Herb’s Pool Service Inc

I have been dealing with Herb’s Pool Service since New Year’s Eve of 1971 when Alex Dugan spent 4 hours training me to operate and maintain my pool. Since then I have had great service on all occasions including two major remodels of the pool and drain replacement. In addition Herb’s takes care of my spas for the past 22 years. Yesterday, we experienced a pool furnace failure and the solar didn’t get the temperature up to desired temperature. My wife uses the pool for Aqua Therapy in the evening from April to end of October as prescribed by her doctors. I called Bob Atkinson at 7:30AM this morning and he had Bill here at 11:30 to rectify the problem and now the heater is working to back up the solar. Wow, what great service in an emergency. i have experienced the same when we had a spa problem. Herb’s will be taking care of my pool and spa for the rest of our lives.

I was referred to Herb’s through my home insurance company. They were rude on the phone and took two weeks to send someone out. Then they sent TWO guys– unpleasant andy unnecessary, as one never even spoke. Their rep (Bill?) was totally unhelpful, said if I couldn’t replicate the heating problem in front of him then there was nothing wrong with my tub. I was charged for his visit even though he FAILED to diagnose any problem– then Herb’s refused to send another rep out when I called back with the tub still broken! I called Paradise Valley and they came out within 3 days, replaced the flow switch and hot tub is working again. I strongly recommend against using Herb’s — their customer service is terrible and their technicians are incompetent.

These guys are really atrocious. I have never worked with a company that seemed to care less than Herb’s about providing good customer service. We bought a house and decided to use Herb’s because they had serviced the pool previously. The owner said they were just OK but we decided to give them a try. We used them for 8 months and it seemed like there were issues almost every few weeks. Some weeks the pool guy would simply not show up without any notification and we had to call and get them to come out at all.
A few times when the pool had some extra debris after a storm, the pool guy would just clean it partially and the pool would still be filled with leaves and debris. When I called to ask what happened, I was told, he spends 15 minutes and then leaves. Great service. Most weeks minimal cleaning is needed but when there is a storm and you actually need them to clean it you are out of luck. What are you actually paying for?
There has been some dirt/​sand at the bottom of the pool for months. Other services will vacuum periodically to get the fine grain debris the cleaner/​filer may not get. Not these guys. Not once in 8 months. The spa now has some algae and there has been no action taken by them to address it or even inform me it is there. Another service came out and in 10 minutes provided more information and advice than Herb’s had in almost a year.
The straw that broke the camel’s back was when they broke the pool cleaner. I came home and did not see the cleaner in the pool. I found it removed from the pool and placed in the pool room closet. No call or note from Herb’s. When i called, only then then told me the wall fitting was broke. Their pool guy broke this when removing the cleaner from the pool and when I asked them when they would fix it they said they would do it but would charge me to fix it. I feel like I should not have to pay to fix something that THEY BROKE but agreed to pay for it b/​c wanted it fixed quickly (its a simple fix) and we did not want to wait two weeks without the cleaner. They said they would come and fix it. When they did not come to fix it, we called and they said they would come on Friday. We waited — no show and no call. We called again and they said they would come on Saturday. Then they called Saturday morning and said they would not come until the next appointment which was 2 weeks even though it was to repair a thing that they broke and the delay in fixing could cause the pool to just get dirtier and dirtier. We then cancelled Herb’s Pool service and I could not happier to be done with them. We have many services we pay for to upkeep the house and these guys are BY FAR THE WORST we have dealt with. Its almost like they have a hostility towards their customers for actually demanding a decent level of service.
These guys are the largest in Marin but if you ask around most people who use them are EXTREMELY DISSATISFIED and will share similar stories. Several of our neighbors hate working with these guys but stay with them b/​c there are not that many options. We are making a switch and think others who have poor experience should as well as the service is atrocious and they should have more accountability.

Herb’s has been servicing our pool AND spa over 30 years and they are the very best! I would highly recommend them! Great personal customer service with attention to details, meeting all our expectations. Their products are sure to win you over.

Absolutely first-​rate pool construction by Don, Victor and their crews at our Pinole Valley home. Timely, diligent work, all promises kept, and results much more stout and beautiful than we imagined. The pool could not be better. We could not be happier.

My experience was similar to some of the other reviewers giving low ratings. The Herb’s repair guy shows up basically on time (good), eyeballs the job (poor heating on hot tub), says seems to be working and leaves. A total of 15 minutes was spent on my property and I was charge the minimum hourly rate of $ 125. Nothing was done or resolved. I ended up just buying a new heater on my own via the internet and installing myself since the quote I got from Herb’s over the phone for the same model was 50% higher without the installation costs. There are so few options in Marin for hot tub service I guess these guys have become complacent. I won’t use again.

Well let start off by saying that I maintain and clean my pool by myself so this is not a review of their pool service. I have been going to Herb’s for little over a year (my first house and first pool) and they have been extremely helpful. Laura has been great every time I come in with a sample the others in the store are also good too but Laura goes out of her way to answer all my questions and I will not go anywhere else.

Herb’s is the best pool service I ever had. Their technicians are excellent at what they do and my pool just begs me to jump in.

Baron Chase rocks!

The home service is overpriced and NOT worth it ($ 125 for a 30 min assessment that didn’t even answer my primary questions! IN store I have had very good experience ordering replacement parts.

Herbs has redeemed themselves bob has involved himself and the problem is being resolved

I’ve been using Herb’s Pool Service for 24 years. I have found them to be consistently professional and capable. I realize there are frustrations with hot spas and pools, and some of the reviewers voice that, but over time, Herb’s has proved to be a very valuable resource for my pool and spa. In particular, Baron has been really super in diagnosing and fixing my spa.

I have to disagree with these negative reviews. Pools are inherently frustrating, in my view, but I’ve relied on Herb’s and their service seems to get better. Last year I had to have my filter replaced — they advised me even though I was going to get it through another company. They’ve also been helpful with advice about how to clean my pool since I’ve let it go to crap 2 winters in a row. My pool has an irregular skimmer so it’s hard to vacuum, but they’ve been generous with their time on the phone, and the service man Tim came out to my home twice, but when he realized a few things had to be done before he could vacuum with his powerpack thing, he didn’t charge me the hour minimum either time even though he spent 20 minutes or so each visit. This was in May, their busiest time — I appreciate that. I can’t testify to their skills in building or repairing structural elements of the pool, but I am very pleased with their customer service on all aspects of pool chemistry and maintenance. Laura is also super-​knowledgeable and helpful.

Do yourself a favor. Stay away from Herb’s. They are large, have low standards, and some of their mid-​level guys are really just plain bad at their jobs. Initially, our on-​site pool guy did a reasonable job, as long as nothing new came up. But then we started to have problems with our filter, and he and the next guy up were poorly informed, made a horrible mess in our pump room, filling it with dirty water, and not solving the problem. They suggested spending $ 1000 on fixing a pipe that didn’t need fixing, and then when we complained to the manager, he berated us and suggested we go elsewhere.
So, we did go elsewhere, and we are DELIGHTED with Cliff Bernard’s Pool Service. Nice guy, responsive, knowledgeable, AND does very careful work: filter problem solved, no need for new pipe!

We had an old pool with a sandpaper-​rough coping that would strip off a layer of bathing suit and skin at the same time. We also had a hill/​slope to deal with. Herb’s advised us on the best way to deal with our pool remodel situation, and also recommended us to another contractor specializing in pool decks.
We are happy with the results of the pool remodel, as well as the deck and retaining walls done by the referred contractor. Herb’s Pool Service employees were knowledgeable and helpful. Having dealt with a variety of different types of contractors and vendors, I would not hesitate to recommend this company for the quality of work and knowledge.

Our realtor hired these guys to do an inspection on a house we want to buy. They pointed out many issues that need repair and fixing. Then we waited 4 days (and two reminder calls later) for the report that did NOT include an estimate for the work. When I requested the information I was told they are too busy to provide it. What exactly did I pay $ 250 for?
DO NOT USE.

These guys are the worst. Scheduled an appointment with them last week to service our Jacuzzi and they cancelled the morning of to reschedule the next day. The next day arrives, they never show up and even worse, don’t have the courtesy to call and explain why. I finally called them and they seemed surprised that I would be upset.
Anyone who runs a business in this economy can’t expect to stay in business treating customers this way. Unbelievable.

Definitely had a poor experience with Herb’s Pool Service. We had an appointment for them to come out and look at our hot tub at noon on a Friday. When they didn’t show by 1pm, we phoned and they said it would be at least another hour before they could get to us. This is very inconvenient when you take time off from work to be available for an apt.
There has to be a more timely pool service out there!

I’d bet that these guys are the largest pool service company in marin. I see their trucks everywhere. I’ve tried to use them exactly twice. First time is shame on them. Second time was shame on… shame on… I won’t get fooled again.
The first time I called them I had a problem with my heater. I made an appointment. The guy didn’t show up, so I left and went to work. Then he finally came by and my wife was there… she doesn’t know the first thing about the pool, but she knew the pool heater was broken. So this jerk, walks over to our pool equipment, looks at it for about 30 seconds and says «it’s broke. replace it.» Then he leaves. $ 90. Thanks.
I followed up with Herb’s to try and find out what the deal was and they couldn’t tell me. Useless. So I contested the bill… $ 90 for 30 seconds of works seems like a rip off, especially considering that there was no evidence of their work to be found. But they insisted that I pay the full bill.
I year went by and I had forgotten about the incident. Now my booster pump was failing. So I called Herb’s and made an appointment, first thing in the morning. My wife found out about it and flipped out, reminding of our previous experience: «HERBS IS EVIL!» But I decided to keep the appointment anyway. The day came when they were to arrive and I waited… and waited… I could be at work. and I waited… after an hour they never showed up. So I called, and told them to forget it. «Would you like us to reschedule?» You have to be kidding.
flat-​out, Herb’s sucks. I tried Don Johnson’s Pool Service instead and they have been prompt, complete and courteous.