Bill Howe Plumbing
Ranked #2 in our 2026 San Diego water heater guide — best for established full-service depth
Bill Howe Plumbing has served San Diego since 1980 from a Kearny Mesa headquarters that matches its CSLB record. The company displays three license numbers in its footer — C-36 plumbing (#488413, issued 1986), C-20 HVAC, and a B-classification restoration entity — and all three verified current and active. Water heater coverage runs from 24/7 emergency repair through tankless and commercial systems, with financing and a membership plan (from $29.98/month) that waives after-hours dispatch fees for members.
Services
- Repair
- Install & replace
- Tankless
- Maintenance
- Emergency
- Commercial
- Water treatment
- 24/7 availability
- Yes — company-published 24/7 emergency service with a ~30-minute dispatch claim
- Same-day service
- —
- Financing
- Yes
- Pricing
- No service prices published; membership from $29.98/month with published member perks
License & contact
- CSLB license
- #488413 · C-36 Plumbing (plus C-20 #906704 and B #970643 under affiliated entities) · current and active (expires 03/31/2028) (verified against the CSLB lookup)
- History
- Serving San Diego since 1980; corporate C-36 license issued 1986
- Address
- 9210 Sky Park Ct, San Diego, CA 92123
- Phone
- (858) 256-4488
- Website
- billhowe.com
- Service area
- San Diego County, San Diego, Chula Vista, Oceanside, Escondido, Carlsbad, El Cajon, San Marcos
Review signal
The site claims "over 5K 5-star reviews"; the BBB profile was not fetchable, so we publish no rating.
Observed strengths
- Three CSLB licenses displayed on-site and all verified current and active — the most transparent license posture among the large firms
- C-36 plumbing license #488413 active since 1986; headquarters address matches the CSLB record
- Full scope: emergency, tank, tankless, commercial water heaters, and maintenance under one roof
- Publishes membership pricing (from $29.98/month) with concrete perks like waived after-hours dispatch fees
Ask before hiring
- Ask for written warranty terms on installations — none were published on the pages we fetched
- Confirm after-hours dispatch and diagnostic fees for non-members — the waivers are membership perks
- No service prices published — get the total quote in writing
Sources we checked
- Company homepage (since-1980 claim, 24/7 claim, footer license numbers) — checked 2026-06-10
- Water heater page (scope, financing, membership pricing) — checked 2026-06-10
- CSLB license detail #488413 (C-36, Bill Howe Plumbing Inc) — checked 2026-06-10
- CSLB license detail #906704 (C-20, Bill Howe Heating & A/C Inc) — checked 2026-06-10
- CSLB license detail #970643 (B, Bill Howe Restoration & Flood Inc) — checked 2026-06-10
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