19 min read

Top 4 Plumbers in Chicago, IL

Quick Comparison

Firm Founded / Tenure & Credentials Services & Specialties Geographic Focus
John J. Cahill, Inc. Continuous family operation since 1890 (135 years), founded by John J. Cahill (Irish immigrant); five generations of Cahill family operation; current leadership John J. Cahill II, John J. Cahill III, and Charlie Schaefer; founder served as President of the Illinois Association of Plumbing Contractors (1922); Plumbers Local 130 + Pipefitters Local 597 union shop; EPA-certified pipefitters; NATE-certified HVAC technicians Plumbing (drain cleaning, sewer rodding, sump pump, RPZ backflow, water heaters, flood control), heating (boilers, furnaces, radiant, hydronic, snowmelt, heat pumps), cooling (AC, mini-splits, high-velocity), kitchen and bathroom remodeling Evanston HQ (1515 Church Street, Evanston, IL 60201); North Shore communities including Evanston, Mettawa, Winnetka, broader Chicagoland north corridor
Ravinia Plumbing, Sewer, Heating & Electric Continuous operation since 1928 (98 years), founded by Arnold Peterson (master plumber from Minnesota); three-generation Ariano family ownership succession (Joseph Ariano late 1940s, Don Ariano 1959, David Ariano 1994); Illinois Plumbing License #055-003586; EPA and NATE-certified HVAC technicians; Carrier-authorized dealer; six acquisitions. Murphy and Picchietti 1999, Clifford Moran 2005, DiPietro 2008, Romitti Electric 2012, Mahoney Plumbing 2012, Bishop Heating 2015. Plumbing (water heaters, gas lines, pipe repair, fixtures, garbage disposals, backflow), sewers and drains (rodding, camera inspection, hydro jetting, excavation), HVAC (furnace, heat pump, boiler, AC), indoor air quality, electrical. panels, generators, EV chargers, lighting. Lincolnshire HQ (575 Bond Street, Lincolnshire, IL 60069); 70-plus North Shore and Northwest suburbs including Antioch, Arlington Heights, Bannockburn, Buffalo Grove, Deerfield, Des Plaines, Evanston, Glencoe, Glenview, Highland Park, Lake Forest, Libertyville, Mundelein, Northbrook, Palatine, Skokie, Vernon Hills, Wheeling, Wilmette, Winnetka
Power Plumbing Inc Continuous family operation since 1960 (66 years), founded by Ray and Betty Piccioli; second-generation Piccioli family operation through Joe Piccioli and Rae Piccioli Illinois Plumbing License through IDPH; City of Chicago Plumbing Contractor License; RPZ Valve Certification, Testing & Installation; "Dinosaur Plumbers" pre-war infrastructure specialty; high-rise construction plumbing capacity Chicago HQ (3840 North Ashland Avenue, Chicago, IL 60613); Chicago and surrounding Chicagoland communities
Baethke Plumbing Continuous family operation since 1993 (33 years), three generations of plumbing experience; John Baethke President and CEO; over 250,000 jobs completed across Chicago; Home Repair License #2206371; City of Chicago Plumbing License #SBC134156; State Plumbing Contractor License #055-004154; BBB A+ rating; Kohler Authorized Service Representative; InSinkErator Authorized Service Representative; PHCC + Plumbing Council + Service Roundtable membership Residential and commercial plumbing, emergency service, drain cleaning and repair, water heater installation and repair, sewer line services, fixture installations, frozen pipe repair, repiping, sump pumps, water jetting, grease trap services, kitchen and bathroom remodeling North Side Chicago HQ (3511 N. Cicero Avenue, Chicago, IL 60641); Albany Park, Andersonville, Bucktown, Edgewater, Edison Park, Evanston, Forest Glen, Irving Park, Jefferson Park, Lincoln Park, Lincoln Square, Logan Square, North Center, Oak Park, Old Town, Ravenswood, River North, Sauganash, Sheffield Neighbors, West DePaul

1. John J. Cahill, Inc.

  • Address: 1515 Church Street, Evanston, IL 60201
  • Phone: (847) 864-5225 (24/7 service)
  • Email: [email protected]
  • Hours: Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM (regular); 24/7 emergency service
  • Founder: John J. Cahill (Irish immigrant who established the first Chicago plumbing shop in 1890)
  • Operating Since: 1890 (135 years of continuous family operation across five generations)
  • Generational Succession: John J. Cahill (founder, established 1890; President of Illinois Association of Plumbing Contractors 1922) → John W. Cahill (second generation, expanded to heating, relocated headquarters to Church Street, established the firm’s distinctive orange service trucks) → John J. Cahill II (third generation, took over in the 1960s, introduced air-conditioning and remodeling services) → John J. Cahill III plus Charlie Schaefer (current operating leadership across third, fourth, and fifth generations)
  • Credentials: Plumbers Local 130 + Pipefitters Local 597 union shop; EPA-certified pipefitters; NATE-certified HVAC technicians; Carrier-authorized dealer
  • Service area: North Shore Chicago metropolitan corridor including Evanston, Mettawa, Winnetka, plus broader Chicagoland north
  • Website: cahillinc.com

Owner-Family Continuity From 1890 Through Five Chicago Generations

John J. Cahill, Inc. has operated continuously since 1890, when Irish immigrant John J. Cahill established his first Chicago plumbing shop after planting his roots in the city and the North Shore in the 1880s. The 135-year service span spans the full arc of Chicago’s plumbing infrastructure history, from the late-Victorian era through the 1893 Columbian Exposition urban-development boom, the post-Great-Chicago-Fire (1871) rebuild cycle whose final completion phase ran through the 1890s-1910s, the prewar bungalow expansion across Chicago’s neighborhood corridors, the postwar North Shore suburban surge through Evanston and Wilmette, and the contemporary luxury-renovation cycle across the lakefront communities. The continuous operation also spans the full evolution of the Illinois Plumbing Code and the Chicago Plumbing Code, with each code revision reshaping how licensed master plumbers route service work through the City of Chicago Department of Buildings and the Illinois Department of Public Health permit-and-inspection systems. By 1922, founder John J. Cahill had earned recognition as President of the Illinois Association of Plumbing Contractors, placing the firm’s leadership role within the regional trade-association infrastructure. The five-generation continuity from founder through John W. Cahill, John J. Cahill II, John J. Cahill III, and the current operating team produces a tenure profile that few Illinois plumbing practices match.

Five-Generation Cahill Succession From Irish Immigrant Origins

The Cahill family operating succession runs across five generations, with the lineage tracing from the 1880s arrival of John J. Cahill in Chicago through the contemporary operating team led by John J. Cahill II, John J. Cahill III, and Charlie Schaefer. The second-generation transition under John W. Cahill expanded the firm beyond plumbing into heating service work and relocated the operating headquarters to Church Street in Evanston, where the orange service trucks became neighborhood fixtures across the North Shore corridor. The third-generation transition under John J. Cahill II in the 1960s introduced air-conditioning and kitchen-and-bathroom remodeling services, setting up the modern multi-trade service profile. Each generational transition preserved the firm’s union-shop working framework and the family operating principles while expanding the service stack to match the evolving Chicago and North Shore residential and commercial market. The continuity matters operationally because century-and-a-half-old building stock requires deep operating familiarity with how late-Victorian Chicago plumbing was specified, what early-1900s North Shore residential rough-ins look like behind plaster-and-lath walls, and which Evanston, Wilmette, Winnetka, and Lake Forest neighborhoods carry which historical plumbing-infrastructure profiles.

Union-Shop Operating Model and Plumbers Local 130 Membership

John J. Cahill, Inc. operates as a union shop with technicians from Plumbers Local 130 (the Chicago plumbers union) and Pipefitters Local 597, positioning the firm’s labor-relations business model in the regional union-shop infrastructure. The union-shop status matters for Chicago commercial and large-residential work, where union labor agreements secure permit-pulling, prevailing-wage compliance, and large-project specification work. The company emphasizes “fair wages and continuing education for skilled workers” as core operating principles tied to the union model. EPA-certified pipefitters extend the regulatory scope into refrigerant-handling work for the cooling specialty, while NATE-certified HVAC technicians root the heating-and-cooling certification profile. The Carrier-authorized dealer designation rounds out the manufacturer-authorization layer for HVAC equipment specification, producing a credential profile that combines union-shop labor practice plus EPA and NATE technical certifications plus manufacturer authorization across multiple service categories.

Evanston Headquarters Plus North Shore Coverage

John J. Cahill operates from 1515 Church Street in Evanston, with the headquarters location establishing the firm’s continuous Church Street operating presence dating to the second-generation expansion era. The Evanston positioning shapes daily-dispatch reach across the full North Shore corridor (Evanston, Wilmette, Winnetka, Glencoe, Highland Park, Lake Forest, Lake Bluff) plus the inner-ring suburbs (Skokie, Lincolnwood) and into northern Chicago neighborhoods (Edgewater, Rogers Park, West Ridge). The Church Street headquarters also places the firm geographically inside the dense prewar building stock corridor where 1890s-1920s residential construction defines the typical service profile (original lath-and-plaster walls, cast-iron drain stacks, galvanized supply lines, lead service connections that the contemporary water-replacement programs target). Beyond the immediate North Shore corridor, the firm’s published service area extends into Mettawa and the broader Chicagoland north, with the union-shop dispatch model supporting commercial-grade reach across Cook and Lake Counties.

Whole-Home Service Stack From Plumbing Through HVAC and Remodeling

The John J. Cahill service stack spans four coordinated lines: plumbing, heating, cooling, and remodeling. The plumbing scope covers drain cleaning, sewer rodding, sump pump repair and replacement (with battery-backup options), water heater service and installation, RPZ backflow prevention, and flood-control solutions. The heating scope covers boiler installation and repair, furnace work, in-floor radiant heating, ductless mini-split systems, hydronic heating, snowmelt systems, garage heaters, heat pumps, ductwork, and thermostats. The cooling scope covers AC installation and repair, high-velocity systems, ductless mini-splits, and HVAC maintenance. The remodeling scope covers kitchen and bathroom reconstructions where the integrated trade capacity (plumbing + heating + cooling all in-house) removes the typical specification friction between trades on whole-home renovation projects. The 24/7 emergency service availability completes the operating-hours profile.

2. Ravinia Plumbing, Sewer, Heating & Electric

  • Address: 575 Bond Street, Lincolnshire, IL 60069
  • Phone: (847) 579-5565; (847) 719-6037 (emergency 24/7)
  • Email: [email protected]
  • Hours: Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM; Saturday 8:00 AM to 1:30 PM; 24/7/365 emergency
  • Founder: Arnold Peterson (master plumber, migrated to Highland Park from Minnesota in the mid-1920s; established 1928 from the basement of a hardware store on Roger Williams Avenue)
  • Operating Since: 1928. 98 years of continuous service
  • Generational Succession: Arnold Peterson (founder, 1928 to 1955) → Joseph Ariano (joined late 1940s) → Don Ariano (joined 1959, aeronautical engineering degree) → David Ariano (joined 1994, mechanical engineering master’s degree from the University of Illinois)
  • Acquisition history: Murphy and Picchietti Plumbing (acquired 1999), Clifford Moran Plumbing (acquired 2005), DiPietro Plumbing Services (acquired 2008), Romitti Electric (acquired 2012), Mahoney Plumbing & Heating (acquired 2012), Bishop Heating (acquired 2015)
  • License: Illinois Plumbing License #055-003586
  • Credentials: EPA and NATE-certified HVAC technicians. Carrier-authorized dealer; fully licensed state contractors with comprehensive insurance
  • Service area: 70-plus North Shore and Northwest suburbs across Cook and Lake Counties
  • Website: raviniaplumbing.com

Continuous Operation Since 1928 With Three-Generation Ariano Succession

Ravinia Plumbing, Sewer, Heating & Electric has operated continuously since 1928, when Arnold Peterson, a master plumber who migrated from Minnesota, established the firm in Highland Park from the basement of a hardware store on Roger Williams Avenue. The 98-year geographic reach spans the full Chicago North Shore building stock evolution from the late-1920s lakefront residential boom through the postwar Highland Park and Northbrook expansion, the 1960s-1970s North Shore tract development across Buffalo Grove and Vernon Hills, the 1990s-2000s luxury renovation cycle, and the contemporary Lake County mixed-use construction wave. The Ariano family operating succession runs across three generations: Joseph Ariano joined the firm in the late 1940s, Don Ariano (Arnold Peterson’s son) entered in 1959 with an aeronautical engineering degree, and David Ariano joined in 1994 with a master’s degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Illinois. The engineering-degree credential profile across the second and third generations distinguishes Ravinia from credential-only plumbing competitors, with the engineering training translating into systems-level specification work for whole-home renovation, multi-zone HVAC, and complex commercial projects.

Six-Acquisition Operating Portfolio Plus IL License #055-003586

Ravinia operates under Illinois Plumbing License #055-003586 as the foundational state credential, supplemented by EPA and NATE certifications across the HVAC technician team plus Carrier-authorized dealer status. Beyond the underlying license stack, Ravinia has assembled a six-acquisition operating portfolio across three decades. The first acquisition, Murphy and Picchietti Plumbing in 1999, expanded the plumbing scope. Clifford Moran Plumbing followed in 2005, with DiPietro Plumbing Services acquired in 2008 alongside the firm’s relocation to 1580 Old Skokie. The 2012 dual acquisition of Romitti Electric and Mahoney Plumbing & Heating added the electrical-services line plus additional heating capacity. The 2015 acquisition of Bishop Heating rounded out the contemporary operating portfolio. The acquisition history means Ravinia carries combined institutional knowledge from seven predecessor firms (the original Peterson founding plus six acquired operations), producing a tenure-and-acquisition profile that separates the operation from organic-growth-only competitors in the North Shore plumbing market.

Lincolnshire Headquarters Plus Seventy-Plus North Shore Communities

Ravinia operates from 575 Bond Street in Lincolnshire, with the current headquarters established in 2019 after the firm’s relocation from earlier locations on Roger Williams Avenue (1928 founding through 1955 rebuild) and 1580 Old Skokie (2008 to 2019). The Lincolnshire positioning shapes daily-dispatch reach across the full North Shore and Northwest suburbs corridor. The published service area covers 70-plus communities including Antioch, Arlington Heights, Bannockburn, Barrington, Buffalo Grove, Deerfield, Des Plaines, Evanston, Glencoe, Glenview, Grayslake, Highland Park, Highwood, Lake Bluff, Lake Forest, Libertyville, Lincolnshire, Lincolnwood, Mundelein, Northbrook, Palatine, Riverwoods, Skokie, Vernon Hills, Wheeling, Wilmette, and Winnetka. The 70-community published service area distinguishes Ravinia from neighborhood-supported competitors, with the breadth supporting commercial-grade reach across Cook and Lake Counties plus the integrated plumbing-plus-sewer-plus-HVAC-plus-electric service stack covering whole-home renovation projects through one operating team.

3. Power Plumbing Inc

  • Address: 3840 North Ashland Avenue, Chicago, IL 60613
  • Phone: (773) 248-9574
  • Email: [email protected]
  • Hours: Monday and Tuesday 7:30 AM to 4:30 PM; Wednesday 7:30 AM to 2:30 PM; Thursday 7:30 AM to 4:30 PM; Friday 7:30 AM to 4:00 PM; after-hours emergency available
  • Founders: Ray and Betty Piccioli (1960)
  • Current Owners: Joe Piccioli and Rae Piccioli (second-generation Piccioli family operation)
  • Operating Since: 1960. 66 years of continuous family operation
  • Specialty Profile: “Dinosaur Plumbers” nickname for handling Chicago’s pre-war infrastructure; RPZ Valve Certification, Testing & Installation; high-rise construction plumbing; ancient pipes and fixtures specialty
  • Service area: Chicago and Chicagoland surrounding communities
  • Website: powerplumbinginc.com

Family Operation Since 1960 With Piccioli Lineage

Power Plumbing Inc has operated continuously since 1960, when Ray and Betty Piccioli established the firm in Chicago. The 66-year geographic reach spans the full postwar Chicago neighborhood expansion through the 1970s-1980s industrial-conversion era, the 1990s lakefront luxury-condominium boom, the contemporary high-rise residential development across the Loop and the West Loop, and the broader Chicagoland renovation cycle. The Piccioli family operating succession runs across two generations, with Joe Piccioli and Rae Piccioli currently carrying the operating roles forward from the founders’ generation. The 60-plus-year continuous operation has produced the firm’s “Dinosaur Plumbers” nickname, reflecting the operating-team’s institutional memory of how Chicago’s pre-war plumbing was specified across the late-Victorian and early-twentieth-century building stock that defines much of Chicago’s neighborhood corridors. The deep operating familiarity with how each Chicago neighborhood’s pre-war building stock routes plumbing service work transfers across owner generations, underpinning the firm’s specialty profile in the older-infrastructure segment of the Chicago market.

Pre-War Infrastructure Specialty and RPZ Valve Certification

Power Plumbing’s published material describes the firm’s specialty profile as covering “ancient pipes and fixtures” typical of Chicago’s older infrastructure, rooting the operating focus in the pre-war building stock segment where 1890s-1930s residential and commercial buildings carry original cast-iron drain stacks, galvanized supply lines, and lead service-line connections that contemporary water-replacement programs target. The “Dinosaur Plumbers” nickname captures the firm’s positioning within the Chicago plumbing market as the specialty practice for the older-infrastructure segment that newer firms typically subcontract or decline. The RPZ (Reduced Pressure Zone) Valve Certification, Testing & Installation specialty extends the firm’s regulatory scope into the backflow-prevention work that the City of Chicago Department of Water Management and the Illinois Department of Public Health both administer through annual testing-and-certification requirements for commercial and two-and-three-unit residential properties.

Chicago HQ Plus High-Rise Construction Capacity

Power Plumbing operates from 3840 North Ashland Avenue in Chicago, placing the firm geographically inside the North Side corridor (Lakeview, Roscoe Village, North Center, Bowmanville) where dense pre-war residential building stock defines the typical service profile. The Ashland Avenue headquarters positioning shapes daily-dispatch reach across the North Side neighborhoods plus the broader Chicago lakefront corridor (Lincoln Park, Old Town, Gold Coast, Lakeview East, Uptown). Beyond the residential service profile, Power Plumbing’s published service stack includes high-rise construction plumbing, grounding the firm’s commercial-grade reach into the contemporary high-rise residential and commercial development across the Loop, the West Loop, and the South Loop. The high-rise scope distinguishes Power Plumbing from residential-only Chicago plumbers, with the high-rise specification work requiring different pump-system, riser, and fire-suppression specifications than typical low-rise residential work.

4. Baethke Plumbing

  • Address: 3511 N. Cicero Avenue, Chicago, IL 60641
  • Phone: (312) 548-8712 (primary); (773) 570-9759 (secondary); 24/7 service
  • Owner / President / CEO: John Baethke. three generations of plumbing experience tied to the family lineage
  • Operating Since: 1993. 33 years of continuous family operation; over 250,000 jobs reported across Chicago
  • Licenses: Home Repair License #2206371; City of Chicago Plumbing License #SBC134156; State Plumbing Contractor License #055-004154
  • Credentials: BBB A+ rating; Kohler Authorized Service Representative; InSinkErator Authorized Service Representative; PHCC member; Plumbing Council member; Service Roundtable member; uniformed, licensed and background-checked plumbers; 100% customer satisfaction guarantee
  • Service area: Albany Park, Andersonville, Bucktown, Edgewater, Edison Park, Evanston, Forest Glen, Irving Park, Jefferson Park, Lincoln Park, Lincoln Square, Logan Square, North Center, Oak Park, Old Town, Ravenswood, River North, Sauganash, Sheffield Neighbors, West DePaul
  • Website: baethkeplumbing.com

Family Operation Since 1993 With Three-Generation Plumbing Lineage

Baethke Plumbing has operated continuously since 1993 under John Baethke as President and CEO with the firm’s published material describing “three generations of plumbing experience” tied to the Baethke family lineage even though the current firm-name operation began in 1993. The 33-year geographic reach spans the late-1990s North Side renovation surge, the 2000s lakefront residential development, the post-2008 mortgage-crisis maintenance era, and the contemporary two-and-three-unit conversion wave that defines current Chicago neighborhood plumbing work. The Cicero Avenue headquarters places Baethke geographically inside the North Side corridor between Irving Park and Portage Park, with daily-dispatch reach extending across the broader North Side neighborhoods. The published service area covers 20 named Chicago neighborhoods plus Evanston and Oak Park, distinguishing the firm from generalist Chicago plumbers who advertise broader-but-vaguer geographic coverage.

Three-License Stack Plus Manufacturer Authorizations

Baethke holds an particularly deep three-license credential stack: City of Chicago Plumbing License #SBC134156, Illinois State Plumbing Contractor License #055-004154, and Home Repair License #2206371. The City of Chicago license addresses Department of Buildings permit-and-inspection work within the city limits, the State license covers Illinois Department of Public Health permit-pulling across the broader Chicagoland market, and the Home Repair license covers the residential-renovation and contractor-scope work that overlaps plumbing into kitchen and bathroom remodeling. The triple-license profile means Baethke can route permit-pulling work through whichever jurisdictional tier the project requires without subcontracting the licensing piece to third-party contractors. Beyond the underlying license stack, Baethke holds Kohler Authorized Service Representative status (covering Kohler’s residential plumbing fixtures and installation), InSinkErator Authorized Service Representative status (covering garbage disposal installation and warranty work), plus active membership in the Plumbing-Heating-Cooling Contractors Association (PHCC), the Plumbing Council, and the Service Roundtable.

High-Volume Operating History Plus North Side Service Profile

Baethke’s published material reports completing over 250,000 plumbing jobs across the Chicago operating history, with the volume claim placing the firm’s procedural-experience profile across the 33-year continuous operation. The volume profile averages roughly 7,500 jobs per year, distributed across the residential and commercial service categories. The residential scope covers emergency plumbing, drain cleaning and repair, faucet replacement, fixture installation, frozen pipe repair (a Chicago-specific seasonal-failure mode that defines winter plumbing call volume), repiping, sewer line work, toilet services, water heater installation, sump pump repair and replacement, and water meter installation. The commercial scope covers drain and sewer repair, frozen pipes, grease trap services, repiping, storm drain cleaning, water jetting, leak services, and water meter installation. The kitchen and bathroom remodeling scope rounds out the integrated services profile, with code-inspection coordination handled through the firm’s licensed-contractor permit-pulling capacity.

Reference Notes

Chicago presents a structurally complex market for licensed plumbing contractor practice. The City of Chicago Department of Buildings administers building permits within the city limits, the Cook County Department of Public Health administers permits for unincorporated Cook County, the Lake County Department of Public Health administers Lake County, and the Illinois Department of Public Health administers state-level plumbing licensing through individual master plumber license numbers. The Illinois Plumbing Code grounds permit-pulling, inspection, and code-compliance work, with provisions covering frozen pipe protection (a Chicago-specific seasonal-failure mode), backflow prevention through RPZ valve certification, lead service line replacement under the contemporary federal and state water-quality programs, and the broader licensing-and-permitting regime that the City of Chicago Department of Water Management and the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago both administer for sewer and water-main interface work. The Chicago building stock stretches across roughly a century-and-a-half of construction eras, from the post-Great-Chicago-Fire (1871) Victorian-era rebuild through the late-1800s neighborhood expansion (Pilsen, Bucktown, Logan Square, Wicker Park, Bridgeport), the prewar bungalow-belt construction across the Northwest and Southwest sides (1900s-1940s), the postwar suburban North Shore expansion through Evanston, Wilmette, Highland Park, and Lake Forest, the 1960s-1980s urban-renewal era, and the contemporary lakefront luxury construction across the Loop and the South Loop. Verification routes for licensed plumbing contractor credentials run through the City of Chicago licensed-contractors database at webapps1.chicago.gov, the Illinois Department of Public Health master plumber license database, the BBB business-profile listings, the Plumbing-Heating-Cooling Contractors Association of Illinois directory, the Plumbers Local 130 union directory for union-shop verification, and each firm’s own published website and service-area copy. Continuous decades-long operation matters in Chicago because century-and-a-half-old building stock requires deep operating familiarity with how late-Victorian Chicago plumbing was specified. Original cast-iron drain stacks and galvanized supply lines route through Pilsen and Bucktown two-flats. North Shore neighborhoods each carry distinct prewar plumbing-infrastructure profiles that long-tenured firms learn through repeated dispatch.

Tenure profiles vary across the four firms profiled. John J. Cahill, Inc. secures the longest continuous tenure span (1890 founding by Irish immigrant John J. Cahill, founder serving as President of the Illinois Association of Plumbing Contractors in 1922, five-generation family succession through John W. Cahill, John J. Cahill II, John J. Cahill III, and Charlie Schaefer, Evanston Church Street headquarters since the second-generation expansion era, Plumbers Local 130 plus Pipefitters Local 597 union shop, EPA and NATE certifications, Carrier-authorized dealer). Ravinia Plumbing, Sewer, Heating & Electric runs a 98-year continuous operation (1928 founding by Minnesota-trained master plumber Arnold Peterson in the basement of a Highland Park hardware store, three-generation Ariano family succession with Don Ariano joining 1959 holding an aeronautical engineering degree and David Ariano joining 1994 with a mechanical engineering master’s from the University of Illinois, Illinois Plumbing License #055-003586, six-acquisition operating portfolio across 1999-2015 including Murphy and Picchietti, Clifford Moran, DiPietro, Romitti Electric, Mahoney Plumbing and Bishop Heating, 70-plus North Shore community service area). Power Plumbing Inc carries a 66-year continuous family operation (1960 founding by Ray and Betty Piccioli, second-generation Piccioli operation through Joe Piccioli and Rae Piccioli, North Side Chicago Ashland Avenue headquarters, “Dinosaur Plumbers” nickname for pre-war infrastructure specialty, RPZ Valve Certification, Testing & Installation, high-rise construction plumbing capacity). Baethke Plumbing runs a 33-year continuous family operation (1993 founding under John Baethke President and CEO, three-generation Baethke family plumbing lineage extending beyond the firm’s 1993 founding date, North Side Chicago Cicero Avenue headquarters, three-license credential stack covering Home Repair #2206371 plus City of Chicago Plumbing #SBC134156 plus State Plumbing Contractor #055-004154, BBB A+ rating, Kohler and InSinkErator manufacturer authorizations, PHCC plus Plumbing Council plus Service Roundtable trade-association memberships, over 250,000 jobs across the Chicago operating history). The four firms share three patterns: each shows long-running ownership continuity tied to named principals or family operators, each holds one or more active Illinois plumbing contractor licenses verifiable through state and municipal databases, and each services Chicago and the broader Chicagoland metropolitan area from a Cook County or Lake County-rooted headquarters. John J. Cahill spans the longest combined profile through the five-generation Cahill family succession, the 135-year continuous Evanston operating presence, the union-shop labor model with Plumbers Local 130 plus Pipefitters Local 597, the EPA plus NATE technical-certification stack, and the integrated plumbing-plus-heating-plus-cooling-plus-remodeling coordinated service stack covering whole-home renovation projects through one operating team.

Selection Methodology

Selection follows four criteria. First, continuous family ownership or founder-operator continuity outside the national rollup pattern. Second, verifiable IL Plumbing License plus City of Chicago Plumbing Contractor License license cross-checked via the Illinois Department of Public Health Plumbing Program public lookup. Third, BBB Accreditation or equivalent third-party rating. Fourth, minimum 10-year continuous operating tenure with documented Chicago, IL service coverage. Firms acquired by national franchise networks (Authority Brands’ Benjamin Franklin Plumbing, Neighborly’s Mr. Rooter, Service Experts, Roto-Rooter, Wrench Group, Redwood Services, Master Trades Group, ARS) are excluded.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I verify a Chicago, IL plumber’s license?

Use the Illinois Department of Public Health Plumbing Program public licensee database at idph.illinois.gov. Search by license number or business name. Confirm active status, classification, bonding, and insurance before authorizing work.

What credentials should a Chicago, IL plumber hold?

At minimum: IL Plumbing License plus City of Chicago Plumbing Contractor License credential plus general liability insurance and workers’ compensation coverage. Specialty work (gas line, backflow prevention, fire sprinkler, sewer lateral) requires additional credential layers.

How can I tell if a Chicago, IL plumber is locally owned versus a national rollup?

Check ownership disclosures and acquisition history. National franchise brands typically operate under parent-company branding. Search the firm name plus “acquired” or “parent company” to surface ownership structure. The four firms in this directory all run as independent locally-owned operators.

When should I call an emergency plumber in Chicago?

Burst pipes, sewer backups, gas leaks, no-water events, frozen-pipe events, and water heater failures justify after-hours dispatch. Chicago winter cold snaps drive freeze-burst pipe demand across the city and Chicagoland suburbs. Each firm in this directory offers either 24/7 emergency service or structured after-hours response.

Editorial Note

Compiled by the editorial team. Firm details cross-verified through state license databases, BBB business profiles, and firm-published websites where available. License numbers should be re-verified through the Illinois Department of Public Health Plumbing Program public lookup before authorizing work. Information current as of the date below; firm details may change without notice. Last updated: 2026-05-10.