
Black Mountain Stove & Chimney
About us
Black Mountain Stove & Chimney
Services we offer
Chimney Contractors, Fireplaces, Fireplaces, Heating Stoves
Number of Stars | Image of Distribution | Number of Ratings |
---|---|---|
58% | ||
8% | ||
4% | ||
4% | ||
25% |
On 4/12/16, I finally gave up a bought a new log set from another store. The man who installed the logs said that what Orr had put together was a configuration of 2 unmatched logs and a burner which shouldn't be used with either. The man told us we were lucky we didn't have a house fire.
Dealing with Black Mountain Stove was the worst buying experience of my life and I have heard more than a few tales like mine from other people in the community. AVOID THIS STORE!!!
At this point our property manager contacted Black Mountain Stove & Chimney to get them to come out and correct the problem. I wasn't involved in this communication, but I will say that we love our property manager, he is a very decent and patient guy. I have never seen him so angry and frustrated as when he was trying to get BMS&C to come and fix their screwed-up installation.
Finally they show up to do the work, the guy looks at our chimney and says something like, 'Oh yeah, I remember this job, I did a quick fix and I was planning to come back and finish, and I just forgot!' All the while this leaves us burning wood up a chimney that is installed incorrectly, doesn't draw worth a d***, and is actually a fire hazard, putting my family at risk!
I was just told that the liner installed by Black Mountain Chimney was put in so shoddily that our chimney could have caught fire. Part of the chimney was never covered all the way by the liner. There is a lot of creosote in the lower part of the chimney, because of the incorrect installation, and we could have been subject to a fire in the chimney. We will have another company put in a liner correctly, which will be UP TO CODE, since the work that was done by Black Mountain Chimney was not up to code. I thank God that we found another company, and that they were honest with us.
I had a bad experience with Black Mountain Stove before, but when my husband fell off our roof and broke his back in August, I was desperate to get our chimney cleaned before heating season. I could not find anyone to come out as soon as I needed except for Black Mountain. I decided to give them another try.
At first, their work seemed adequate. They even went extra duty by placing wire mesh over our gutters for an extra charge of $85.00. However, on Thanksgiving evening, we had a fire in our stove flue. I contacted my brother-in-law, former Assistant Fire Chief to inspect and be sure all was well. When he pulled the pipe from the rock wall, he said it did not look like Black Mountain had done a thing.
I still wanted to give them the benefit of a doubt, so I called another chimney sweep to inspect and re-clean as necessary. What this man discovered was a COMPLETE BLOCKAGE in the flue's middle where the chimney tiles had cracked and fallen apart. Combined with the creosote over time, he was surprised the stove had been usable at all. They were not making this up. I watched as this other professional pounded and pounded a rod to dislodge the blockages, and then gazed in horror as pieces of tile which had been there a loooong time fell like terracotta snowflakes to the crook in the flue.
My second opinion person was careful not to implicate another company. He merely gave me the facts of the condition of our flue. However, it doesn't take a genius to know that this problem was either ignored or missed by Black Mountain Stove and Chimney. (How do you miss a chimney being completely blocked?) Not only is this bad business, but our family's safety was put at risk. I do not blame Black Mountain for the problem, as this sort of condition is created over time. I am most disappointed, however, that they were so haphazard in their inspection and work.
Company A's employee took a look at the system and informed us that it had been installed incorrectly and was a fire hazard. Basically, a length of pipe had been added on to the end to extend the chimney and improve the draw. However, the liner had not been extended all the way, and terminated about a foot below the end of the extension. The result was that creosote was building up inside the extension, and then falling down into the space between the liner and the existing chimney pipe, creating a hazard.
Company A refused to perform the cleaning, saying (responsibly) that they could not guarantee their work unless they corrected the mistake. Our landlord decided to get the original installer, Black Mountain Stove and Chimney, to stand behind their work and fix the problem.
Bob Orr is the company president. Our landlord had an extremely frustrating time getting Bob to admit culpability and schedule a time to make the fix. Finally Bob was put in touch with us to schedule an appointment. He didn't show up on the appointed day, and later called to say that he had 'totally forgotten.' We rescheduled, and he managed to show up, took a look at our chimney and said something to the effect of and quot;Oh, yeah, I remember this job. The customer (the previous tenants of our apartment) called to say that the stove wasn't drawing well, so I came out here and improvised something to make it work. I meant to come back and fix it properly, but I just forgot. (!!!!)and quot; We are talking about an improper installation that put me, my wife and my 2 year old son at risk of injury, loss, or death in a chimney fire.
Let me note that my other interactions with employees other than Bob were very pleasant and professional.
"Unfortunately, during the time this work was performed, Black Mountain Stove & Chimney was under a different owner. Bob Orr, the owner since 1979, sold the business briefly in 2008 and did not resume ownership again until 2010."
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