Complaints

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• Initial Complaint

  Date:10/31/2023

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  Fountain Valley Mechanical bid a job to replace a boiler and remove and replace radiant tubing. Experienced problems with installation of new tubing and after job completed was not getting sufficient heat as before. Contacted owner, *****************. He came out and replaced a pump. Still had problems so I contacted him again. He told me the system was properly installed and if he came out there would be a charge. This was installed in 8/2017. I contacted another company. They came out and could not find problem. Continued to contact other companies each winter and still could not find problem because none of them went into the crawl space and inspect the tubing, only the boiler area. Every winter the area was very cold and I had to use space heaters. About two weeks ago when another person was contacted he went up into the crawl space where the tubing was installed and located the problem. I also discovered that the tubing was failing (cracking). It was only then that I learned the tubing was not properly installed and the tubing was failing. Because it was incorrectly installed I am unable to get the area to heat properly. I contacted ************ by hand delivering a letter to him on 10/19/23. He came out today, 10/31/23 did not look at the tubing area or the cracking material. Said he would not do anything. He told me that this conversation was recorded. He was paid to install radiant tubing correctly. The tubing he used has a life expectancy of at least ***** years if properly installed. Need this to be taken out and properly installed.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 11/01/2023

  The boiler and piping system was installed as a replacement system beginning on 7/31/17. 

  The installation was completed and inspected by the *************************************** on 8/24/17.

  The installation passed its inspection.

  We replaced a failed circulator pump on 10/16/2017 under warranty. We have not heard from the customer since then.

  No maintenance nor service calls have ever been requested by this customer since the pump replacement.

  The house was unfinished/under construction at the time of the initial work and remains so at this date (10/31/23)

  The customer has been very aggressive toward our office as well as myself demanding replacement of the system, with no prior contact of any kind. 

  I went out on 10/31/23 to look at the system, but the customer was again aggressive and hostile toward me and I was not comfortable being in the house with her.

  For the time that I was in the home, the boiler was on, heating and up to temperature as would be expected, in the mechanical room at least. I did not go into any other areas of the house due to the customers behavior.

  The unfinished nature of the house may be a contributing factor in her dissatisfaction with the performance of the system, but, the situation was too volatile to investigate that aspect. I will only go back to this property to look further into this with a peace keeping officer to ensure my safety.

  No complaints have been made to us about this system since our last visit on 10/16/17, I would expect to hear from someone with a new system that does not work immediately, not 6 years later.

  The system was installed properly and per manufacturers recommendations as is evidenced by the completed/passed inspection by the *************************************** dated 8/24/17 permit number L01692.

   

   

  Customer Answer

  Date: 11/08/2023

   
  Complaint: 20807643
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  The installation of the new boiler passed inspection.  There was no inspection of the radiant heat. I was here to let the inspector in when the boiler was inspected & no inspection of the radiant heat was made.  That would require going into another area where it was installed & that was not done.
  

  According to the computer records at Regional Building a permit was never issued for the radiant heat.
  

  This addition to my home was built in ****, & was completely finished.  It contained a kitchen, bath, 2 bedrooms, living room & dining room  It was a private area accessible only by a front outside entrance & one interior door.  It was the residence of my parents until they passed.  They lived there after it was built & a radiant heating system was installed by another company in ****.  It was replaced due to a class action lawsuit because the tubing manufactured by ******** was defective.  That system was properly installed & due to the sq. ft, 7 port manifolds were used..  Fountain Valley Mechanical took out those manifolds & replaced the 7 port manifolds with just a 2 port manifold.  No one, including ************ ever went into that area, so for him to say it was under construction was completely false.

  When he came to my home on 10/31/23 he immediately told me he was recording the conversation.  I was never rude or aggressive & I believe that tape will verify it. 

  He was informed that the boiler was not heating & although the boiler was on, the pipes were not heating properly.  The return line was very cold, not even lukewarm.

  I contacted Fountain Valley Mechanical to inform them that the after they replaced the circulating pump it was still not working properly and I was having heating problem.  ************ personally told me he would not come out again without a charge to me.

  The system was not properly installed, per manufacturers recommendations.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  ***********************

  

  Business Response

  Date: 11/09/2023

  As I said, I will only return to the property with a peace keeper/mediator. This person is aggressive and confrontational and I will not be put in that situation again, it is not safe. The system was inspected by ***** and passed its inspection. It was installed properly. The *************************************** inspected the piping on 07-12-2017 at 11:18 a.m.(HWP inspection) (heat process and steam piping) by inspector ************

  We have not been contacted by the complainant since the pump was replaced in 2017. The complainant has had other HVAC contractors out since 2017 and has never contacted us, so we are unsure what they have done to the system to change or modify the system.

  We have never been contacted to perform maintenance, provide repairs, or diagnose any issues that *** or *** not exist. (Save the previously mentioned pump, which we replaced under warranty, back in 2017)

  Again, there has been no contact since that pump replacement.

  I would expect that if a system we installed had issues we would have been hearing about it quite a while ago had it actually had a problem. As you can see, she is not afraid to contact us, and you the BBB to complain. I am sure if she had issues she'd have contacted both of us much sooner than 6 years down the road.

  When she contacted us recently (for the first time in 6 yrs) I went out as soon as possible. (within days of the contact)

  Her behavior on my visit stopped any and all diagnosis /inspection.

  The warranty on the installation has been expired for 5 years, but I still tried to go and see what was wrong. I was unable to do anything to help her due to her behavior.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 11/16/2023

   
  Complaint: 20807643
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  I stand by my statement that after the pump was replaced on 10/16/17, I contacted them and spoke to ************ to inform him that I was still having problems with the area mot heating properly.  He personally told me that he would not return again without a service charge.  That does not stand behind a warranty.

  In an earlier response to this complaint a statement was made that the addition to my home was unfinished/under construction.  I responded that the addition was completely finished & lived in by my parents since **** & the radiant heat system was working very well until they changed it.  It was a failed attempt to justify why I was having heating problems.

  He continues to claim I was aggressive & he did not feel safe.  He said he was recording that conversation.  It will show that also was false. ************ is a large man & I am a 72, soon to be 73 yr. old woman that weighs 110 lbs.  Clearly I was not a threat.  Just another failed attempt to avoid correcting what they did wrong.

  With regard to the inspection by *****, the only way an inspection of the radiant heat installation could have been done was if someone let them into the house/area where it was located.  No one else had access to that area, except for me & that did not happen.  There were only two inspections by *****.  One on 8/24/17 by initials P O evidenced by a sticker placed on the boiler that says "Boiler Approved".  And an earlier failed inspection due to a gas line leak into my home when the boiler was installed.  The date of 7/12/17 ************ refers to is not accurate.  They did not work at my home in July 2017.  That would mean it took them over 1 1/2 months to do this job.

  If they are reputable, professionals, they need to find a way to resolve this problem instead of mud slinging.  The continued use of added space heaters during the winter should not be happening if the system was correctly installed.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  ***********************