Leaks & pipe repair
Burst supply lines, weeping joints, pinhole leaks in old galvanized. We trace it with a moisture meter before we cut anything, so we're opening one wall, not three.
Est. 1978 · 1614 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia
Water where it belongs.
Three generations of Philadelphia plumbers. We answer the phone, we show up when we say, and we tell you the price before we start the work.
- 4.8224 Google reviews
- 7 daysOpen 9–5, every day
- LicensedPA Master Plumber
What we do
Everything behind the wall, under the floor, and above the ceiling
We're a repair-first shop. Most of what we do is small, unglamorous, and finished the same day — a running toilet, a slow drain, a shutoff valve that won't close. When it's bigger than that, we'll say so plainly and give you a written estimate before anything gets opened up.
Water heaters
Repair, replacement, and tankless conversions. We carry 40- and 50-gallon units on the van, so a dead heater in the morning is usually hot water again by afternoon.
Fixtures & bathroom work
Faucets, toilets, shower valves, tub drains, garbage disposals. If you bought the fixture yourself, we'll install it — no markup on parts you already own.
Drains & sewer lines
Kitchen and bath clogs, main line stoppages, and camera inspection of clay sewer laterals — common in the older blocks around Fitler Square and Graduate Hospital.
The shop
Started in a garage on Tasker Street. Still family-run.
William Doyle Sr. got his master plumber's license in 1978 and started taking calls out of a rented garage on Tasker Street, mostly for the rowhouses he'd grown up in. He had one rule that he wrote on the inside of the van door: answer the phone, and don't leave a mess. Forty-seven years later the van is newer and the rule hasn't changed.
His two sons came into the business in the nineties — Ray on service calls, Michael on the sewer and drain side. Today the crew is eleven people: six licensed plumbers, two apprentices, a drain technician, and two people in the Chestnut Street office who actually pick up when you call. Ray's daughter Nora runs scheduling, which is why the window we give you is two hours instead of "sometime Tuesday."
We work on the housing stock we grew up in — 1890s rowhouses with original cast iron, converted twins in West Philly, and the newer condo buildings along the Schuylkill where the problem is usually a builder-grade shutoff that was never meant to last a decade. That means we carry parts for old systems, not just new ones. It also means we'll tell you when a repair isn't worth doing and a replacement is the honest answer.
We're not the cheapest quote you'll get, and we're not trying to be. What we are is a shop that's been at the same address long enough that people call us back when their kids buy a house. Most of our work comes from repeat customers and their neighbors, which is the only marketing we've ever really needed.
"If we can fix it for ninety dollars, we're not going to sell you a two-thousand-dollar repipe." — Ray Doyle
- Answer the phone
- A person picks up during business hours. No phone tree, no call-back queue.
- Price before work
- You get the number in writing before we open a wall or cut a pipe.
- Leave it clean
- Drop cloths down, boots off, old parts hauled out with us.
Where we work
Center City and the neighborhoods around it
Our shop is on Chestnut Street between 16th and 17th, so most of our calls are within a few miles. We'll travel further for scheduled work — just ask when you call.
- Rittenhouse & Fitler SquareOlder rowhouses, original cast iron, tight basement access.
- Graduate Hospital & Point BreezeRenovated homes where new fixtures meet old supply lines.
- Washington Square WestRestaurant and small-commercial kitchen lines.
- Logan Square & FairmountHigh-rises and converted twins; mostly valve and riser work.
- University City & West PhillyStudent rentals, quick turnovers, landlord accounts welcome.
- Northern Liberties & FishtownNew construction warranty repairs and tankless installs.
Not sure if you're in range? Call and ask — if we can't get to you, we'll name someone who can.
Visit or call
We're open every day, 9 to 5
The fastest way to reach us is the phone — that's how we schedule, quote, and dispatch. The Chestnut Street office is open for walk-ins, but calling first means someone's already pulling up your address.
Call
(215) 826-3077Answered by a person, Monday through Sunday, 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM. If you reach voicemail after hours, leave the address and what's leaking — we check the box first thing.
Office & mailing address
William & Sons Plumbing1614 Chestnut St #4720
Philadelphia, PA 19103
Between 16th and 17th, a block off Rittenhouse Square. Street parking on Chestnut is metered; the 21 and 42 buses stop at the corner.
Open in Google Maps →Hours
| Monday | 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM |
|---|---|
| Tuesday | 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM |
| Wednesday | 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM |
| Thursday | 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM |
| Friday | 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM |
| Saturday | 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM |
| Sunday | 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM |
For a burst pipe or a flooded basement, call the number above — we keep a technician on rotation for active water.
What neighbors say
"Called at 8:40 with water coming through the kitchen ceiling. Ray was here before 10, found the failed supply line in twenty minutes, and had it capped and dry by lunch."
— Dana M., Fitler Square
"They replaced our water heater and didn't try to upsell us into tankless. Quoted a number, charged that number. Hauled the old tank out with them."
— Priya S., Graduate Hospital
"We manage six rentals in West Philly. William & Sons is the only shop that gives us a two-hour window and actually hits it."
— Tom R., property manager, University City