Complaint Review: F/J Hess & Sons Inc. - SWIFTWATER Pennsylvania

Consumers have a right to know which companies will rip them off, that some companies provide professional and quality service, and that they should be aware if a company is acting within the scope of the law. 

After paying $275 in July 2016 for an "extensive cleaning" of the boiler, F/J Hess & Sons' service technician concluded that the boiler needed oil. Okay. Fair enough. The gauge read just below 1/4 full. So after the technician left, I moved the wall switch to off (it was summer) and an oil delivery was made two days later. After the oil was delivered, I attempted to turn the boiler back on but the wall switch did not activate the boiler. So, since the switch worked prior to the cleaning, I called the F/J Hess & Sons. The service manager insisted that I needed another service call for a technician to come back out to my home and "fix the problem." 

I explained that I only wanted to turn the boiler back on and asked if there was a simple solution that I could do. 

He told me, "No" and that another service call was needed because the oil level in the tank was below "E" and the oil lines had to be bled out because there was moisture in the lines. He explained, "That's why the boiler won't come on with the switch." 

When I told him that the tank was not below "E" (or even at "E"), he insisted that I was wrong. 

"Sir, I was on the phone with the technician when he was in the home." 

And I explained to the service manager that "I was IN the home when the technician was in the home." I told him that "I am the one who showed the technician the oil gauge," that, "I personally saw that it was just below 1/4 full and not on "E" or below." But he disagreed and insisted that I needed a service call to fix the boiler. He would not hear anything else.

I don't recall a conversation between the service manager and the technician when he was in the home, but the technician did go outside to his truck several times and I did overhear someone explaining instructions to him. But if he reported that the tank was below E, he was mistaken. It was not. 

It is possible that the technician did misdiagnose a problem because when the technician arrived, I asked if he had been to an HVAC school (mainly because I used to run an HVAC school in New England. I was just curious). In most states, formal training and a license is required. The technician reported that he had a business degree but no formal HVAC training and no license. I'm not sure what qualifies him to service a boiler and I even wonder if it is *lawful at the local level. Regardless, expecting the customer to pay for his learning curve is not a good business practice. 

Nonetheless, the service manager would not listen to me, despite repeated attempts to tell him that the tank was not close to being empty. He continued to get more and more irritated and finally said, he didn't need my business. And then he hung up the phone. I called back and he told me that I needed to find another company. So, that's what I did. 

I called another company and explained the situation. They walked me through how to reset the boiler (by simply pushing a button) right on the phone. (I ran the HVAC school in New England but I do not have direct knowledge of HVAC work). The other company's willingness help me, communicates that they are not out to rip off their customers. In one quick step, I reset the boiler and it began working immediately and continues to work today. 

As a result, I avoided an unnecessary service call ($69) and an unnecessary labor charge (bleeding the oil lines) from a company that apparently seeks to capitalize on their customers' lack of HVAC knowledge. I thought to write this review because since F/J HESS and Sons doesn't need my business, maybe they don't need other people's business, too.

*Pennsylvania Law does not require HVAC technicians to be licensed. Some municipalities have local requirements but in the Pcoconos, there is no requirement. So while, F/J Hess & Sons appear to be operating within the law they apparently send unqualified employees to provide boiler service in the home.