Xcuse me if I'm cranky!

[webado]

My heat pump, that contraption that provides air conditioning in the summer and inexpensive heating in the fall and spring (so the furnace doesn't have to kick in), has dies about a month ago - i.e. just when summer started with a fury in Montreal.

I called for service, waited more or patiently for a week until the guy came, to be told sorry, this machine i is too old we don;t fix it. You have to replace it.
Expensive proposal.

Started trying to get estimate on repair or replacement. Oh, yes, still repair, as I don't trust the first guy who told me it need replacing - he didn't even look at anything, went just by the age.

Several calls later, same results: repair? forget it, too old.

For a replacement, well, several companies gave estimate over the phone. One sent a salesman . He gave a good estimate, undercutting the others, who never came to see in any case.

We made a deal, signed papers. Supposed to gate the thing installed yesterday morning.

Day before yesterday they called to say it will be afternoon since it had rained and they were behind with other jobs. OK.

Finally they showed up at 5pm - kind of late. They brought the machine and put it in my garage. Yay!

Then they went to look at what they have to do.

Ah, wait. Your installation needs a V-Coil? sorry, this machine uses an A-coil.
And we don't' have that with us. Need to go find one. Tomorrow. If we can find one.

*sigh*

Today the salesman comes over, and starts giving a sob-story how well, he couldn't have known I needed something different. Normally all furnace + heat pump combos he's seen work with an A-coil, blah blah...

Also, the type of gas this new heat pump uses is different from the old one (discontinued) but the line would need changing .... but walls and ceiling are all finished... Errr, no we can't use the same line. Don't think so... maybe.. I'll ask.

Anyway, the V-coil appears to be rare (read: 6 times more expensive), hard to get (read: not today, nor tomorrow, maybe next week, if we can find it even).

Argument ensued. Who's the ^&$%*%^$*$ a--hole who made the estimate and the contract? who didn't go to look at the machine we had because there's no need (I'd told him go and see, I don't want to hear excuses that you only do left-hand site stuff and this is right-hand side or whatever). Yes, Ma'am but see, human errors... blah, blah. No, Ma'am, cannot do this for the same price. It will cost $700 more. Ok, as a trade, default A-coil for a V-coil - only $600 more. Ok, I'll wave my commission - still $300 more.

After much bickering with my husband (30C outside) I said, fine, I;ll pay the extra $300 only if they install right away, now, now, now.

But Ma'am, it's 2:30pm , we need to find the V-Coil, buy it... no time today. gee, tomorrow is a holiday... OK, beginning of next week... errr... Tuesday at the latest - but you have to pay the difference first or we don't order the part.

Nope, I didn't go for it. No deal. I'm sick and tired of promises. Next week they'll find another problem.

Dammit, why are they all so:
1) incompetent
2) ill-intentioned
3) unreliable


Bottom line: no AC yet, no prospect of getting it either, as all other companies are booked solid through Labour Day! It's getting hotter as I type. Might be my own hot-flushes.




So sorry if I get bitchy at times.

[rotarysteve]

That sounds like a case for Date Line, "at least I think what it is called"

But, none-the-less.....

If I think of it, I'll ask my engineer tomorrow if he knows anything about a-coils and v-coils. He does the AC work here and he has done a couple of installs at private homes.

I'd have to wonder if them folks are trying to rip you off. Sure is to bad they're giving you fits, but hang in there!!!

[China Tea]

I remember this predicament that you had last week, was it . . .

That"s the thing with these service men - we are at their mercy most of the time on:

costs
time
quality of work done
warranties and additional repairs

I hear you Christina . . . . you have all the right reason to be cranky!

[webado]

I'm not even wondering. I know they are trying to rip me off. They all are.

Starting with this thing about paying up front. I paid an installement of 25% of what this whole thing was supposed to cost. The deal is now off. I want my money back. In teh meanwhile I have the entire machine in its box in my garage. Not giving it back until I get my deposit back. I wonder how long they figure to leave it like that.

The thing is until you sign and make the deposit they promise the moon and the sun. Immediately after that, instead of delivering the product and service, they deliver excuses and want more money - unless they can cut corners elsewhere where you don't even know. I think they'd thought we didn't need a new coil as well, so that meant they'd get by with installing just the compressor for the price of the whole thing. I bet they'd not have mentioned anything in that case and I'd be none the wiser. But as it happened it's the coil that's also shot apparently so now gee, they have to make a full installation. Can't bluff any more. Next year we'd have had fun with a broken coil not under any warranty as it wsn't instaleld by them, I bet.

$%^$%# incompetent crooks!


Hey, Steve, how far from Montreal is your engineer ? lol

[JWJ]

Sounds like a nightmare scenario Chris. I feel for you. Nothing I can do or say to help and can only sympathise and hope you get some sense out the *&$*^$ morons real soon. Good luck with it.

[Brisguy52]

Originally Posted by chrisooc

................................
meanwhile I have the entire machine in its box in my garage. Not giving it back until I get my deposit back. I wonder how long they figure to leave it like that.
..........................................

When they ask for it back, present them with a bill for storage !

[travelswcharlie]

You can buy a little window AC for under $200 at a do-it-yourself store, such as Home Depot... and if you have a window that will open, it's easy to just pop it in the window.

You'll be surprised at how good they are.. it may just cool one room, but that would at least let you sleep at night and make it easier to hold out to get the big one repaired on your terms.

[webado]

No thanks

[Maryam Bennett]

Hey Chris,

I am so sorry for your maylay. Our AC Broke twice and it was in the heat of summer so I know what you are going through. It was hotter in the house than it was outside. I wish I could do something to help. Hell you proably can look online and learn how to do it yourself faster and for less money. You never know how much you count on stuff like your air until it goes out. We only had to go three days without air it was hell. I can't even imagine going as long as you have. I hope you get the problem solved soon. I will say a prayer for you. Good luck.

MB

[webado]

Well this is not like fixing a fuse or something like that.

The old machine is all rusty where it counts and all the freon leaked out. We cannot buy freon, it has to be put in by tech guys from maintenance companies. They won't put it in because something's leaking badly so it's a)useless b) illegal. Whatever part is leaking is who knows where, obviously not in a n easily reachable spot. Not like you can just wrap some duct tape on it and carry on.

So we need a reliable honest technician to assess this thing properly: fixable or not.

So far they've all said virtually without looking it's not fixable - just because it's old. To get any to come it's been $125 every time - and no work done for that - only an opinion. Sheesh!

So I said fine, we buy a new one. This is where it shouldn't have gone bad like this yet it did.

Have I lost all faith in this industry? You bet.