Provider profile
Roto-Rooter Plumbing & Water Cleanup
Provider snapshot
What this listing says
Vancouver and Portland metro homeowners dealing with water damage who want one company to handle plumbing repair, water extraction, and mold remediation in a single call.
Best for
- Vancouver, Camas, Washougal, and Portland metro homeowners who need a plumber and water damage crew in one call.
- After-hours emergencies — they dispatch 24/7 with no extra charge for nights, weekends, or holidays.
- Homeowners whose water damage may have caused mold and who want one company to handle the full chain from plumbing repair through remediation.
- Commercial properties needing scalable water damage restoration with insurance documentation built into the process.
- Buyers who value a national brand's accountability and warranty backing over a smaller local operator.
About this company
Roto-Rooter in Vancouver, Washington is a franchise location of the national plumbing and water cleanup chain that has operated since 1935. The Vancouver office at 1112 Daniels St is managed by Justin Cvitkovich and covers Clark County in Washington plus several Oregon counties across the Portland metro area. Their primary identity is plumbing — drain cleaning, sewer lines, water heaters — but they also run a full water damage restoration and mold remediation division.
What stands out is the single-company model. Most restoration companies have to wait for a third-party plumber to fix the source before they can start cleanup. Roto-Rooter sends its own plumbers alongside the restoration crew, which means the leak gets fixed and the water gets extracted in the same visit. Their mold remediation team uses HEPA filtration, air scrubbers, dehumidification, and antimicrobial treatments. Technicians carry IICRC credentials for water restoration work.
The franchise has deep infrastructure — trucks stocked with parts for single-visit repairs, a mobile app for scheduling, financing through Synchrony Bank, and a dedicated customer satisfaction manager (Pat Swanson) who responds to nearly every negative review. They hold an A+ BBB rating and Oregon plumbing licenses.
A 4.8-star rating across 788 Google reviews is strong for a high-volume franchise operation. Most negative reviews target pricing and scheduling rather than quality of work, which suggests the field technicians are performing well even when the corporate side frustrates customers.
Services
Service area
Headquartered in Vancouver, Washington at 1112 Daniels St. Serves Clark County in Washington including Camas, Washougal, Orchards, Hazel Dell, Salmon Creek, and Hockinson. Also covers the broader Portland metro area across Multnomah, Clackamas, Washington, Yamhill, Marion, Polk, and Lincoln counties in Oregon. The cross-state coverage spanning seven Oregon counties is broad for a single office — confirm response times for locations far from Vancouver.
Review consensus
Jad appears most frequently in positive reviews. Customers describe him as honest, detail-oriented, and willing to talk people out of unnecessary work — one reviewer noted he explained why a toilet replacement was not needed. Jacob Bowe (also referred to as Jake or Bowe) is the second most mentioned technician, praised for efficiency, fair pricing relative to competitors, and a no-upselling approach. Kyle gets specific credit for attention to detail on clogged drains and making first-time fixes that last. Logan, Carlos, Rodrigo, and Eric Jimenez each appear in individual positive reviews. Eric Jimenez is specifically praised for water extraction and structural drying work. Reviewers consistently mention quick response times, clear explanations, and technicians who test their work before leaving.
7 found across 788 total reviews at 4.8★. Seven 1-star reviews surface three issues. Scheduling failures: John Witthauer requested emergency service for a family member with Alzheimer's and was told the technician would reschedule instead of arriving late. Kevin Martin experienced a no-show, rescheduling, and then the wrong technician arriving. Workmanship problems: Abbas Bharmal says a technician cracked a pipe in his crawl space during drain work and refused to compensate. Justin had to hire another company to fix a sewer pipe Roto-Rooter installed without proper rock bedding. Rebecca L reports a messy crew that left tracks, did not clean up, and broke a toilet during a leak repair. Pushy upselling: Ruth Mendes Da Costa describes a secondary person named Rick who spent 15 minutes pressuring her to file a water damage claim for water she had already wiped up, on top of prices she considered outrageous. One 1-star review from Kai Lyn has no text.
Owner responses reveal a disconnect between corporate reputation management and actual complaint handling. Pat Swanson, the Customer Satisfaction Manager, responds to 92% of negative reviews — but multiple responses are clearly mismatched. Abbas's 1-star complaint about a cracked pipe received a response thanking him for recommending Jacob. Justin's complaint about faulty sewer pipe installation got a response praising Maqsood. This pattern suggests responses are auto-generated or copy-pasted without reading the actual review, which undermines the high response rate as a trust signal.
Jad (plumber/technician — consistently positive, praised for honesty and attention to detail across 8+ reviews). Jacob Bowe / Jake / Bowe (plumber/technician — consistently positive, praised for efficiency and fair approach across 7+ reviews). Logan (technician — positive, praised for friendliness and competence). Kyle (technician — positive, praised for attention to detail and first-time fixes). Carlos (technician — positive, praised for pipe work). Rodrigo (technician — positive, praised for pipe work). Eric Jimenez (water extraction/drying technician — positive, praised for clear explanations). Trevor (technician — positive, noted as good communicator). Rick (secondary technician/sales — negative, described as pushy about upselling water damage claims). Pat Swanson (Customer Satisfaction Manager — responds to reviews, template-style responses).
For emergency plumbing and water damage in one call, this location delivers — Jad and Jacob Bowe are the technicians to request. Get a written estimate before any work starts, because pricing complaints outnumber all other issues. If mold remediation comes up, get an independent assessment before agreeing to their scope of work.
Keep in mind
- Roto-Rooter does both mold testing and mold remediation. That creates a conflict of interest — the company assessing whether you have a mold problem is the same one that profits from fixing it. Consider getting an independent mold inspection before committing to their remediation work.
- Pricing is the most common complaint. Multiple reviewers report $300-$395 for a basic drain snaking, and one reviewer was quoted over $575 for a clogged sink. Get quotes from local plumbers before committing to non-emergency work.
- Scheduling reliability is inconsistent. At least four recent reviewers describe missed appointment windows, no-shows, or same-day cancellations — including one emergency call for a family member with mobility issues that was rescheduled at the last minute.
- One reviewer described a pushy upsell from a secondary technician named Rick who pressured her to file a water damage claim and hire contractors for what she considered minor water on a floor. Watch for scope creep between the plumbing and restoration divisions.
- Owner responses to negative reviews follow a near-identical template directing complainants to email Pat Swanson. Several responses appear mismatched to the actual complaint — a 1-star review about damaged pipes received a response thanking the reviewer for their recommendation. This suggests automated reputation management rather than genuine engagement with specific concerns.