W F Fowler Mechanical

Here is my story:
For anyone considering W. F
Fowler Mechanical of Selbyville, Delaware and Ocean City, Maryland for their
HVAC needs, this is my experience with them. After reading this I would hope
that you would never consider this company for any services.
In late
July early August 2011, I contracted with them to replace my through-the-wall
air conditioner with a ductless mini-split heat pump. He (Frank, the owner)
told me he would be at my beach condo in Ocean City, Maryland at 9am Monday
morning the 1st of August 2011. I call in to work and took Monday off so he
could complete the install. Monday morning at 9am, no Frank. I call and leave
a voicemail. 10am no reply. I call again and leave a voicemail. Still no
reply. He finally calls at noon. He had trouble getting the unit. H will be
there in an hour. He finally shows up at 2:30pm. He tells me he will have it
installed in about 5 hours. Well, at 9pm he is still working on the install. I
suggest he come back in the morning and finish. He agrees and says he only has
about an hour of work left. He shows up at 9:30am (not 9am like he promised)
the next morning. He doesn?t finish until noon. I had to call in work and take
another day off. But, when he leaves, everything is installed and working.
Two weeks later we are down at our condo again. We crank up the air
conditioner (heat pump) and it is blowing nothing but hot air. We call Frank
(W.F. Fowler Mechanical). He says he will be out between 2pm and 4pm to take a
look. He shows up at 6:30pm. No phone call in between explaining that he will
be late. The problem was a loose fitting (from his install) on the refrigerant
line. He repaired the connection and began recharging the refrigerant. Well he
ran out of refrigerant and the unit was only half full. I told him to go back
to his shop (only 5 miles away) and get some more and come back and finish. He
said he couldn?t do it tonight. I told him first thing in the morning would be
fine. He said he couldn?t make it then either. He said he would call me
tomorrow with an update as to when he could finish the repair. I NEVER HEARD
FROM HIM AGAIN!!!
I ended up calling another HVAC company in the area.
I told them I wanted a complete inspection of the unit. Finally when they were
finished, and $479 later, here is what they found:
Another loose
refrigerant fitting (This one was located inside the wall). While they were
getting to the fitting in the wall, they found that the mounting bracket for the
inside unit was not properly anchored to the wall. They also found that the
condensate line was attached with tape. They fixed the loose refrigerant line
fitting, re-anchored the mounting bracket for the inside unit, and replaced the
condensate line attaching it properly with a hose clamp. They then retested
everything (both heat and a/c) and verified that everything was running
properly. $479 !!!
I contacted Frank (of W.F.Fowler Mechanical) by
email and told him of the added expense to get it installed properly and asked
for the $479 it took to get it installed and running properly. I still haven?t
heard from him.