Accurate Baker Elman is a high-volume Newton plumbing and HVAC company — Google shows 625 ratings averaging 4.9 stars, and the Better Business Bureau gives it an A+. What stands out across dozens of reviews is how often customers name a specific technician and ask for them again: Frank, Frank Fitch, Zach (Zach Jardim), John (John Lamb), Michael Pascarelli, Drew, Jake, David, and Mike all turn up repeatedly, alongside praise for the office staff, Kathleen and Susan, who handle scheduling.
The emergency-response reviews are the most striking. One customer, writing in 2025, describes a 10:30pm no-heat call: a dispatch text arrived, Frank diagnosed the boiler and made the repair within the hour. A recent review describes a similar after-hours boiler issue — Jake and Pat were on site by 8am, diagnosed the problem, went to get a needed part, and had the system running again the same day. A 2025 review recounts a frozen-pipe panic call answered within minutes and fixed in five.
The work goes beyond routine plumbing: a Reddit commenter, in a 2026 post on r/newtonma, described the company redoing both a boiler and an entire HVAC system, including a new compressor and ductwork, and recommended them. Reviews also describe water heater installs, a hydronic kickspace heater replacement, and a boiler-to-gas conversion. Several customers say they've used the company repeatedly over multiple years for different jobs, including annual boiler servicing.
Pricing comes up as the recurring complaint. One reviewer called a flat-rate charge for a roughly $50 valve and 30 minutes of labor, billed near $500 with no cost breakdown, "arbitrary." An older review, from 2023, describes feeling "taken advantage of" after paying a high price for a minor repair, despite the technician's work being professional. A separate recent review reports two missed appointments — an hour's wait each time with no one showing up.
Accurate Baker Elman looks like a solid call for a plumbing or HVAC emergency, especially given how often the same technicians earn repeat requests — but given the size of the operation and its pricing complaints, it's worth asking for a clear cost breakdown, especially on a flat-rate job, before work begins.