Sanfilippo Appliance Service

I called Certified Appliance Tech on a Friday morning. He said he could be there within a couple hours. He was. My refrigerator was not allowing water or ice to be dispensed. The freezer and refrigerator were staying cold however. [redacted] gave a quick examination of my refrigerator and told me the PCB board was bad. It didn't seem unreasonable as I have had the board replaced before by Sears at an astronomical price. [redacted] quoted a reasonable price, if he could get the part. He would check and get back to me that afternoon. Later [redacted] called me and said the part was available locally and he would pick up the part and install it Monday morning. [redacted] was a no show and a no call Monday. Tuesday I got up and my refrigerator had completely died. I tried calling him a dozen times, from work, from my cell phone and he would not answer. His phone has no voice mail set up. Helluva a way to run a business. Finally Tuesday afternoon [redacted] called me to say he could come install the part. I told him to go to hell. I had already resolved the problem with someone else, more reliable. He charged me the $65.00 service charge and that is more than he deserved.

We get the job done right and right now.....it is Labor Day weekend, my refrigerator goes out, not cooling......I call Sears, a couple of local businesses. I'm told the fastest someone can come help me is 7 days out, maybe longer. I have someone recommend Joe at Jones Appliance Service. Joe answers his phone, listens to my problem and makes an effort to drive 33 miles out of Payson, in the forrest to fix my refrigerator. After getting a part out of Phoenix the next day, we are cooling. It is nice to know that there are people this responsible today. I give Joe at Jones Appliance a double thumbs up on effort and attitude. Thank you....

[redacted] called me about his oven and cooktop. The service call fee for both appliances was $85 which was due and paid. The cooktop glass was broken and Mr [redacted] stated that he saw sparks behind the control panel and afterward the main breaker for his home tripped. I replied the circuit breaker...

for the oven(40 amp) should have tripped instead of the main breaker (200 amp). I explained to him that the oven failure subjected all the components to 5 times the amperage that it was rated for when the oven circuit breaker failed to trip. I told him he would need to replace the circuit breaker for the oven before I would install any new parts in this oven. (I would lose nearly $500 of my own money for parts which are installed in a faulty system). He told me his brother was an electrician and would have the breaker replaced by the following Friday. I researched the parts for his appliances and he decided to go ahead with the oven repair but didn't want the cooktop repaired. The parts were in town so I picked them up and arrived at his home on the Friday we agreed upon. I asked if the circuit breaker was replaced and he replied that he looked at it and he thought it was just fine. I explained to him the internal parts of the circuit breaker are responsible for the breaker to trip at the rated amperage and they show no physical signs of a malfunction. The fact that the main breaker tripped instead of the oven breaker when the oven broke is information to make that determination. Now, here I am, 2 trips to San Tan / Queen Creek area, an oven with a faulty breaker still, I decided I could at least get the oven removed from the wall so I could physically see how much damage was done by the shorted wires and 200 amps of electricity flowing through this oven. We got the screws out of the cabinetry pulled the oven out a little ways and this oven doesn't have smooth sides and bottom to grab ahold of. I asked if he had any leather gloves we could use because the edges of this oven could seriously cut someone's hands. He didn't so I left.

I lose enough money on parts that are installed in appliances with serious electrical problems. I most certainly won't install parts which I have to pay for in appliances which I know have other issues. I made 2 trips to their home after researching the parts, driving to my supplier, paying for and picking up parts for his oven only to find out that he wouldn't protect my investment in time and money with a $20 circuit breaker. I have no use for a customer who would treat me in that way.

Respectfully,

I called this repair for my Hotpoint fridge. On visit #1 he said the problem was a relay in the fridge section. Cost of repair was $350 with one year warranty, expensive but I really like my fridge. Besides the new ones at four times that cost had the same warranty. 12 months from time of purchase! That was in August 2013 skip to December 31 2013 and he came when I called. Visit #2 Mr. [redacted] decided it was the defrost burner (or something like that). I did pay him the $65/house call fee. Before he left he told me to defrost and leave door open on freezer and he'd return 1/2/2014. I waited and WAITED then called him twice and left messages. This man never took the 60 seconds to give me a call. I waited all day for him. I was very upset. The up side of this I found a reliable, honest, knowledgeable repair man. Never call Mr. [redacted], he is unreliable and obviously not a nice person.

Nothing this this man has written has been accurate. He did not know how to fix the problem and wanted to erroneously charge us for a repair that was not need. Sears was able to fix it for $75 and in 30 minutes and confirmed the problem had nothing to do with the use of the machine but the faulty switch that was not installed correctly. Not only that but the owner was unprofessional and argumentative. He kept changing his story. Every time I asked for an explanation he changed his story and blamed the problem on us. It's was not us hence [redacted] fixed it with no problem for less than half of what he wanted to charge us for a repair that was not even needed. He cost us several days of laundry mat time and expense because he did not know what he was doing. The check for his service call was cancelled and he not only Fraudulently tried to charge us for a service that was not needed but spent days waiting for him to return. I want an apology and not responsible for the service fee due to the fact it cost us more than that to deal with an unusable dry when we could have been dealing with an honest repair service that fixed it in less than 30 minutes.

[redacted] responded promptly and explained that the electronic control panel was faulty, needing replaced. He would order the part and install next day. He called the next day and told me that Bosch had a recall on the control panel and would replace it free of charge, giving me all the information I needed to contact [redacted] and arrange for the repair.

He could have charged us for the replacement part and we would have not been the wiser. Honest and polite.

I had hoped that my initial brief response would suffice and, since it didn't, I will follow up with a more detailed response. Hopefully, this will help Mr [redacted] understand that no refund for the service call fee is neither due nor warranted in this case.

Mr. [redacted] called to have his electric cooktop model # [redacted] and built-in electric double oven Model # [redacted] serviced. Other companies quote a second service call fee for multiple appliances but I don't. It is simply $85 for both appliances. The service call fee is waived if the work is performed on the appliances. Otherwise, the service call fee is due for one, or both appliances, should they decline to have the repairs made. In this case, the $85 service call fee is due for the cooktop which Mr [redacted] declined the repair and parts & labor for the oven.

I scheduled Mr [redacted] for an after 2 pm service call on March 7, 2014. I'm never late for my appointments because I use large windows of arrival time. I cover a large area and make a courtesy call to each customer when they are the next stop and give them an approximate arrival time. While at Mr [redacted]'s home he described the situation with the oven. He stated seeing sparks behind the oven control panel and the power to his home was disrupted. I explained to him that the 40 amp circuit breaker for the oven should have tripped instead of the 200 amp main breaker for the entire house. This was caused by a faulty circuit breaker for the oven and MUST be replaced. I can't be liable for putting an electric oven back in service knowing it's a potential electrical fire hazard. This circuit breaker has already proved to us that it could sustain more than 200 amps and still not trip when it should have. He said his brother is an electrician and assured me the circuit breaker would be replaced. Next, I remove the oven control panel and saw the upper oven wiring harness was damaged. The plastic molex plugs were melted and wiring insulation was also melted, charred and blackened from being on fire. I explained to him that all or part of an upper wiring harness would be required (they're only available as a complete set) and that I would also bring additional parts for the oven should they be necessary. I told him there is a $75 fee to remove and re-install the oven which is the price I pay the second person who assists me. Other companies charge as much as $150 additional to work on ANY built-in appliance. He chose to save this cost and elected himself to be my assistant.

The following week on the 14th, I returned with parts to repair the oven as promised. For Mr [redacted]'s information, I enter the home with my hands full (toolbag and clipboard) and bring parts into the home when I have reached the point of the job where I am ready to install them. He quickly tells me the circuit breaker was NOT replaced. He stated that he looked at it and it didn't LOOK defective. I explain to him that its the INTERNAL components INSIDE the circuit breaker which are responsible for it to trip at the rated amperage. Electricians use a piece of test equipment called a "load tester" which subjects to breaker to current and amperage and they can determine whether the circuit breaker trips properly at the rated amps, NOT A PHYSICAL INSPECTION. I explained to him one more time, the circuit breaker MUST be replaced before I can put this oven back into service. So here I am, I can't do my job because Mr [redacted] refuses to do the job he promised would be done by now. I decided that since i'm here, we could at least remove the oven and give it a thorough inspection of the damage. The first thing that needs to be done is remove the 8 screws holding the oven into the cabinetry. These were mismatched, partially damaged, cheap screws and not the hardened steel quality screws typically found in an installation. I use a stubby screwdriver which, being short in length, gives me optimum leverage for turning screws and reduces the possibility of the head of the screwdriver from slipping out of the screw head. After 34 years in the industry, I am pretty sure I know which tool to use for any given task. Furthermore, my assistant does this job and Mr. [redacted] is my $75 assistant so I instruct him to remove the screws. I don't pay my assistants to just stand there and watch me do all the work. For safety reasons, I chose to leave the oven in the cabinetry for the time being.

Every call from Mr [redacted] since then boiled down to the fact that he thinks the old circuit breaker is just fine and wants a refund for the service call fee. I assured him I will not put this oven back into service until that simple task has been achieved and no refund is due. As for him repairing the oven without the upper wiring harness meant someone didn't replace the damaged molex plugs which were installed by the factory and didn't run continuous wiring to the terminals they connect to. They simply cut & spliced wires which is not approved by the factory since this type of repair has the potential to increase resistance at the splice points in the electrical circuit which overheats and melts the wiring.

Its none of my business if Mr. [redacted] chooses a backyard mechanic mentality for repairing his oven, just don't expect a company to go along with it and assume the liability of a potentially dangerous oven repair. That's simply NOT how I run my business.

Respectfully,

It's obvious why this consumer wants to avoid small claims court. The judge would compare my diagnosis with the [redacted]nvoice and instantly rule in my favor.  Furthermore, the consumer leads one to believe that the [redacted] invoice total for the repair was $75.00 for a motor switch when in fact [redacted] charges $79.00 for the service call alone plus parts, tax and labor. Furthermore, Sears schedules calls 2 - 5 days from the date someone calls. This consumer is simply trying to rip me off after their attitude and behavior prevented us from proceeding with the repairs.
When I said "I've never seen anything like this before" I was referring to how a consumer could abuse their appliance in this manner and then turn what is normally a problem-free solution into such a fiasco.
 
Respectfully,
 
Joseph J[redacted]

I have reviewed the response 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.As I said in the complaint, [redacted] did not return the following day as he said, nor did he let me know he was not coming back to do the repair. Also as I said in the complaint, the breaker in question is not/was not faulty. Also, the part(s) [redacted] said were needed, were not. I have no interest in the amount of time or money [redacted] spent getting parts I did not need. 2 trips to my home-zero service-zero attempt at a repair. [redacted] has no use for me as a customer and I have no need to pay him for stopping by my house. A service fee is not earned when if anything, he did me a disservice.
Sincerely,

I highly recommend ...does an awesome job

On Friday, Nov 20, 2015 I arrived at [redacted] home to diagnose a dryer which wasn't heating properly. He had the back panel removed (exposing the terminal block - an electrical shock hazard with 240 volts of live electricity), the heating element duct removed (preventing airflow across the heating...

element) and the heating element was laying on the bottom of the dryer cabinet along with a pile of socks. I removed the socks and [redacted] admitted his daughter was still using the dryer in this condition. I explained to him they're only causing more damage to the dryer by using it with those parts removed. He also told me that the dryer vent wasn't clogged. I then checked the heating element with my OHM meter and it checked ok. I then checked for proper voltage to the heating element and 240 volts was present. The problem is now isolated to the temperature sensors and/or the thermister.I explained my findings to [redacted] and his wife and the cost would be $215.00. His wife replied, "For $500.00 we should just buy a new dryer". I looked at [redacted] and he nodded and said to go ahead with the repair. I told him to leave the dryer unplugged and don't let anyone use the dryer with those parts removed. After leaving their home, I was told by my supplier that one of the sensors would need to be transferred from another warehouse an it would be there Monday. I called [redacted] no answer, so I left a voice mail regarding the status of parts.
I returned to their home on Monday and saw that the dryer was plugged in. So, I repeated my diagnostics from the first visit and now there is a problem with the voltage to the heating element. I told the mother of this new problem and said the parts associated with proper voltage are the Electronic Dryer Control or the Drive Motor Switch and in rare cases, both. This problem needs to be repaired before I can complete the Sensors or the Thermister issue. She wasn't very convincing about the dryer not being used over the weekend and, understandably, I have my doubts about that. So, I left letting her know I will call them with the price and availability of these parts so I can have all the necessary parts on hand to solve this problem as well.
I then get a call from the daughter, [redacted] who's screaming and yelling at me telling me I damaged the electronic board and she merely plugged in the dryer for her children's safety. Aparently, she thinks that leaving exposed, live 240 volt electrical current is safer than leaving the dryer plug behind the dryer. I tryed to interject and explain that her mother didn't relay this information correctly to her and that I'm not the one to blame for the problems the dryer has. I wasn't getting through to her so I told her I'm not going to be able to help them.
The next day [redacted] leaves a voice mail that she stopped payment on the $65.00 Service Call fee and said the motor switch was indeed defective. I'm not sure how much of what these people say is true at this point; they display senseless do-it-yourself actions, along with foolish behavior compounded by their inability to understand what is being said. This matter is a classic example of why other companies refuse to perform repairs on appliances that the customer has tampered with. I will be taking them to small claims court to recover my hard-earned money plus bank fees and court costs.
Respecfully,
Joseph J[redacted]

Jones Appliance Service was efficient, affordable and friendly towards my appliance repair needs. Joe came to the rescue within an hour of our phone call the day my refrigerator stopped working. He had the necessary part on his truck, installed it in under 20 minutes. Amazing! We are happy to have found such a convenient, reliable and hones service company. We will not hesitate to call him again for our appliance repairs!