Affordable Chimney Sweeps Reviews (%countItem)
Affordable Chimney Sweeps Rating
Address: 109 Davis St, North Andover, Massachusetts, United States, 01845
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During the recent *** Disaster in the *** I was in need of an alternative heat source. On November 1, 2018 Affordable Chimney Sweeps installed a pellet stove in my home. There were problems from the start. The stove would burn for several hours and then go out. There were many unproductive service calls ( 5 or 6? ) as the "technicians" tried to guess what was wrong. I also asked whether the fan/blower was working, as it did not seem right to me. I was told that it was working. It was finally determined that a faulty switch was the problem and I was told that a new part would arrive in a few days. On or about Dec 3rd, after several weeks of waiting for the new switch and phone calls too numerous to remember I just wanted my money back. Coincidently, I was told the next day that the part was in. By now, I had lost confidence in Affordable Chimney Sweeps and still wanted a refund. I met with owner, Mr *** , who flatly refused any reimbursement and subjected me to demeaning and intimidating remarks; at one point informing me that his wife is an attorney. I was still dealing with the chaos of the *** disaster , weary and stressed, so I agreed to allow the part to be installed. The stove worked for awhile, but on March 05, 2019 I awoke to find that the stove had gone out again for no apparent reason. I called Affordable Chimney and was told that the technician would be here the next day ; no one called and no one showed up. When he did get here on March 7th he could not diagnose the problem and said he'd call the stove company and get back to me. On March 11 I still had no call back and I awoke to a cold stove yet again. In the end, I had to hire an independent CERTIFIED pellet stove technician who told me that:
1. The flue liner is too large for my fireplace resulting in an improper fit of the stove.
2. Affordable Chimney techs screwed the unit right into my brick fireplace which is not the correct thing to do.
3.The blower/fan switch was , indeed, non-functional which is why the stove did not stay lit.
In other words ... Affordable Chimney Sweeps never installed my stove properly. Their technicians are not certified. Affordable Chimney has refused to take responsibility and as of today , May 29, 2019, the problem is still not resolved.
Tell us why here... Thank you for the opportunity to respond. I strongly disagree with ***’s (“”) complaint and false allegations. On October 24, 2018, *** chose the *** Greenfire GF155 Wood Pellet Insert model that *** purchased and paid for the installation fee through the *** Disaster Assistance. At no time did *** pay any money personally to my company for the stove and the installation. *** reviewed and signed our contract which clearly states that the homeowner is required to obtain a building permit for the installation of the unit and that *** chose a stove for special order which is nonrefundable. After we provided *** with receipts, a representative of *** contacted us to confirm the purchase and installation price which we verified for *** so she could receive this temporary alternative heat source at no cost to her. On November 1, 2018, our company installed the stove. On November 2, 2018, *** called the Town of ***’s Building Inspector Department to complain that my company did not pull a permit and that the installation was incorrect. In turn, the *** Building Inspector called our company to blame my company for not pulling a permit. I personally spoke with the Inspector and explained the fact that *** was required to get the permit. In the meantime, *** called our office to complain that although the stove stayed lit for most of the night, it stopped working. I sent a CSIA Certified Chimney Technician with 25 years’ experience to ’s home to meet with the *** Building Inspector to review the installation of the pellet stove, which included the chimney liner size approved by *** the stove manufacturer. While at ’s home on November 2, 2018, our technician was able to start the stove. On November 9, 2018, *** called our office again to report the stove was not staying lit. We sent our technician over immediately and once again we were able to light the stove. On November 12, 2018, *** called us again and reported the stove would not stay lit. We responded immediately and sent technicians over the same day to troubleshoot the issue. Since the installation date, our technicians could always restart the stove without issue so we contacted ***’s Technical Department while at ’s home to troubleshoot any other error that might be occurring with the unit. While the technician reviewed the unit at ’s home with ***, it was determined the High-Low Temperature Switch was malfunctioning and should be replaced on the stove because is was causing a premature shut-off based on an inaccurate reading when in-fact it was not overheating and at a normal temperature. We ordered the replacement part that day from *** as part of the stove’s warranty. During this time period, we updated *** on the status of the part’s delivery weekly. We explained that unfortunately it was backordered and not available from the *** manufacturer that is global and due to the fall seasonal high demand of the chimney industry as a whole in the nationwide. On November 26, 2018, *** called our office to let us know *** had restored heat to her home and said there was no rush on the part, as she had heat. On December 4, 2018, our office called *** to let her know we received the part and wanted to schedule the installation with her. That same day *** emailed our office to demand a full refund for the stove and the installation paid by ***. Our office called , however, she did not respond to our voicemail messages until December 7, 2018. *** refused to allow our company to install the replacement part. She insisted on a refund or if we refused, she would allow the replacement part but only after our company provided a written guarantee that she would personally receive a full refund for the stove and installation if it failed to work. On December 10, 2018, my office called *** and told her we would not provide her with an additional warranty on the stove. My office contacted a *** representative and had him call *** directly to discuss the manufacturer’s warranty on the pellet stove. *** spoke with the *** representative but would not cooperate and he told her “What do you have to lose by letting them come in and install the part?” My office also attempted to explain once again the stove’s warranty is with ***, the manufacturer and not with us but *** became argumentative. *** demanded a refund for the payment of the stove and installation. My office mentioned that ’s stove and installation was paid by *** and she became extremely defensive and accused my technicians of inexperience. On December 14, 2018, *** came to my office and demanded a complete refund. As I spoke with , she mocked me, talked over me and gestured wildly. *** became extremely argumentative and completely disrespectful to me in front of my staff. Since I refused to give *** a full refund or an additional written warranty for a full refund, *** complained that I was rude and left my office. I was completely shocked by the breakdown in communication but in an effort to resolve the issue, we called *** and she came back to the office. I explained that my business was also impacted by the *** Explosion and I understood her frustration. *** agreed to allow the replacement part installation and appeared to be satisfied by our conversation. *** even presented a felt doll to my office staff as a kind gesture after our meeting that day. On December 17, 2018, our technicians returned to ’s home and installed the replacement part. There appeared to be no problems. On January 18, 2019, *** called us and said that the stove was fixed and asked us to come over and install the surround. We returned to finish the installation and screwed the pellet stove surround into the brick at her request because *** did not like it sticking out and wanted it as close to the brick as possible. *** appeared to be satisfied and we did not hear from her until March 5, 2019 when *** called to complain the pellet stove burn pot was overflowing with pellets but there was no flame. Our office scheduled a service call for the following day. Unfortunately, that day our technician became ill and we needed to reschedule the appointment for March 7, 2019. When our technician arrived at ’s home the stove was unplugged. Our technician plugged in the appliance and it started up right away without any problems. While our technician was there trying to troubleshoot for any other issue, *** began to speak disparagingly about me personally and my company. My technician told *** that he could not diagnose any issues further (because there didn’t appear to be a problem since the stove started immediately and operated properly while he was there), the technician told *** that he would call *** and left her home. Upon returning to the office, our technician informed us that *** was once again argumentative and rude. He also informed us that ’s stove worked fine when he plugged it in, turned it on and it functioned properly. Again, we were shocked by ’s rude behavior and disrespect. At this point I decided it best that *** call the *** Warranty Claim contact - and find another technician to assist her in the future on any other services. On March 12, 2019, *** called my office and told my staff that she had “a note for ***.” *** requested our mailing address. On March 20, 2019, I received a letter from *** demanding a full refund for the stove and installation once again. ’s letter misrepresented many facts and certainly failed to mention that she recently placed her home for sale and the listing featured a “newly installed pellet stove.” There is also an online video tour of her home that shows a working pellet stove on March 7, 2019. On March 25, 2019, I responded to ’s letter and once again explained that we are not providing her with a refund and that if she truly believed her stove was defective, she should place a claim under the warranty with the manufacturer ***. I reminded *** that each time she called our office we responded that same day, even after hours, to assist her. We also contacted *** for *** but she refused to speak with the representative. I explained to *** that if she no longer wanted the pellet stove, she could always contact *** to have the temporary heat source removed since her heat was restored previously in November 2018. On April 20, 2019, *** sent another letter requesting a copy of my response and claiming there continued to be issues with the “faulty stove.” On April 23, 2019, I responded to *** with a copy of the letter and another copy of the Homeowner’s Manual that contained the manufacturer’s warranty information. Again, I advised *** to contact the manufacturer directly if she believed her stove was faulty. On May 22, 2019, *** finally contacted *** but not to file a claim on the warranty. Instead, *** alleged that she hired a “certified pellet stove technician” to fix the stove and he replaced a fan on the unit. *** alleged this individual also claimed the liner was too big. *** requested the name of the person *** allegedly hired, receipts and any other documentation to substantiate her allegations. *** declined to provide *** with the name of the technician or any documentation of the service. As a result of ’s allegation, *** contacted my office and we provided the additional information *** omitted. We also informed *** that we have no knowledge of any issue that occurred after March 7, 2019 when our technician was able to start the stove after plugging it in and turning it on. We explained that our company will no longer service ’s stove based on her combative and rude behavior. I have attempted to accommodate *** and have made many, many reasonable attempts to satisfy her as a customer. However, we have come to conclude that *** only wants a refund for the money that *** paid for the pellet stove and the installation. I have confirmed with *** that she never filed a claim on the warranty (not even for the alleged fan replacement part) to date. I would also like to add that had a part been replaced, it would have had to be ordered through *** as it is only made by *** and they have no knowledge of such a part being issued on any claims. Again, I have made every attempt possible to be reasonable with *** but at this point I am not willing to service the stove or subject my workers to her blatant disrespectful attitude towards my company. I would be more than willing to provide additional information, documentation and ***’s contact information about this matter. Sincerely, ***Affordable Chimney Sweeps
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have determined that the response does not satisfy or resolve my issues and/or concerns in reference to complaint # ***. Please add your rejection comments below.
[If you are rejecting the business's response please enter your rejection comments here.] p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 11.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #000000; -webkit-text-stroke: #000000} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 11.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #000000; -webkit-text-stroke: #000000; min-height: 12.0px} span.s1 {font-kerning: none} In response to Mr ***’s letter I will be as concise as possible, without resorting to irrelevant distractions. I , too, could fill four pages with “smoke and mirrors” I have made NO false allegations. Everything I have stated is true. Nor have I ever been rude or combative to Mr *** or his staff. *** did provide funds for the pellet stove because of the disaster they caused in the ***. This is an irrelevant anecdote. Affordable Chimney Sweeps was paid to provide and install a pellet stove. I am still waiting for the installation to be done correctly. I did not call the building inspector; I have no idea who did. I went to *** Town Hall to seek answers about the *** ( *** ) crisis and within a few hours the building inspector was at my door. I repeat… I did not request this visit ! From the start my issue has not been with lighting the stove; it is that the stove does not stay lit. I have consistently followed the recommended operation procedures. In fact, the reason that the stove was unplugged during one of the service calls is that when the flame went out the stove would not shut down, so I had to unplug it ! As for our meeting in Mr ***’s office, I was at no time disrespectful . I was indeed, frustrated with the ongoing failure to have a properly functioning stove. It is Mr *** who was demeaning and intimidating to me, as detailed in my original letter. I left the meeting because I do not tolerate what I consider to be verbal abuse or intimidation. I gifted a hand made felt ornament to Mr ***’s office staff as a token of appreciation to her. She was the “middle person” who had answered the phone so many times during this whole debacle. It was certainly not a testament of satisfaction to anyone else ! I actually felt sorry for her difficult position. It was not my idea to screw the stove into the brick. This was suggested by the attending technician and I relied on his “experience”. Which leads to the question of the experience of said technicians . There was, for a short time, a certified tech who made only a few visits; but I was informed that he is no longer employed at Affordable Chimney. The person who was sent for most of the calls is not certified and told me that the sale of pellet stoves is a very recent addition to the company. This is not an accusation … just a fact … the technician IS inexperienced in the realm of pellet stoves. He was continually baffled by the ongoing malfunction of the stove. The fact that my home is for sale is also irrelevant. And the listing was created before the stove malfunctioned, yet again. All the more reason for me to expect resolution from Affordable Chimney, as I wish to transfer the property with all systems working properly. I did request reimbursement because I have had too much stress over this situation. But in order to move on I simply want the installation corrected as outlined in my original complaint. A company of integrity should certainly do that much. Thank you for your time and consideration.Regards
Our company will gladly assist the pellet stove manufacturer *** with any information they may need to work with ’s new service provider to resolve any new issue she seems to have, however, we will not provide *** with any type of reimbursement for several reasons. We installed the stove properly on November 1, 2018. *** acknowledges the *** Building Inspector inspected the pellet stove installation and the inspector found no issues with the installation or the chimney lining. Not only was the flue liner inspected by the *** Building Inspector, but the sizing was agreed upon through consultation with the pellet stove manufacturer ***. *** also admits that she paid no funds for the stove and she did not pay for installation whatsoever. Our company did not charge her for any of the service appointments or the replacement part that we installed previously, as our company filed a claim with *** and that replacement part was covered under the stove’s warranty. *** also admits that on March 7, 2019, our technician plugged in the pellet stove, turned it on and it ran properly during the appointment. If *** decided to hire a different service provider to inspect her stove after that date and, upon that inspection, the new company determined the need for an additional replacement part then it was ’s choice not to go through the stove manufacturer ***’s warranty. We provided *** with the stove’s warranty information (as we do with all of our customers) and we have advised her to pursue her concerns about the stove with the manufacturer *** multiple times. *** chose not to file a new claim for the blower fan replacement part with ***. She also did not have her new service provider contact the manufacturer *** to properly obtain coverage for any replacement part (any certified service provider should do for their client with a new stove under warranty). As a matter of fact, when she finally contacted *** on May 22, 2019, *** reported that she paid another company to service her pellet stove but would not provide *** with the new service provider’s name or any information at all. *** did not provide *** with any documentation of the new service provider’s stove inspection documentation of a malfunctioned part replacement or allegation of an improperly sized chimney liner. *** is not entitled to any reimbursement. We installed the stove properly and it has been under the manufacturer’s warranty since November 1, 2018. We consulted with *** during the installation process and with ***’s technical department to troubleshoot her original issue that required our company to order and install a replacement part which we did under ***’s warranty. *** supports our position that we have attempted to address ***s concerns in every way possible but she is not entitled to a reimbursement from us or the manufacturer. Again, we no longer consider *** a customer. Even though *** continues to disparage the professionalism of my staff and company, we wish her well working with a new service provider. Sincerely, *** Affordable Chimney Sweeps
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have determined that the response does not satisfy or resolve my issues and/or concerns in reference to complaint # ***. Please add your rejection comments below.
[If you are rejecting the business's response please enter your rejection comments here. If you do not enter a reason for your rejection, your complaint will be closed as Answered.] p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 13.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #000000; -webkit-text-stroke: #000000} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 11.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #000000; -webkit-text-stroke: #000000; min-height: 12.0px} p.p3 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 11.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #000000; -webkit-text-stroke: #000000} li.li3 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 11.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #000000; -webkit-text-stroke: #000000} span.s1 {font-kerning: none} span.Apple-tab-span {white-space:pre} ol.ol1 {list-style-type: decimal} I will once again convey the pertinent facts to this situation. The pellet stove is NOT installed properly because it does NOT fit flush to the fireplace without the aforementioned screws. This has nothing to do with building inspectors; it is simply a shoddy installation job; the chimney liner is too large for the dimensions of the fireplace. 2. I have already explained that the problem is not in starting the stove; the issue is that the flame kept going out in the middle of the night. 3. I have not disparaged Mr ***’s staff in any way; I have simply stated the fact that the technician who made most of the service calls is not certified for pellet stoves and the one certified technician is no longer employed at Affordable Chimney Sweeps. I would hope that a company which sells a product would hire trained techs or train their existing personnel. The numerous visits might have been unnecessary if trained techs were available. 4. After so many failed attempts to work with Affordable Chimney Sweeps, I called an independent , certified pellet stove servicer who was able to identify the problem and fix them. He diagnosed the faulty blower fan ( I had asked the ACS tech about the fan and he said it was fine. It was NOT fine). I wouldn’t have had to resort to this measure if the problems had been resolved by Affordable Chimney Sweeps. In summary, I am only asking for this stove to finally be installed correctly, as outlined in my original complaint. Regards