Back in 1950, John and Anna Mae McHale started a simple plumbing business with one truck and the philosophy: “We do what we say we are going to do!” Trust was so ingrained in John’s philosophy that he would go to job sites for free, complete the work over a hand shake and mail the customer a bill.

Today, McHales is under third-generation owner Tim McHale, with two divisions—one dedicated to kitchen and bath remodeling, another for residential plumbing, heating, cooling, electrical and drain cleaning. In 2019, McHales Inc. hit a milestone and purchased truck number 100. The company handles about 5,000 service calls per year, remodels about 100 kitchens and baths and is approaching 2,000 online reviews. Although the company has evolved from the days of bills in the mail to include paperless invoicing with iPads and GPS tracked vehicles, everything is still being run from the original location on Trenton Road in Levittown and the simple philosophy, “We do what we say we are going to do!” remains.

House & Home spoke with Tim about McHales’ growth and the charitable arm, McHales Cares, to find out why the community has been an essential part of their success.

McHales handles so many components of home remodeling and service. How did it go from simple plumbing to a two-division company?
John McHale Jr., my father, returned from the Vietnam War, where he served in the Navy, and received his Master Plumber license in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. He learned the business from the ground up, and recognized that post-World War II homes were in need of updates. In the 1970s, he started to expand into remodeling, and even became one of the first Master Plumbers to own a computer and install Motorola CBs in his trucks in the ’80s.

I was the first McHale to graduate from college in the ’90s, earning a business degree from California University of PA, as well as my Master Plumbing license. With my background in the trade and business operations, I helped take the company from a mom-and-pop shop to one of the largest service companies in Bucks County. McHales Inc. now provides service in plumbing, electrical, heating, air conditioning and drain cleaning. The kitchen and bath remodeling division has won Contractor of the Year 10 times by the National Association of the Remodeling Industry (NARI) and we are multiple winners of Best of Bucks and Bucks Happening.

You always say the Bucks County community has been a huge part of your success. Why is that, and how do you show your appreciation?
Over the last 71 years, our customers have made us who we are, and we have continued to grow and serve them. Without them, there is no McHales. To us, it is vital to give back, and we do so through McHales Cares, our community give-back program. Our goal is to find well-deserving charities in our backyard that could use a little help. We will donate $1,000 each month, so the winning charity can continue to give back to the same community that McHales has been a part over for over 71 years. You can go to McHalesCares.com and vote every day. Whichever charity gets the most votes at the end of the month wins $1,000. You can also nominate new charities on the site as well.

What else do you want the Bucks County community to know about McHales?
Since 1950 we have provided our customers with prompt, dependable service at a reasonable cost. We use quality materials installed by skilled, courteous craftsmen. My wife Lorraine and I are now raising the fourth generation in the business, Lily and Jackson. They are already running around the office, asking questions and making their TV debut in some of the cutest commercials you’ve seen in awhile. Through it all, we continue to follow my grandfather’s simple philosophy: “We do what we say we are going to do!” We think John and Anna Mae would be proud.

McHales Kitchen & Bath
Levittown, Pa. | (215) 493-3399
McHales.net

Published (and copyrighted) in House & Home, Volume 22, Issue 1 (October 2021). 
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