to try and get their snake back as they originally stated. Key word: try. I don't know if they'll be able to do it. We may have bigger issues, but the point is that they said they'd try, and they haven't. I figure that Slade's has probably cleaned out plenty of drains in the 12 days since we last heard from them. I am also being beyond reasonable in publicly requesting that they make arrangements to be here before 12/16/15 to try and retrieve their snake. Calling privately has not worked with Slade's, as we've mostly been ignored, and when we haven't been ignored, we've heard all of the reasons why they haven't been able to attempt to remove it. If they can make arrangements to get out here before 12/16/15, I'll alter this review, but quite frankly I don't anticipate any response from this company, and I highly recommend at this time that you avoid them. I'm tired of chasing after people to do what they said they will do. This is my only recourse and my only solace. I hate to bash small business, but this company has failed to live up to it's reputation, and I feel it's important to point this out in the very same online places that attracted my girlfriend to them in the first place.
