Lynn's Heating & Cooling, Sewer & Drain

Lynn's Plumbing Heating & Cooling has been a fixture of Winnipeg homes since 1980, when Bruce and Lynn started it as a single-truck drain cleaning business. Their son, Dallas Friesen, bought the business in 2013 and has since grown the fleet from one truck to 22. Dallas's hard work has allowed the company to broaden well beyond its drain cleaning roots — Lynn's now handles plumbing, heating, air conditioning, sewer and drain, hot water, sump pump, and air quality work across the city and beyond.

A Family Plumbing Business That Started With One Truck in 1980

Dallas was born and raised in Winnipeg. His father, Bruce, had been working at a plumbing wholesaler when he noticed homeowners kept asking for drain cleaning help and there weren't enough people doing it well. Bruce and Lynn started the company together that year, working out of one truck. Dallas grew up around it. He says that growing up in the industry he watched his parents put customer service first — being on time, being clean, being fair, showing up when they said they would. When Dallas took the business over in 2013, those were the standards he kept.

Lynn's Memorable Trucks

For most of the company's history, the trucks looked like every other plumbing truck on the road — red, white, and blue with bullet points. Dallas changed that. He wanted a different feel, something that felt a little more human and gave his crews an icebreaker at the door. The trucks are now pink, with a toilet decal on the driver's door positioned so the driver appears to be sitting on it — a light-hearted touch that Winnipeggers remember when a truck drives by.

The Standard Dallas Holds the Team To

When Dallas talks about what good service looks like, he doesn't lead with the technical work. He talks about how customers are treated. "Easy to speak with. Punctual. They showed up when they said they were going to show up." He talks about cleanliness — "Anybody can be a plumber, but we want to do it in a way that's neat and tidy and efficient." And he talks about fairness, framed in a way that has stuck with the company: treat the customer the way you'd want someone treating your mom. "Lynn is the mother that you always want to keep in mind," Dallas says. "What you do in your own parents' home, do for others." And when a five-star review comes in naming a tech, the team posts it in the office and celebrates it together.

Licensed, Bonded, and Constantly Training

Lynn's carries journeyman plumbers with a contractor license, a licensed electrician, HVAC techs, and gas fitters — every credential needed to pull permits with the City of Winnipeg and Manitoba Hydro. Lynn's stands behind every job. Dallas sends his team out of country for product training when it makes sense, and the company brings up apprentices from inside. "We take pride in doing it right the first time with permits," he says, "and I sleep well at night knowing that's covered."

Getting Ahead of the New Refrigerant Transition

Right now is working on the industry-wide move to a new air conditioning refrigerant, R-454B. It's the biggest change since the shift away from R-22 two decades ago, and it brings new equipment, new install practices, and quieter air conditioners. Dallas is training his team now, before May and June arrive, so the crew is ready when customers start calling about cooling.

What Customers Actually Say

Lynn's holds a 4.8-star rating across more than 940 Google reviews — one of the strongest review profiles among Winnipeg HVAC companies. The themes that come up over and over are communication, punctuality, and walking customers through their options without pressure.

Derek's recent review is a good example. After Dallas and the crew installed a new furnace at his home, he wrote: "Service was fast and Dallas made sure we had sufficient heating throughout the home while waiting for the install of the new unit. We were given multiple options for how we would like to proceed without being pressured into any one of them. The installers made sure we were comfortable and informed every step of the way. They went out of their way to accommodate our needs."

Miles, who'd gathered three quotes for a hot water tank replacement, mentioned that Lynn's not only had the best price but that Josh walked him through the trade-offs option by option, and that Scott and Matt arrived on time on install day and kept him in the loop as the work progressed. Courtney described having a furnace put in on one of the coldest days of the year — Colton and his teammate "patiently explained the work they did and answered any questions I had," she wrote, and checked in throughout to make sure she was comfortable with how things were going. Anna, who needed a drain line cleared on short notice while juggling a full-time job, said Matt was "super efficient, professional, and a great guy to deal with."

Dallas's Advice to Homeowners

Bring in someone who is licensed, insured, and a journeyman who can coach you through a project from start to finish. Read the Google reviews — including the bad ones, and how the company responds to them. Check how long the business has actually operated under the same name. "We take pride since 1980," he says. "We've gone through COVID, we've gone through tariffs, we've gone through a little bit of everything."

Pink Jerseys on the Bonivital Pitch

Outside of the shop, Dallas and the team are heavily involved in Winnipeg's youth soccer scene. Lynn's sponsors Bonivital Soccer — putting jerseys and cleats on kids and supporting the club's all-abilities program for kids with special needs who haven't had organized soccer available to them before. Dallas still plays himself, on the men's side. The community-builder thread runs through the way he talks about the business too: take care of the people in front of you, and do the work like Lynn was watching.