Hellgate Plumbing, Heating, And Cooling

Hellgate is our go-to for plumbing issues! They’re quick to get us on the schedule and have been really helpful helping us trouble-shoot the usual old-Missoula-house issues that come up. I also really appreciate their plumbers being willing to talk through what they are seeing and answer my questions to help me understand the issues. We have done Hellgate’s membership program and feel like it’s really been worth it. Would definitely recommend these guys!

Hellgate did excellent work for me expanding the plumbing connected to a hydronic home heating system, adding a new heating zone in the basement and installing new radiators. Mike worked with me on an initial visit to strategize a plan to locate piping and radiator placement to provide heat to each room with the least disturbance of drywall or other existing features. He was quite knowledgeable and creative in finding solutions. The team that came later to install the extended system were professional and competent and finished the job on time. I would not hesitate to use Hellgate again for plumbing or heating needs.

The igniter in my furnace went out and I didn’t have the part on hand. It’s a $50 part that literally plugs in and is bolted down by two screws. Maybe a 5-10 minute replacement. So I figured maybe $150-$200 max for the job. It’s my fault for not asking for an estimate, but I didn’t have much of a choice being that it was 60º and below in the house and we have four young kids. Well the igniter stopped functioning the same night they “fixed” it and when I called to ask what my options were, i was basically told it was to book another appointment. So when I asked for a breakdown of the $470 bill, I was told “ummm it includes their knowledge, and tools, and experience and stuff like that”. They couldn’t give an official breakdown of costs. Needless to say, I decided to self diagnose at night when the kids were sleeping. I watched some YouTube videos and poked around the unit. I spent $132 total on new flame rollout switches, a new flame sensor, a new pressure switch, and a new control board. It took me 1-2 hours max to replace everything with brand new parts. It’s up and running with no issues just yet. The house is warm for tonight. No thanks to Hellgate. In the end I am thankful though, I’ve learned some new and very valuable skills apparently. Everybody should fix their own furnaces. They would’ve charged me $1,500+ for the work I did.