EJ's Lewis Advanced Plumbing

unknown

I had a disappointing experience with EJ's Lewis Advanced Plumbing. When my faucet was first put in, it was fine, but a little bit wobbly. The gentleman said that he was going to come out if we had any problems with it. Well, we had a problem with it, and the faucet broke. We were told, after it was broken, that it was not the type of faucet head that swizzles; it would have to be stationary, which I found kind of odd. Prior to it, in ordering the part for this particular model, I was really disappointed with the customer service.

Ed Lewis, Jr. is a plumber, but masquerades as a kitchen/bath remodel company. We planned to remodel our kitchen, add a gas cooktop and convert our wood burning fireplace to gas and also install a tankless gas water heater, as well as extend the existing wood flooring into the living room. We were going to do it ourselves, with subcontractors. We ran into Ed, who told us that he was not only a plumbing company now, but was also remodeling kitchens and baths. We felt that he could install the tankless and do the kitchen for us. We checked him out on the BBB and only found a couple of issues that had been resolved, so we decided to give him the chance to remodel our kitchen. Before we signed a contract with him, we insisted that anyone coming into the house is licensed and bonded. Since we were also installing the gas line, he must have a County permit and inspection. Our contract was to provide all plumbing services, granite, electrician, installation of wood flooring, etc.. We paid for the cabinets, wood flooring and appliances as they were not part of the contract. At first, Ed was very attentive so that he could get the job. He wanted to do a beautiful job so that he could get referrals from us as several people we knew were ready to remodel their kitchens and waiting to see how ours turned out. The subcontractors actually performing the work were very good and reliable. However, Ed was not reliable at all. He was difficult to reach by phone, didn't show up when he said he would, and didn't pick up or deliver materials on time, leaving the subs and us frustrated. He did very little of the work himself, as he said he would. A major problem was with the county gas permit. He installed the tankless in March, but didn't apply for the permit until May 10, with an inspection that didn't pass on May 12 because the gas line had to be upgraded to 2psi. He requested the permit under B-Tek Plumbing and Heating, not under Advanced Plumbing. I asked him why he didn't pull the permit under his own name and gave me a song and dance story, which leads us to believe that he is not licensed. I searched the Maryland License Bureau and could not find a license for Advanced Plumbing. From there it went downhill. Once the wood floor was installed, the owner of the flooring company came to our door and told us that Ed had not paid him. This action sent a red flag. We paid Ed in draws, however, he came to us on several occasion, telling us he had no money. He asked if we could make exceptions and give him money ahead of time so that he could pay the electrician, granite, etc. We later discovered that he hadn't paid the electrician or the granite company and we had already paid him for these services. When we asked him what he did with the money, his response was "oh, that's all gone". We still owed him money so he got his subs to complete much of the work so he could get paid. We contacted our attorney, who advised us on the proper manner in which to deal with Ed Lewis. With much frustration, we finally got the kitchen functional, but he never finished it completely. He never installed the gas regulator, required by the County and BGE. We made numerous attempts to contact him. He did not return our calls or emails, and even hung the phone up several times when he accidently answered it. We contacted Anne Arundel County to report his actions and were told to terminate his contract, which would allow them to remove the permit, we could then hire a new plumber and get a new permit, which we did. Luckily, we held back money and hired Tim Butler Plumbing of Ferndale, Maryland. Tim is a reliable, licensed and insured, plumber. He pulled a new permit, installed the new regulator which allowed BGE to install the 2psi gas meter. The final permit has been issued. We've spoken with several people who said that while he did a good job, he didn't finish the job and didn't always pay his bills. We cannot refer Ed Lewis, Jr. because he is not reliable. What a shame!

This is the company that the home warranty service put me in touch with so the I only paid the warranty deductible.That being said, I had to have my garbage disposal serviced and Advanced Plumbing got an service man out to me within three hours of my call. Francis took over an hour to remove a screw that had gotten lodged in the disposal during home repairs because the warranty company would not replace the unit since it was so new. He was proffesional and very polite. I really appreciated the time he took to service my disposal since he could have easily told me that I needed a new one which would have cost me several hundred dollars.

Oveall, everything went fairly smoothly. The technician was polite and professional and was willing to answer my questions. He went above and beyond during his visit for which I was most grateful. He was completely (from what I could tell) honest and helpful to this first-time homeowner. My frustrations came in 2 places. We were told that he would arrive between noon and 4 pm. I had errands to run that morning and received a call at 10:45 stating the the technician was on his way to my house. Obviously, I was a bit flustered since I didn't expect him for more than another hour. I explained that I would do my best to get home quickly, but was at least 30 minutes away. When I got home, the technician ended up not showing until 2 PM. That was a bit frustrating. Also, I was told by the technician that his return visit would be between 10 and 4...I was hoping that he could narrow it down because I was going to be out of town and needed a friend to come and wait for him to do the work. He said that we were his first call of the morning, so he would be there by 10 or 10:30. He didn't show up until 2:30 PM. In his defense, it was within the time frame he had given me, it was just frustrating to hear that he showed up so late when he thought it would be sooner.

Overall the job was unsatisfactory for several reasons. First, it was never completed. Secondly, after doing research on the internet, I feel we were overcharged. The owner even asked my husband for more money than was contracted for. We did not pay the additional fee request. Thirdly, Advanced Plumbing states in his advertisement that seniors get a 10% discount. We were not offered the discount or given it. We have hired someone else to complete the job.

Overall the job was unsatisfactory for several reasons. First, it was never completed. Secondly, after doing research on the internet, I feel we were overcharged. The owner even asked my husband for more money than was contracted for. We did not pay the additional fee request. Thirdly, Advanced Plumbing states in his advertisement that seniors get a 10% discount. We were not offered the discount or given it. We have hired someone else to complete the job.

THEY WERE ON TIME AND FINISHED ON TIME.