Winters Home Services

We had a great experience with Jamie from Winters. He arrived on time, quickly diagnosed our problem, made recommendations and had excellent customer service skills. I have been a customer of Winters for many years and have always found them reliable and reasonably priced. In addition to their plumbers, their office has always been great. I would not hesitate to recommend them.

Techs came for routine maintenance for my gas furnace (baseboard heating) and upon completion, told me that there was a dangerous level of carbon monoxide leakage and they legally had to turn off my furnace. Showed me 2 photos of a reader with 1300 and 1500ish ppm and sent a senior tech out an hour later Senior tech quoted repair price in the $6000 range and a full unit replacement in the $17000 range. Told me it would be dangerous to turn my unit back on. Told them I would think about it and after they left, I noticed that my carbon monoxide detector was still in the room and reset it to test, made a noise indicating that it worked. Didn’t want to take any chances, so I went to Home Depot and bought another monoxide detector that showed the PPM. came back home and turned on my furnace, made sure it worked and left the new detector on top of the furnace and shut the furnace room door. Waited about 5 minutes and checked in it - 0PPM. Waited another 10 minutes and checked again. - still 0PPM. Also got 2 more full unit replacement quotes from my contractor’s plumber contacts and both were below $10000. You can form your own opinions, I’m just stating the facts of what was presented to me during my routine maintenance check. I also went to bed with the new carbon monoxide detector that night.

Service for maintenance of HVAC was excellent Helped with filter change and cleaning of system. Ensured working correctly for winter

Solved the declining water pressure problem. But the bill was $967 - no breakdown of parts & labor. An hours work to diagnose and change - also the plumber went to get parts. The billing dept says that they charge by the project not by time and parts and that you can ask. So .. you should ALWAYS ASK BEFORE PROCEEDING on a repair what the charge is. Install a new faucet? replace the flapper valve in your toilet? -- may be 1/2 hr jobs but good to find out in advance.

Provided misleading estimate. Charged $750.00 for less than two hours work without parts, other than washers. Taking advantage of the elderly.

replace hvac system

They been awesome. Call on emergency and they came right over. Very honest and always been there for us. I depend on them for heating, cooling and plumbing.

The technician was friendly and on time, but didn't fix the problem. He decided that the problem was with a capacitor in a compressor unit, he replaced it, cleaned the unit , charged $760+ and left. This didn't fix the issue. When I called a different company they said that the issue was with the broken wire connector inside the compressor, under the fan and most likely there was no need to replace a capacitor at all, as fan was fully functional. I brought up the issue with the Winters management and they were reluctant to issue a refund sighting that I got a new capacitor and should pay for it. The technician didn't properly diagnose the problem and I won't pay for it even if it means taking Winters Home Services to small claims court.

Phil (Winters’ technician) was very professional; I had previously contracted another firm, which did not resolve the problem, but Phil gave more attention. And was able to diagnose and solve the problem. (Signed up for their maintenance plan) Found their “after service” attention to be a sign of their excellent service quality ! Would recommend Winters without reservation !

The work was done promptly and professionally.

Our sewer line was backed up so I called winters who must've installed our water heater and furnace (before we moved in) as their stickers were plastered over everything. Big mistake. Guy came out and charged by the task, not by his time, so it was almost $1,000 for him to put a camera down the sewer line to see what was clogging it. He never did see anything, but the machine he lugged up my steps took large chunks of wood out of the porch in several spots. Also, noticed one of my toilets was loose and offered to reset it for $375! Um, no. The toilet he did reset after taking it off to put the camera down it was also put back improperly and loose, and he broke one of the bolts so that it is constantly wobbly now. On top of all this, he expressed concern that he was going through me (apparently a poor, helpless, unaware female) and not my husband. Not cool. Have found a much more reasonable an honest plumbing and heating group. Never again.

The work was accomplished promptly and well.  Technician here less than half an hour.  The cost of $435. was ridiculous and I won't go back.

They were supposed to fix a sink which was very old. Instead, they broke the drain. So I had to change the entire sink. The price was awful. With them, they're very responsive and they'll get there on time. They're very punctual. But they're very expensive. The workers were professional. Cleanliness was okay. One of the fixes had to be done in the basement and they didn't clean up after themselves in the basement. Within the house, they did clean up fine. I would tell a friend to use them if it's a must.

The Facts: 
Winters Home Services was called in the evening, came the next morning. Very responsive, especially since this happened in the week between Christmas and New Year.
The plumber was courteous, and careful about tracking/spreading dirt, etc.
A worksheet and price was prepared prior to work.  I reviewed it, understood it, and agreed to the terms.
The repair was begun immediately, and completed in 2 hours. All work done by one person.
The work was done well, and the plumber was pleasant. 
And . . .
The cost of the job (as agreed to) was $1,525.00. About $25 for parts, and 3 hours (estimated) of  labor.  In fact the job was completed in a little over 2 hours for an effective hourly labor charge of about $700.  
My Thoughts:
I was happy to be able to get someone to make this repair during Christmas week .
I was happy with the service provided.
I understand that premium rates will be charged for fast service during a vacation week.   
I know that I did not have to work with Winters, and could have looked for help elsewhere.
That said,  I think the price for the work was opportunistic in the extreme, and  indicates an attitude this company has for its clients that I would and will caution people about. Goodwill is everything In the service industry. But for Winters Home Services I can offer very little. 
The "overall" rating given  is meaningless, included only because it was required by this response form. 
Here is the real "Overall":   If your bank account is bursting and money is no object, then I recommend Winters strongly.  But if you live in the world where most of us do, where time, value, and cost are necessarily watched and understood, then Winters is a company to be avoided. 
 I'm quite comfortable with the ratings I give for the other 5 categories.    

I scheduled a service call for my gas furnace as the forced steam radiators were making an usual noise.  I was able to get an appointment within 2-3 days of the call and the service technician showed up on time within the window provided.  I had previously used this company last year to install a new hot water system and was satisfied with their work.
The technician was very polite and explained the work he was doing.  The steam system had been overfilled and he drained the excess water, explaining that the noise we heard could have been due to water getting into the pipes.  He noted that the boiler water was rusty and our system needed to be flushed.  He discussed pricing options and I agreed to move forward with the less expensive option which did not include treating the system with chemicals.  The service call lasted approximately 3.5-4 hours and the technician was very good about cleaning up after his work. 
I was pleased with the work performed, however, the price seemed a bit steep so I researched after the fact and found that it was around twice the price of several very large, reputable plumbing companies.  My fault for moving forward with the work before getting other estimates.
We paid for a 3-year service plan at the time of our water heater installation last year so I would probably use this company again for services covered under the plan or related to any prior work (i.e., the water heater). I'd be reluctant, however, to refer others given the very high prices.  They're very responsive in an emergency which is a huge plus but, for routine work, it's best to get other estimates first so you know what you're getting into!

It was good, they were prompt and set up the date and time for repair. There was no problems, they were professional, polite and cleaned up after themselves. They explained things so I could understand and showed me what they were fixing. A pleasant expierence.

They came by, assessed our needs, installed the new water heater, took away the old one, and cleaned up after themselves.  They were very timely.  They didn't drag out the work. They did a great job.

This was not the Winters Plumbing in Natick but the Winters Plumbing in Cambridge. I was initially charged $1830 for a callout regarding a garbage disposal repair or replacement. The plumber replaced it with a model that costs about $250 retail online. :-)  

I challenged this high cost and head of firm told me he was allowed by law to charge me whatever he needed for plumber's rates, in order to keep his business solvent.  After a BBB arbitration, the firm gave me $1000 refund with the understanding that I would remove my review here on Angie's list. Since I can't remove the review, I have amended my review details in order to comply with the legal gag order I was required to sign so I could get some money refunded.

The plumber who visited was a very nice man. He wore coverings on his shoes to keep my floors clean. If you don't mind paying a very high price for plumbing, they may do a really great job for you. The disposal works great now.

They are the absolute worst. They are deceitful, manipulative, and they shouldn't even be in business. They over charge for the simplest jobs and we just can't have their poor work.  Wanted to charge 2400.00 to put in a vanity that we had already purchased.

We were impressed with them. Those people are great. They were wonderful. They have multiple levels of service available. They give you multiple quotes, so you can choose what level of service you want. You can choose the cheapest, medium, and most expensive. They are not pushing you towards the most expensive. They are very efficient and very courteous. They are just really decent people and they did good work. They were really a good company.

I was grossly overcharged for a simple replacement of a leaking toilet seal (around the bottom of the bowl).  My wife was at home at the time and tried to reach me to OK the price ($1050), but I was unreachable so she told them to do the work.  When I contested the price charged later, they were unwilling to do anything other than give me a small credit toward future work.  I had used Winter for many years but they seem to have had a change of management and now are utterly contemptuous of their customers.  I will never use them again for anything.

Provider arrived on time, tested the refrigerant level, and tested the air flow. The provider never even went up into the attic to check the unit because he said he didn't have a ladder. Very unprofessional. Seemed more interested in selling us a service contract than checking our A/C. Would never use this provider again.

Our downstairs AC was not working and it was 90+ degrees and I was pregnant. I called Winters because their plumbers had been decent, but pricey and my regular HVAC company could not fit us into their schedule. The technician they sent out gave me a lengthy speech about how the horrible condition of my AC, quoted a crazy price to clean it and I got suckered. After cleaning the units, he told me that we had to replace our condenser and, hey, if we're doing that, why not just put in a whole new AC system (to the tune of $20K).His tactic was one of intimidation and condescension ("I have never seen anything so dirty; I can't even give you a quote until I clean it...No one else will be able to fix this for you" and "I can talk about this with your husband if you don't understand.")  I got a second opinion, repaired the condenser for $92 and had no further problems.  I cannot say enough bad things about Winters. 

On toilet repair they sent a couple of youngish men who offered to stop the leak for $275 or put in a new one.  I did not pick the bottom line unit and ended up paying $800 for the new toilet which looks like most .  I tried to order an off-white tiolet, but think I got a white one with an off white lid. They also sold us a $50 fast service agreement.
On the second visit they unclogged the bathtub drain, charging $100, their minimum fee I was told and refused to alllow me to use a discount coupon mailed to the house.
When my boiler stopped working while in Florida I called Winters a thrid time as had an OK experience with the last plumbers they sent and new they had a reputation for coming quickly.  This time they sent another person who did not seem to have much experience.  He spent a 1/2 hr tinkering with the boiler amd talking on the phone and then prepared a sales agreement with 4 prices starting from $1300 to altleast  $8000.  I repeatedly questioned the $1300 price, but was assured the work was difficult and a specail had to get part would have to be ordered.  I assumed that is the work ended to being too time comsuming I would not get charged the full price.
A few days later he cane back, but was missing one of two parts required.  One small rod was replaced in about an hour and when I again questioned him about the price, he said he would get aproval to reduce the price, but the price was a fixed price not related to the actual time spent.
A week later when the furnace was still having problems and was leaking gas, I complained to management, who was not sympathetic about my feeling that I had been overcharged for shoddy work, only offereng to have the same person come back to fix the problem again.  I had very little faith in Winters at that point and called a second plumber who I knew personally and he replaced both the part Winter's had installed and the other part they had failed to get, fixed the leak caused by a loose screw for less than 1/2 what Winter's charged after the $300 refund I eventually recieved after writing them letter and emails and visiting their offices in West Cambridge.

Winters is a well-known name in my town because of long-standing HVAC and plumbing business. First surprise was tyring to figure out who was who since they seem to have split into many different "Winters".  They responded promptly--to check out heat not working, maybe a broken thermostat.  Serviceman disappeared in basement for ~30 mins then came up to try to sell me a service plan for $5200, then a less expensive service plan for $3500.  I told him I just wanted the heat fixed and he said "maybe it's the thermostat", wouldn't I like heat in the rest of the basement?  I then asked him to leave and said I would call someone else.  He got upset, agreed to put in a new thermostat for  $370.  I will never use them again, most unprofessional experience I've had. Installed it, it works.