Bay Stoves

The installation went fine. Unfortunately, we had no idea that the time between ordering and delivery/installation would be three weeks, which temporarily derailed our construction process. While I assume the pricing for the units and installation were fair, we did not get any other quotes, so I really can't speak to that.

This is a new owner , they've changed owners and there's a little bit of grumbling but we heard from the guy that came out so I'm anticipating maybe some problems there, I'm not sure. We used them for years and years and all of a sudden they have a new owner. So I really don't know.

They thoroughly cleaned/swept the inside of the fireplace, checked the system out, replaced embers, etc.  They were in and out very quickly, and left no mess.

This review being filed concerns a phone order I placed on June 29, 2012 with Bay Stoves (3157 Solomons Island Rd., Edgewater MD 21037) for Hearth Innovations? 58 inch, linear Solas wall mount gas fireplace and surround.  Everything I have written is substantiated by available documentation.

When placing my order I explained that everything in the house under renovation (111-D Severn Ave., Annapolis MD) was brushed chrome or stainless and that Hearth Innovations? website showed it offered a stainless surround for the fireplace.  I said that, assuming the finish of the surround was not ?shiny?, I wanted the stainless finish.  As best I recall, the person I spoke with said she would confirm that the finish was not shiny and would then place the order.  She would let me know if there was any problem getting what I wanted.  The invoice that I received showed ?steel grey? surround, which, to me as a consumer relying on Bay Stoves? expertise, indicated the correct surround had been ordered (at a cost of $415 plus tax of $24.90).

Bay Stoves offered to keep the fireplace and surround in its warehouse until my contractor was ready to have it installed by Bay Stoves.  When the items were delivered to the house and the packaging was removed, my contractor called me and said I needed to come to Annapolis to look at the surround before it was installed.  He said he felt it was not what I wanted.  Indeed, we found out that what had arrived was a surround with a painted finish (not the brushed stainless steel surround I had asked Bay Stoves to order and that I ultimately received after paying an additional $784.94 on April 9, 2013 for the replacement).  I immediately told Bay Stoves not to install the painted surround but to reorder the correct (i.e., stainless) one.   I have no idea why the original order was placed incorrectly after I had stressed both what I had seen online and what I wanted. 

When I directed Bay Stoves to obtain the correct surround, I was told, many times both over the phone and when I went to their location, that the original surround would be returned and I would receive a refund.  This fact was even noted on the paid invoice.  I also was told there would be a restocking fee charged by the distributor, meaning I should not expect to be fully reimbursed.  Since Bay Stoves had made the error, I believed Bay Stoves, not I, should absorb the loss (in fact, given the reorder, there was no loss to Bay Stoves).  However, I felt I had no option but to silently resign myself to the fact that I would be paying for Bay Stoves? error.

Current status:

• Despite numerous attempts to find out the status of the return and the reimbursement, I have been unable to get any response (or money) from Bay Stoves. 

• I have no assurance that Bay Stoves ever even returned the incorrectly ordered fireplace surround. 

• I have been able to determine I paid Bay Stoves a total of $1224.84 for what should have cost me between $350 and $575 (based on research I have done on representative competitors? prices.  

• Bay Stoves has wrongly withheld and has had the use of $726.40 of my money (the difference between what I reasonably should have paid for the surround ?averaged at $462.50, based on the two documented comparative prices?and the $599 I did pay, as well as other costs) for many months, with no apparent intent of ever refunding anything to me.  

• I unnecessarily paid twice for shipping and handling ($150), as well as $24.90 in tax on the incorrect surround that cost $415

Between Bay Stoves? error, and its failure to respond to me, return my money and excessive charges, where once I might have been willing to accept a loss, I am no longer willing or believe it is necessary to do so. 

Requested resolution:

I am requesting full reimbursement of $726.40, the total amount I was wrongly charged by Bay Stoves. I have calculated the reimbursement request as follows;

• $415.00 ? cots of incorrect surround

• $  24.90 ? 6% tax on incorrect surround

• $136.50 ? excessive cost of correct surround based on competitors? pricing

$150.00 ? charge for shipping of correct surround  

I ordered and paid a deposit on November 16, 2012 for a wood burning stove, installation and 2 chimney sweeps.  The installation was scheduled for Monday, Jan. 14th, 2013 between 8 am and 12 noon.  I received a call on morning of Friday, Jan 11th asking if I could accept delivery that day.  I said I could if the delivery was in the afternoon since I was at work and would have to drive home.  I was told they would call me back.  I didn't hear back from anyone so I called and was told they couldn't fit me in during the afternoon and I was still scheduled for Monday, Jan. 14th.  I then received a return call saying there was a conflict with another customer and could I accept delivery in the afternoon on Monday the 14th rather than in the morning: I agreed.  Late in the evening of that same day, I discovered a text message from Bay Stoves asking if I could move the time back to Monday morning since the conflict was resolved.  I sent a text back saying that I had already informed my company of the rescheduled time and needed to stick with the afternoon.  Monday morning came and I received a call from the delivery staff at 8:30 am saying they would be at my house in 15 minutes.  I told them how the time had been rescheduled for the afternoon and that the BayStoves' scheduler must have ignored my text.  Anyway, I told them I would be there in 30 minutes.  I dropped everything and when I arrived, I waited another 30 minutes for the truck to show up.
The two men removed my old stove, placed the new stove in the house and attached a new stove pipe.  They also cleaned and inspected the two flues.  One cleaining for the wood stove chimney and the other for my open face fireplace.  The two men did a great job of installing, cleaning/inspecting the chimneys and also took time to answer my questions.  The "installers" were professional, polite and neat.
What I really didn't like was BayStove telling me they made a mistake on the invoice and rather than charging $175 per chimney cleaning they charged $145 and wanted the difference of $60.  Although I paid the difference, I sent an email stating that we felt it was unfair to ask us for more money since the deal was done upon receipt of the deposit and I had a complete invoice in-hand at the time of the sale.  I explained how BayStoves' sales representative knew or should have known BayStove's pricing.  Also we had already compared chimney sweeping costs on Angies list and had contacted a chimney sweep from Angies list but since BayStoves' price was comparable, we went with BayStoves' price.  BayStove said the correct pricing is in the fine print at the bottom of the invoice.  They are correct, but we "negotiated a deal" with the representative, who noted a different price in the main body of the invoice.  But again, we paid the difference anyway and moved on.
Note: A truely customer oriented company would have said: "We" (BayStoves) made a mistake in the pricing, don't worry about the difference, we will better educate our sales representative.  But instead, the burden of the mistake was directed at the customer.

UPDATE: On Janaury 31, 2013 I received a check from Bay Stoves for $60.  A note was attached saying they had heard about the price change for the chimney cleaning and was paying back the difference.  Not sure if the "heard about" it was from the review on Angies List or from my email.  As a result, I moved the professionalism rating up from a D to a C.  The C is for having the situation happen in the first place.

I can't say enough good things about Bay Stoves. I had a party in December in our finished - but UNHEATED - basement, so I had a real deadline. Although I goofed up communications, Bay Stoves juggled their schedules to get stove to me in time. The plumber they usually work with sent an unqualified person to connect the stove to my gas line. The person did the line work but was didn't know how to set up the propane adapter in the stove itself. Bay Stoves had told the plumber that stove was propane, and it was the plumber's mistake, but the plumber was unwilling to send someone out to set up the adapter. A REALLY nice young man from the setup team drove 40 miles back from Edgewater to my house - on a FRIDAY NIGHT! - to set up the adapter so the heater would work for my party. I have rarely seen a company extend themselves this much to accommodate a customer's needs. Their staff also was more knowledgeable than other stores I shopped at before the purchase. I HIGHLY recommend them.