Can you spell F-R-A-U-D? We contracted with J & J Heating and Air (a/k/a Byron Jester and son) to install 3 completely new heat pump systems at 3 of our residential rental properties in Atlanta, GA in May, 2011.
Not long after they 'finished' the jobs for us, we began having problems with two of the systems. They wouldn't cool and it was starting to be summer time in Georgia. We called Mr. Jester repeatedly and couldn't get anyone to call us back (always went straight to voice mail), so I had another HVAC company go and take a look at the two systems. Turns out that these clowns didn't do much that was right. The ductwork was a mess and had to be re-done, they didn't provide any method for the condensate to drain (unless you count all over the floor in the HVAC closet) and they even managed to install the air handler in such a position that there was physically no way the filter could ever be changed - ever! But wait, it gets better.
As you might suspect, it wasn't too much longer before the third system started to not function properly, either. Remember how I said that they were all heat pump systems? Well these bone-heads installed a 3 ton straight air conditioning condenser unit instead of a heat pump condenser! That would explain why it wouldn't heat up the house! The wiring and zoning were all a mess as well and had to all be re-done. After about two weeks and 75 phone calls (no exaggeration) I finally got Byron on the phone. He was just as nice as he could be, 'oh, I'm so sorry Mr. Chris, we will get that unit swapped out right away - they must have mis-labeled the box. We will take care of it next week'. Or, the week after that, or the week after that, or the month after that, or the month after that. It's all an act. He got paid and very clearly expected me to buzz off. Despite numerous promises to put a heat pump condenser in that we paid for instead of the incorrect one he installed, we finally had to have another company install a heat pump condenser - to the tune of another $2,500. Altogether, I think we spent about as much as we paid Mr. Jester to fix all of the problems he created and to resolve the incorrect or missing equipment issues. So if you are looking at his quote, double it and that, in my experience, should give you a good idea of what your actual cost will be - not including all the hassle.
This outfit is a complete fraud. They don't have any idea what they are doing except when it comes to ripping off their unsuspecting customers. I have since learned that they got hauled in front of the Georgia State Construction Industry Licensing Board Division of Conditioned Air Contractors about a month before they ripped us off to answer a complaint regarding unlicensed practice. Mr. Jester agreed to comply with a cease and desist order, but that apparently didn't slow him down much.
Before you consider hiring these crooked morons for your next HVAC job, I suggest you hire the Three Stooges first. At least they may turn out to be somewhat entertaining - plus the Three Stooges were honest, so you will be better off in that department if nothing else. And you would probably get a better install job out of the 3 of them.
Remember, his name is 'Byron JESTER'...just like the kind of jester one would expect to find acting like a buffoon before an audience in a royal court during the Middle Ages. But they were just professional fools then. Nowadays they have added fraud to their routine.