Nelson Repair & Maintenance

Review: We recently had a compressor replaced in our AC unit. The old one had gone bad and the unit was not working properly. The new one is worse than the old one. It does not keep up as it should, but we have been told by their employee [redacted] that it is working properly. It gets ten to fifteen degrees hotter than the temperature set on the thermostat. Inthe nine years we have been here, we have always set the inside temperature to 75 and the temperature has never passed 79 and that was with the old compressor. This tear we have had to set it to 72 with the new compressor and it still gets ten to fifteen degrees hotter than the set temperature. The other day, it was 95 outside and 85 inside around 3 pm and at 2 am it had only dropped to 82 inside when it had cooled to 78 outside. His answer is to blame the fact that we don't have shade around the house(never have had a lot of shade to begin with), the outside temperature is so high right now (we had hotter days with the old compressor), and we need to insulate the house (we've done that). Also, when the compressor was put in, one of the wires was left dangling and the fan cut it in half. We called the shop and let them know, and the assistant was sent back because [redacted] refused to return. The assistant put a regular wire nut on it and let it be. He said he was surprised it did not short out when it did it. When I asked about this today, I was told that there was no damage done and it would be fine (he didn't even really look at it). We have concerns about possible corrosion of the wires and it shorting out if water gets in it (the unit is not under cover), but we were told there was nothing to worry about). I have family that works in construction that says that is not the case and that waterproof wirenuts exist for that reason. [redacted] has been obnoxious each time we've dealt with him. He doesn't really listen to our concerns and blows us off at each turn. He basically told us today that short of replacing the unit there is nothing more that can be done. We have a home warranty that we go through to have repairs done on our house. If this is truly what needs to be done, then he needs to let them know that but has not.Desired Settlement: They need to contact home warranty to let them know the entire unit needs to be replaced because the compressor did not fix the issue and the house is hotter now than with the previous compressor. This issue has been going on since May and is not getting any better, only worse.

Business

Response:

On May 26, 2016, through our customer 2-10 Home Buyer's Warranty, we performed a service call at the [redacted]'s house to check an air conditioner that was icing up and not cooling. The [redacted]'s are clients of 2-10 Home Buyer's. We had diagnosed a failing compressor on the air conditioner. The system was 1/2 pound low on R22 refrigerant and was also running what we call "high head pressure". We added the 1/2 pound of refrigerant to try to help the homeowner's get buy until repairs could be made.Being that we could not prove any other failures with the air conditioner unit, other than a failed compressor, we had no choice but to replace the actual failed component. We have guidelines to follow when working through home warranties. Unless there are major or multiple failures found, we cannot condemn a complete system. We replace the proven broken part and then report back to the home warranty if there are any other mechanical failures found past that point. In the case of this replacement, no other "mechanical" issues were found. The system's temperatures and pressures checked out well. A few hours after we replaced the compressor, we received a call from the homeowner that there was a wire hanging in the air conditioner unit and hitting the fan blade. They stated that [redacted] "refused" to return. He did not. He was in [redacted]. One of his service helpers was on the way home, so [redacted] had him stop by to strap the wire up. The homeowner let the unit run until we got there, instead of turning it off. So by the time that we arrived, the fan blade cut through the wire. We had no choice but to fix it and we did.On July 6, 2016 the [redacted]'s called in a "recall" through their home warranty. The complaint was that they had been hearing a buzzing noise every 10 seconds since the compressor was replaced. We scheduled them for our next appointment date of 7/26/16 to check out a buzzing noise. \ By the time the service date came around, Mrs. [redacted] contacted us and asked us to add to the work order that the air conditioner was not cooling. They said the house was hotter than outdoor temperatures over the weekend of 7/23/16. We met with the homeowner's friend or family member, [redacted], on our 6/26 visit. We checked the a/c unit. Temperatures and pressures were reading proper; we made sure all screws and panels were tight. We contacted the home warranty as they asked us to, and gave them our diagnosis of "no mechanical issues found". Being that there was no failure found on the compressor and pressures/temps checked out proper, the home warranty issued a new a new $75 service fee (per their contract) be paid by the homeowner. After that, Mr. [redacted] did phone me to let me know that [redacted] was rude to them and he is always rude when he comes out. I apologized and recommended that they might be able to request an alternate servicer through their home warranty company. Mr. [redacted] did stop by our office to pay the $75 service fee before we closed that day.The homeowner may wish to contact their home warranty company to see if they have the option to have a 2nd opinion check done on the a/c system. I'm not certain if that is allowable, but it may be worth a phone call to check.

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response offer made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.I have already contacted 2-10 Home Warranty about this issue and we are dealing with them in regards to this matter. I am NOT satisfied with this resolution with this response because I do NOT appreciate Nelson Repair stating that we didn't follow their directions when they told us to turn the unit off until someone could come back out to take care of the wires that their repair man [redacted] left dangling down in our air conditioning unit and that's why it was cut. As soon as Nelson Repair was called and we were told to turn the unit off, we turned it off IMMEDIATELY, then we waited for over 2 hours, in the heat, for someone to come back to fix their mistake. Nelson Repair was even called again, right before 5:00pm, because we were concerned someone wasn't going to come back to fix their mistake and we were going to be without air conditioning over night, at which time Mrs. [redacted] was reassured that even though the office closed at 5:00pm, someone would return to take care of the issue and we wouldn't have to go without air conditioning over night. When the helper came back he knew it was off and if he had taken the time to come inside he would've found the temperature inside the house was over 85 degrees because the air conditioning unit had been off for almost 4 hours by the time someone came back to fix Nelson Repair's mistake. The helper even said he's surprised it didn't kick the breaker. If the unit had run for any longer than after the phone call to [redacted] at Nelson Repair, it would've kicked the breaker and the unit wouldn't have been able to have been running at all. As much business as we've given Nelson Repair over the years and we always specifically ask for them to come when we have repairs to be done at our home, and we've recommended them to other people, for someone there to call us liars, I'm appalled.

Regards,

Review: I am writing to express significant dissatisfaction with the job Nelson Repair & Maintenance

([redacted]) did in installing a 300,000 BTU propane pool heater

on April 23rd . They came highly recommended by [redacted] as someone who could do the

plumbing, electrical, and gas connections all at the same time.

[redacted] in [redacted] installed the propane tank and routinely come out to check things after a device

has been attached to it. They found two major problems in the gas connections that Nelson did:

- No vent piping was installed for the 2nd stage regulator, which is required since the regulator sits close

to the heater.

- No dielectric buffer was inserted in the gas line between the gas tank and the heater.

[redacted] also reported that the gas line connections were all too loose (which I also observed) - one

they could turn by hand - and needed to take everything apart and tighten all the gas connections;

sometimes two or more additional turns on the pipe thread were needed.

-- and several gas connections were so loose that the pressure dropped immediately on the pressure

test [redacted] did - which was also visible on a bubble test. Nelson appears to have done neither test.

The cost of that work by [redacted] was $185.

ln terms of the plumbing, Nelson brought the wrong materials. I had emailed Nelson to say that the

schedule 40 water piping for the pool was 2" OUTSIDE DIAMETER. He brought piping that was larger

than that (2 3/8" OD) - so he had us get reducers (it cost my wife a number of hours in [redacted]

getting the necessary reducers)- and all the larger sized valves, pipes, and connectors were also more

expensive (perhaps $50). We will need to wait and see whether the change in pipe sizes in the water

lines will create turbulence - and therefore less efficiency for the heater. Nelson says that it will not,

but we want to check that out.

There were some other things of concern, but less significant than the above.

I rarely write such letters as this - but the gas work was actually dangerous and I feel that it is important

to draw more attention to the matter.

I would like Nelson Repair to make this situation right, since additional cost was incurred because of the

gas and pipe size issues above. ln addition, a few materials are listed on the Bill that were not actually

used as far as I can tell. And I have had to spend hours writing this letter and dealing with the situatíon.

Thank you for helping to address this matter.

[redacted]Desired Settlement: see Attached document

Business

Response:

I am responding to the complaint by [redacted] about a gas line, and pool heater installation. I will say to start with we didn't here anything from Mr [redacted] about his problems with the installation until this letter. We replied to him the day we received it and told him we warranty our work fully and would have gladly taken care of the corrections needed to the gas line done by the other company we only asked for a copy of an invoice, we have not received any copies but if we do we will gladly take care of any expenses that our installation has caused him. I will start with dielectric buffer, typically the tank installer will have this installed for us and we will hook into. I did not notice in this case that there was not one on the tank and certainly would have installed one if it was brought to my attention. In the case of the regulator being vented away from the appliance there was 3 feet distance between the air intake on this unit and the regulator location, with it being an outside installation it is not needed but can be installed. We did turn on the gas fire off and test the heater for leaks and found none at the line at the time of installation. We would have been glad to repair any leaks found for the customer at no charge. As far as the piping not being tight I can only say when I installed it was tight and not leaking, with black pipe fittings over tightened fittings is one of the most common problems I have found in installations with problems, the taper of the thread makes the seal and an over tightened fitting can break the threads and taper. The pressure running though a gas system is less than 1 psi so there is no need to over tighten any fitting. As far as his concerns of pipe sizing I had only seen the job via e mail pictures I had quoted and planed on bringing 1 1/2 pvc to do the job the day before Mr [redacted] emailed me telling me his pipe was 2 " and I bid 1 1/2 adjusted the quote and brought all 2" piping as he requested. I took his word that he knew what he was talking about. Once on the job I noticed the piping was 1 1/2 and not 2" his wife offered to go get the fittings I needed to transition the pipe from 2 to 1 1/2". Here at Nelson Repair we stand behind and warranty our work fully but we must be told that people have a problem before we can take care of them. As I said in the beginning as soon as I receive an invoice for the amount paid by Mr [redacted] to correct our line I will send him them a check to take care of it. thanks for your time[redacted]

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response offer made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.

My issues were NOT addressed in Mr Nelson's response to my complaint # [redacted] - which I did not receive until May 26th. Here is my response to his response.I appreciate Mr Nelson's offer to have fixed the gas line problems, but the company who installed the propane tank routinely comes out to check things after a device has been attached to it. They found several significant problems in the gas work that Nelson had done, and fixed them on the spot before they could certify the tank installation.With regard to the dielectric buffer, Nelson did all of the connections from the tank to the pool heater. I had emailed Nelson that the gas company had left the stage 1 and stage 2 regulators for him (nothing else), so Nelson should have seen that there was no dielectric buffer and should have installed one.Nelson's facts are not correct - the regulator was NOT at least 3 feet from a heat source. The 2nd stage regulator in fact sits 26" from the heater air intake, but more importantly only 16" from the hot exhaust from the pool heater. Thus, a vent away from the regulator is definitely required.Nelson's response to the gas fittings was hocus pocus. No one touched the system from the time Nelson left and the gas company came to commission the set up. The pressure gauge test showed that several gas connections were so loose that the pressure dropped almost immediately when the gas was turned on. That was also visible using bubble tests. The fact is, the gas line connections were too loose (one could be turned by hand) - so all the gas connections needed to be taken apart and put back together with tighter gas connections.Nelson's response with regard to pipe size is just nonsense. The email I sent with regard to pipe size said the following:"-- The pool p¡pe is 2" (outside diameter) PVC, whereas your l¡st of materials says 1-1/2" PVC. They may be the same, if the 1-1/2" is inside diameter -- just wanted to check."As can be seen, I made it crystal clear that I measured OUTSIDE DIAMETER - and allowed for the possibility that his 1-1/2" pipe in the materials list was INSIDE DIAMETER. I was trying to be very careful that he brought the right materials - since he had not seen the job. But instead he brought 2-3/8" OUTSIDE DIAMETER pipe. It was his mistake to bring the larger pipe, not mine. So he is responsible for the higher cost of the larger pipe, valves, and fittings - and for the need to get pipe reducers. (We will need to wait and see whether the change in pipe sizes in the water lines will create turbulence - and therefore less efficiency for the heater. Nelson says that it will not, but that still needs to be seen.)The invoice shows a 2-gang box and cover plate totaling $27.40 that I don't think were installed.Here are the additional costs incurred:$100 Labor for inserting the dielectric buffer, the regulator vent pipe, and tightening all of the connections. (The materials cost was an additional $86, but I would have paid that no matter who did it.) Receipt attached.$ 50 Estimated additional cost of pipe, valves, joints, and reducers for using 2" pipe instead of 1-1/2" p¡pe.$ 27 For electrical box and cover plate not installed.$150 Partial compensation for my wife's time and gas to get the reducers, and for my time to write letters and deal with this situation - more than 10 hours thus far. Perhaps I should use Nelson's billing rate. (This will go up if I need to spend even more time on this matter.) $327 TOTALI would consider the case closed if Nelson Repair makes the situation right and I receive a check for $327.Regards,

Business

Response:

[redacted] and I had both read Mr. [redacted]'s most current letter and received his invoice attachment from [redacted] We both agree on reimbursement of the requested $100 labor charge, of the gas contractor, and we will also include the materials amount of $77 that is in discrepancy. That will be a total of $177 reimbursement to Mr. [redacted]. I hope this will be satisfactory and conclude this complaint filed. Thank you,[redacted]

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response offer made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted] and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.

My issues were NOT addressed in Mr Nelson's response to my complaint # [redacted] - which I received on June 8th.Mr. Nelson did not challenge my assertions, which I take as acknowledgment that they were on target and he is taking responsibility for the mistakes that were made. Thus, I am entitled to some compensation for the large amount of time it took for me and my wife to address the matter - more than 10 hours of my wife's time and gas to get the reducers, and of my t¡me to write letters and deal with this situation (not counting the time to make this response). $15 per hour is minimal compensation -- our time is no less valuable than Mr. Nelson's, who bills at a significantly higher rate.I will consider the case closed if I receive a check from Nelson Repair by June 20th in the amount of $327. Otherwise, it will be a higher amount if I need to spend more time.

Regards,

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response offer made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.

We do not accept the offer from Nelson Repair to settle the matter and the complaint should remain open until I get back to you in the coming weeks.Thanks, [redacted]