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Frequently Asked Questions

Proudly Serving over 45,000 Customers a Year in Arizona and we’ve been doing it since 1983!

How long have you been in business?

Cummings Plumbing Heating and Cooling has been in business in Tucson since 1983. That means that we’ve been in business in Tucson for 35 years.

However, our origin is in New York in the early 1930s. Since our inception, we’ve been in business for 6 generations.

The entire time, we’ve been proud to stay local and family-owned, and operated. This means that we can offer our customers our expertise at a fraction of the cost. We also have the autonomy to make decisions on a case-by-case basis to best serve our clients.

What is your reputation in the community?

We proudly serve over 30,000 customers on an annual basis. Although we get a lot of new customers, we also have a very high retention rate of repeat customers. This goes to show that our customers are loyal to us and trust the job we perform.

We have won the Arizona Daily Star Readers’ Choice Award for Best Plumber for the last 6 years! This is an honor that we were excited to receive and is proof that our customers view us positively.

What services do you provide?

The most common services that we provide are related to plumbing, septic, and HVAC. This, of course, includes repair, installation, remodeling, and other diagnostics.

We can pretty much do anything that is related to any pipes, plumbing, sewer, septic, trenchless repiping, or heating and cooling.

If there is something that is outside of our scope of work, we happily refer you to someone that we may know that can do the work you are requesting.

Are your free estimates really free?

Absolutely! We offer a FREE estimate. This means that it’s done at no-cost and no-obligation to our customers.

Our technicians are equipped to complete most jobs on-site when they do the free estimate. However, in the event they cannot, we will work with you to schedule a date/time that works for you if you decide to go with one of our quotes.

Why can’t you just give me a quote over the phone?

In our experience, things are not always what they seem.

There are many times when our customers describe a situation to us and we quote it one way, only to find out that it’s something completely different when we get out there. It’s like the game telephone; miscommunication and/or misunderstandings can happen.

This is why we started doing free estimates. This gives our technicians the opportunity to actually see what’s going on and quote the job correctly. We have found that this also gives our customers peace of mind and the ability to ask additional questions to the technicians.

How do your estimates work?

Good: This solution offers a temporary fix to the immediate issue at hand. It is not intended to be a permanent solution. It’s purpose is to buy time so that a more permanent solution can be agreed upon.

Better: This solution is designed to be a permanent fix to the issue at hand. After careful diagnostics, our techs will propose a permanent solution that will solve the issue and help ensure that it doesn’t come back.

Best: This is the best of the quotes. Not only do we fix the current issue at hand, we also perform any additional maintenance and/or service(s) needed to ensure your equipment is running properly and smoothly.

To read more about our estimates and how our pricing work, please go here: Pricing.

Do you charge by the hour?

Absolutely not! We believe in doing a quality job and do not believe that our customers should pay for the extra time; if it’s needed. Our fixed pricing means that you pay what we quote you (minus anything additional that may come up or may be needed). Whether it takes us 30 minutes to do the job, or 4 hours, you pay one price.

What are my payment options?

Unless it’s a large project, we take payment upon completion of the job. The most common methods of payment are:

  • Visa
  • Mastercard
  • Discover
  • Diners Club
  • American Express
  • Cash
  • Personal Checks

For larger projects, we may request 50% down and then the remainder upon completion of the project. You will be notified in advance if one is required.

If you are selling your home, we can also process payment for the job through Escrow. This is done on a case by case basis and should be communicated in advance if you’d like to go this route.

Do you offer financing?

Yes. We proudly offer financing for our clients through GreenSky. We have 3 different plans that allow our customers to choose what would work best for their unique financial situation.

Below is a link for more information on our financing options. There, you will be able to find information regarding the financing company we use, the different plans we offer, and even a mock amortization schedule so that you may anticipate what your payments might be.

For information regarding financing, please visit Financing Options.

Do you charge any additional fees?

Although rare, there are times when we do charge additional fees. This is strictly on a case by case basis. You will be notified in advance if there is going to be an additional fee prior to us scheduling your appointment. A member of our team will explain what the fee is and why we’re charging it. This ensures that we are transparent and that there are no surprises.

What are your hours of operation?

Our normal business hours are Monday – Saturday from 7am – 7pm. We typically don’t schedule appointments past 5pm so that our technicians can get home at an appropriate hour.

We are closed for the 6 major holidays.

With that said, we are open 24/7 if you have an emergency and need someone right away. We understand that accidents don’t always wait until the sun comes up or it’s convenient. If you need us, we’ll be here. Simply give us a call at 520-333-2121.

How does scheduling work?

With the exception of emergencies, depending on the time of day that you call and how many service calls we already have scheduled, we may be able to get out to you on the same day.

When we schedule your appointment, we give you a 2 hour window. We also offer courtesy calls (if requested) to let you know that our technician is on the way to make it convenient for you. These are done either 30 minutes or 1 hour in advance of our technician heading out to your property. You just need to let us if you’d like a courtesy call and which would work best for you.

What if my job needs a permit?

If your job requires a permit, we will let you know when we quote the job. Both the permit and inspection costs will be included in our bid. Obtaining a permit can take anywhere from 1 to 5 business days; however, it can take longer depending on the situation. We will keep you informed and schedule the job once the necessary permit(s) are obtained.

Do you do both commercial and residential?

Yes, we handle both commercial and residential properties.

In the event that you are not the property owner, we will need to obtain permission from the owner and person responsible for paying the bill PRIOR to us doing any work. This is for both our protection and yours.

We will do our best to work with you, however, it is ultimately the owner of the property that gets to decide who will be performing the work.

Do you take home owners insurance or work with home warranty companies?

We do not. Our customers are more than welcome to submit claims to be reimbursed, however, we do not process the claims for our customers. This means that our customers are responsible for paying for the service, in full, at the time of completion.

Do you take product warranties?

We do not unless the warranty was issued for a product that we BOTH sold and installed for you. If the product is still under warranty, please let us know so that we can make sure to bill the warranty company instead of you.