To track down the best plumbers in New York City, we polled local homeowners, a landlord, a retired architect, a real-estate agent, and other savvy New Yorkers on who they call when a leak or clog has turned their day upside down. Some have relied on the services below for more than two decades.
For Late-Night Emergencies
Vigilante Plumbing, 195 Douglass St., Gowanus; 718-530-0404; bestbrooklynplumber.com
Brooklyn-based Vigilante does everything from plumbing repair to drain and sewer cleaning to hot-water-heater replacement — at literally any time of day. It has an emergency-response service available 24/7 in all five boroughs, which retired retail professional Victor Ney has called numerous times over the past 30 years. “If I call at midnight, 4 a.m. on a weekend night, I can get service,” Ney says. After Hurricane Ida left two feet of water in his basement in 2021, plumbers from Vigilante showed up the next day to drain it and clear it out. They then drew up and implemented plans for improvements, like French drains, sump pumps, and backflow preventers, so Ney’s basement would remain dry during heavy rainfall. Retired architect Daniel Rodriguez calls the emergency-response team Vigilante’s “shining star,” recalling an incident when “the heat went down in the middle of the winter, and it happened to be a Saturday.” He phoned Vigilante, and the team arrived in an hour. “Within three hours,” he says, “they were out and everything was operational.”
For Sewage Services
Econo-Sewer & Drain Cleaning, 3864 Flatlands Ave., Marine Park; 800-287-3266; econosewer.com
Sewer-cleaning services, such as unclogging pipes and clearing out drains, are Econo-Sewer’s specialty. The company retains an ultraloyal clientele that includes retired teacher Linda Blau, who first called in 1981 when she experienced a flood in her basement. “We just looked in the local plumber directory and we found them, and we’ve been with them ever since,” Blau says. Econo-Sewer has cleared her basement’s water line, which can become clogged with tree debris or grease from the house, twice a year for going on 40 years. Landlord Christopher Athinios has been using the company once a week for about 20 years to address various clogs and backups that can arise in the multifamily buildings he owns, whether due to residents pouring grease down the drains or flushing non-flushable items down the toilets. “We would have periodic sewer backups in the basement, and he came in with this high-pressure water jet to push it out into the main sewer line,” Athineos says. Econo-Sewer’s flexible hours and good communication are a plus. “They’ll contact the tenants and make arrangements with them to come. They work early in the morning into the evening, even on the weekends,” Athinios says.
For Needy New Homeowners
Ricky Tavares, 347-832-6476
Having worked everywhere from museums to bars to townhouses, plumber Ricky Tavares has extensive experience with residential and commercial projects. When Hilary Krishnan started an extensive remodel of her Brooklyn townhouse, her friend the contractor Richard Sanabria gave her Tavares’s number. “I got hardware for the showers and baths that was really aesthetically pleasing but maybe a little bit of a challenge to install. He just made it all work so beautifully,” Krishnan says. As a first-time homeowner, she admits she was a bit clueless about maintenance but says Tavares has always been responsive and helpful even for tiny fixes — and for issues unrelated to plumbing: “There were times when I was like, Oh, the heat’s not working. I don’t know what’s going on. And he FaceTimed me and said, ‘Show me the thermostat.’ He always makes himself available to help me.”
For Work That Holds Up
Weiss Plumbing, 718-875-3926
A small old-school family-owned business that has been around for decades, Weiss Plumbing has no website and no social media — but word of mouth gets it plenty of clients. The company mostly does small repairs and maintenance jobs. Real-estate agent Jessica Fields called them when her 150-year-old Brooklyn brownstone’s plumbing needed an overhaul. Which Weiss did, all while she was living there. “We didn’t rip off the walls. They just had to delicately change out pipes in various places,” Fields says. “They’ve done all sorts of things, from installing piping in my bathroom, to fixing a leaky waste line, to changing out our hot-water heater.” Weiss was first recommended to Fields by her friend’s now-retired architect parents, and Fields herself has used its services for 12 years. That means she’s had plenty of time to assess how the work holds up. Says Fields, “We have not had to readdress a single thing they’ve done for us.”
For Routine Fixes
Petri Plumbing, Heating, Cooling & Drain Cleaning, 901 Bay Ridge Ave., Dyker Heights; 718-717-1089; petriplumbing.com
After more than 100 years in business, there’s not a plumbing, drainage, HVAC, heating, or AC issue that Petri Plumbing hasn’t handled. Burst pipes, repiping, drain and sewer cleaning, water-heater maintenance, home inspections, and even ecofriendly plumbing are just a few of its specialties. Jordan Slocum, co-founder of the interior-design and renovation service Brownstone Boys, has been a regular since 2018, calling on Petri anytime he needs routine plumbing maintenance on his own brownstone. “Petri is our go-to for everyday fixes, whether it’s a toilet that’s been clogged or the boiler or bathtub that needs to be serviced,” Slocum says. Park Slope resident Vijay Venkatesh likes the quick response time he gets with Petri. When he had a sewer leak, he says the company responded within an hour and a half. Venkatesh has also used it to address everything from “leaks around the house, drainage, or sump-pump issues” to replacing some of the pipes and valves in the basement with, he says, “no complaints.”
