PELL'S APPLIANCE & TELEVISION

Description of Work: The motor on our furance wasn't working, and they fixed it.

Description of Work: Bought a gas dryer. Sales person was friendly, knowledgable and honest. Installation was completed the same day. Service techs were friendly, knowledgable and prompt. Quality installation. A service issue occurred and the service tech came the same day; was prompt, friendly and knowledgable. A part was ordered and arrived a few days later and was installed the same day.

Description of Work: Pell's Heating and A/C installed a new, two-stage geothermal heat pump in my home in August of 2010. This was the second heat pump Pell's installed at this location. The first one was installed in 1992 and I was told it would last 25 years. It began failing in 2008, and I was told "these things happen." When Pell's installed the new furnace, they failed to test the gallons-per-minute flow from the well. They also failed to test the air-conditioning system. When I began to use the heat pump in late October 2010, it began going into freeze protect and relying solely on electric heat. Pell's first said there was nothing wrong. Then, when it went into freeze protect again in late October, they said there was a bad part and they would order it, but they never came back to replace it. When the furnace went into freeze protect again on 11/4/2010, they came back and admitted the new part had been ordered and arrived, but got stuck on a shelf and forgotten about. They said the furnace would be fine. The furnace went into freeze-protect mode again at the end of November. At that point they finally checked the water flow rate (by turning on the bathtub and the kitchen sink while the furnace was running) and realized the well could not support this furnace. At that point the very professional well driller said it was too late to put in a new well in Northern Michigan, so Pell's set the furnace to operate only in stage one, with electric heat as necessary. My bills for the heating season were much higher than normal, of course. This also meant the existing well pump would run nearly continuously trying to supply enough water so the furnace could make heat. The furnace would also run longer, because it could not go into second stage to raise the temperature as necessary. When I asked for a service record, Pell's just wrote one out, leaving out some dates and lying about when they did the water rate flow test, to make it seem as if I could have put in a new well when they found out, as they said, in early November. They also said that the furnace would operate perfectly well on 8 gallons per minute, when, in fact, it needs 14 gallons per minute in second stage, 10 in first stage. That is for the furnace alone. To take a shower or do laundry while the furnace is running, the well should have been producing 25 gallons per minute, otherwise the furnace won't get enough water and will go into freeze protect. The strain on my well pump was too great and it failed in January, costing me $1800.00 for a replacement, as well as the expense of plowing to get to the well, and the destruction that plowing did. If I had known I had to drill a new well in August, when the furnace was installed, which I was happy to do, I would not have had this expense. I wrote Pell's asking them to reiumburse me, since this was clearly their negligence. They ignored the letter. The company rep., Jeff Johnston, came to see the installation in the spring. He had talked with Pell's, and related that they were quite surprised at how much water the furnace took; apparently, he said, "they never bothered to read the instruction manual." They had used piping that was too small as well. He advised me to sue them for the extra heating expenses I've incurred, which I will do. He also said that the first furnace installed in 1992 probably failed early because it never got enough water flow and the compressor always ran a little hot. He also discovered that Pell's had erased the furnace's computer record of operation, so I could not prove when it went into freeze protect and conclusively demonstrate they had lied on the service record. Rick, who is the contractor who owns Pell's with his brother and his father, is arrogant, condescending, and lacks the proper knowledge to install and service these furnaces. When I asked him if the first furnace had failed because it didn't get enough water, he snapped: "It was a compressor problem; not a water problem." Rick sends crews to do the work, supervising "when necessary," but apparently he doesn't pay much attention to major details and requirements, since they kept telling me all the furnace needed was 8 gallons a minute, even when I showed them the instruction manual. They just dismissed it with a shrug. They tramp through the house in dirty boots unless you block the doorway and MAKE them take off their boots. They aren't certified by the manufacturer because they refuse to complete the training. I put in a new well as soon as possible in spring of 2011. To run the furnace and produce 25 gallons per mintue took an extra-expensive well pump. I then had to pay another contractor to redo the piping on the furnace so the flow rate would be correct. In the process, I discovered the air-conditioning system had never worked and needed to be repaired. My new furnace has now cost me in excess of $25,000.00. Pell's has never called or contacted me even though my family has done business with them for over 40 years and bought appliances from them, although their repairmen were not always helpful or able to solve problems. I was a good customer, so I didn't blame Pell's. Mistake. My advice: Do NOT hire someone to put in a geothermal heat pump unless he is certified by the manufacturer, no matter how well you think you know him. Spend the extra money for a closed-loop system, since if you rely only on one well, you'll end up putting in well pumps every few years anyway (I put in four with the first furnace, probably partly because it never got enough water and Rick probably never really understood what flow rate it needed). Get to know the manufacturer's rep., and ask him to recommend a contractor. Geothermal heat pumps require someone with intelligence and training; they're not a simple gas furnace that can be installed by someone with a high school diploma and an attitude. Learn as much as you can before you decide and stand over the contractor every minute. If he doesn't like that, stand closer and watch more carefully. And I would never, ever buy anything from Pell's. If Rick had done his job competently in August of 2010, I could have drilled a well immediately, and saved myself hours of time and a lot of money. My experience has been that they don't know what they're doing. They underbid jobs, apparently to get contracts, then present you will a list of cost overruns. When a job goes badly, they lie, stonewall, and then ignore you. My big mistake was that I trusted them, and it's cost me dearly.