Welch Brothers Company Inc

Welch Brothers has been plumbing in Lowell since 1904 — by the Better Business Bureau's count, 122 years — and the thing people specifically call them for is steam. In a February 2025 r/LowellMA thread about replacing a steam boiler, a commenter wrote that Welch "know steam and will properly pipe it," saying the company had replaced one boiler in their two-family and still services both that install and the older one. In steam heating, where a careless repipe is expensive and common, that is a pointed endorsement. The credential lines up. Massachusetts plumbing licence 12870-PL-M is active, held by Derek Lord, and the company prints that same number — #12870 — in its own website footer. A February 2024 reviewer describing a boiler emergency names Derek as the person who called back and talked them through it. That 2024 account is the clearest picture of how they work. A homeowner came home to water streaming from a boiler pipe, called the company that normally services their house, and got nothing from its emergency line overnight or the next morning; a neighbour pointed them to Welch, and Derek rang back shortly after. A September 2022 review describes a Saturday boiler failure where, with every technician out on jobs, the owner drove the truck himself, improvised a fix to get the household through the weekend, chased distributors as far as the West Coast, and called back exactly when he said he would. Beyond heating: an April 2024 customer had a leak fixed and the setup modified so it would not recur, and noted the office produced the insurance certificate their condo association required. A December 2022 customer had a master bathroom renovation done and named Kyle and Gary. Nine reviews spread across five years, all five stars, alongside a 4.5 Google average over 15 ratings — a consistent record, not a deep one. Two things to square before calling. The site markets 24/7 emergency plumbing answered "often within the hour," while its own contact page gives office hours of Monday to Friday, 8am to 4pm with after-hours service by emergency call. And its Better Business Bureau file carries an A+ grade on a profile that states plainly the business is not accredited, records one employee, and names Thomas F. Carey as president — where the company's own site says only "family-owned and operated" and names nobody. Welch is a strong first call for steam and boiler work in Greater Lowell, especially the jobs where the piping is the whole game. Confirm who will actually be on site, ask what an after-hours callout costs, and get the number in writing — the site's own promise is that the price quoted is the price paid.