RP McLaughlin Plumbing and Heating

RP McLaughlin Plumbing and Heating has run out of Salem since 1988 — 38 years, per its BBB profile — and the name that keeps coming up locally, on Reddit and Nextdoor threads about who to call in Salem and Peabody, is theirs. Robert P. McLaughlin holds the company's active Massachusetts plumber license, and the shop is run with his wife Deborah, whom several reviewers know simply as "Debbie." The clearest theme across a decade of Google reviews and local social posts is what happens when the heat goes out. One reviewer called on the coldest morning of the year, left a message with the answering service, and had a tech at the door fixing the furnace before the pipes could freeze. Another called on a warm-enough Saturday, got no answer from seven other plumbers, and still got a courteous callback from McLaughlin even though the crew was too swamped to help right away. A third, in an early-2023 review, groused about a two-day wait for a callback — then updated the same post after McLaughlin came through, going on to use them four more times and calling the wait worth it. That pattern — busy, in demand, but reliable once they're on the job — repeats on Reddit and Nextdoor: neighbors in r/SalemMA and Nextdoor Salem/Peabody describe using the company for a decade or more, across multiple properties, for both plumbing and heating work, and call them fast, honest, and reasonably priced. BuildZoom's permit record backs up the heating focus: about 70 recorded jobs, mostly boiler and water heater replacements around Salem, Peabody, Topsfield, and Methuen, plus gas piping. Its BBB page carries an A+ grade (though the company isn't BBB-accredited) and lists boiler, water heater, radiant heat, and small kitchen and bath repair work. Worth knowing before calling: demand can outrun capacity — a couple of accounts describe the crew as too busy to respond right away during a cold snap, so it's worth calling early or lining up a backup for a true emergency.