TriState Refrigeration Appliance & Service Repair

The Owner Eliot was called because the technician got ill and had to be hospitalized. I paid $300 cash and it is going on 4 weeks and my refrigerator is still not fixed. I get the run around every time. I have an LG fridge with the freezer in the bottom. This is such lousy service I am so angry and appalled that you can easily take someone money and not deliver proper service. After 4 weeks still awaiting for my refrigerator to be fixed after calling everyday.

On Friday March 24, I contacted Tristate Refrigeration Appliance Repair Service after finding their name on Angie’s List. I told the representative on the phone that my Maytag dryer was not heating and asked if they could come fix it. They agreed to come that day. “Lex”, the servicemen arrived at 4:00 PM. After 10 minutes of investigation he told me the heating element was bad and needed to be replaced. He told me that heating element alone cost $151. He told me the total cost would be $335 including labor. I told him it was not worth it to me to repair it at that price. I would simply buy a new machine. He then offered to repair it for $250. He said he would have it done in less than 1 hour and any parts he needed were in his truck, including the defective heating element. After taking my machine apart he told me he was missing one part and would have to come back on Monday to complete the job. I asked Lex to show me the defective heating element. He pointed inside the machine and said “that’s” the heating element. I asked where is the defective heating element he removed. He told me he did not have to remove the heating element only some “sensors”. I reminded him that he told me earlier that the heating element was bad and it cost $151. He then told me that he uses the term “heating element” to describe all components because that is the term people understand. I knew at this point he was being dishonest with me but I wanted to get my machine up and running so I agreed to have him come back on Monday as he said he would to complete the job. He told me I needed to give him a deposit of $125, which I did. He said the balance could be paid when the job was completed on the following Monday. He did not return on Monday nor did he call to cancel. I called his office at 7:00 PM and spoke to a representative that told me he would get in touch with a Lex and call me back that evening. I never received another call. I called again the following day and could only leave a message. It is now Wednesday, March 28. I have still not heard from them. I have contacted another repair service to come today to repair the appliance. I am going to the bank to stop payment on the $125.00 check. On Tuesday, March 28th, I did a yelp search on this company, Tristate Refrigeration Appliance Repair Service. I found no less than 20 very negative reviews, many stating a deposit was given and the repairman never returned. Some of the reviews also mimicked my situation where I was told the heating element was bad and yet they never replace the heating element, only charge for it. Glen Davis

I hired them and am out $300. I just needed the doors switched to the other side on a refrigerator. They attached it, loosely and with the wrong hardware. The door fell off the next day. They are unreachable by phone.

Tristate was very thorough in investigating the dryer repair and explaining the problem. They also cleaned the dryer parts and area, as well as replacing a needed part.

Very well,. The technicians were very polite, informative, and honest. I have used them 3 separate times now and have always been very pleased with the results. They know their business and they are very careful to make sure that I understand what they are going to do and what it will cost before they begin a repair. Next, they looked at the dryer and removed all of the lint, etc that was clogging the vents, further than I could reach. They also provide helpful tips to prevent the same problem from reoccurring (ie. don't wash small rugs in the washing machine - it was the rubberized backing that clogged the washing machine!). I will happily use them the next time that I need an appliance technician.

I called about 4:30 last Friday afternoon because my air conditioning (a Trane combined furnace / air conditioning system) had stopped working. They were able to schedule a diagnostic visit at 10 am on Saturday morning. They arrived at around 11 and quickly found the issue - a failed blower motor capacity had shorted out part of the control board. They were able to locate a replacement part at a local dealer and came back in the evening to install it. My air conditioning was working again around 6pm. My only minor complaint is that they were about an hour late arriving for the initial visit (was supposed to be 10am, they arrived about 11am). It was very hot that week (upper 90's) and they were very busy trying to get as many people's repairs done as quickly as possible so I can understand that their schedule was delayed. Moreover, I really appreciated that they were able to get the repair done the same day. They were very polite and took extra time to explain to me exactly what the issue was, how they were going to fix it, what the cost would be and when I could expect it to be done. The price they charged for the replacement parts was very close to the lowest price I found on-line and their labor costs were fair. Overall I'm a very happy customer.

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They repaired it and it worked for a few weeks. It soon stopped working. I called for a return visit numerous times , leaving messages. They have yet to reply.

Excellent service.  Refrigerator was not cooling properly.  They came within an hour of when we called and updated us on their location.  Believe the repairman's name was Danny.  Very friendly, fast and he did the job and told us how to prevent a reoccurence.  A little more expensive than we would have liked for the time spent, etc., but we were very happy.  We probably could have paid a lot more for a lot less.   We'd definitely call them again.

Two repair men showed up at around 7:30 when my 2 year old had just gone to sleep...they were very quiet and respectful and was able to repair my stove without waking up my child that was sleeping only a few feet away

The repairmen were very professional, estimated times and costs very well, and provided the same-day service I needed. Even though my fridge ended up needing to be replaced, they were very straightforward at each point about what various solutions to possible problems would cost, and they only charged me the diagnosis fee in the end. I would happily call them again.

The technical was extremely professional. While he did show up a bit late, he was apologetic. He was patient and answered all of my questions. He took time to explain things to me, and gave me tips to ensure that my appliance would operate efficiently for years to come.

All went fine though the workman was 2 hours late to get to apt for assessment appointment and didn't call. Everything was fine in terms of work, arrived on time for actual repair. A bit pricy but that might be a manufacuturer issue - Bosch.

I called them when my tenants informed me that the washing machine did not discharge water and would show a A10 error on the display.
I knew that something was clogging it and, after having checked the filter, I called and Elliot agreed to come in the afternoon. He showed up on time and they proceeded to take the washing machine apart to reach the clog in the draining pipe. Eventually Elliot had to leave but he left the worker there to finish the job (sorry I don't remember his name), He had to completely disassemble the front of the washing machine in order to reach whatever clogged the drain. After removing a pair of panties ;-) and a few coins he reassembled the washing machine. He explained that in these machines , it's easy for small items to be sucked down the drain and that the tenants should use a lingerie laundry bag for them in order to avoid costly repairs. He proceeded to check that the machine was working correctly after being reassembled and that the problem was completely corrected. The whole job took about 2 hours and the cost was $180, which is a bit high but not totally unfair. I had experiences with other repairmen that were total nightmares so, all in all, this was a  very positive experience. It certainly was an expensive pair of panties!

The Problem: Freezer working in side by side freezer/refrigerator, but refrigerator not cooling well.
Provider advised that a service call would cost $50.  If he had to come back because he didn't have the needed part with him, the $50 would be applied to the cost of the part.
Provider arrives, removes all frozen food from freezer, opens panel in back of freezer and says the "sensor defroster" needs to be replaced, and that this will all cost $245, now that the frozen food is sitting around melting.  The actual part, the sensor defroster" cost $24, which I checked with the Kenmore parts department while this was going on.
So the actual labor charge was $210 to replace a part and vacuum some dirt.  Based on my experience with appliance repair people (I own 13 rental units in addition to my home), the labor charge on this is wildly more expensive that it should be -- by about 100% -- compared with other, non-Angie's list, appliance repair services that I've used.
I would avoid this guy and, what in my opinion, are his predatory tactics.  

Elliott was late, and did not call.  We had confirmed the appt. the previous evening, and he was supposed to arrive at 12:00.  At about 12:25 I called him to find out what was going on.  He said he was on his way, that he had been delayed at a prior appointment.  He was not nearby, and arrived around 1:00.  This was the only disappointing thing about the appointment.  I would strongly urge anyone in the service business to CALL IF YOU'RE GOING TO BE LATE.  And please call BEFORE you're late.  It make a HUGE impression if you call to let the person know that you've been delayed.  Also, ASK if it's convenient to come later. We had to be somewhere at 2:30, and didn't want to cut it too close.  In our case it worked out that he came later, but it's best not to assume .  PLEASE, Elliott, I've seen these complaints on Angie's List before and can only say, if you CALL when you're going to be late, at least :05 before the time you are supposed to be there, you (and every service provider) would improve your customer service so much!  You're a great guy, honest, friendly, and very helpful.  Just fix this one thing, I'm begging you!  That's what cell phones are for.

UPDATE -Promised return to replace another ignitor- I called and scheduled, he never showed, never called , nothing.
Looks lie a good days bad days kind of worker. Pricey as well

I called, and he came out within a half hour! Was very thorough and informative - didn't try to upsell me. Definitely would recommend.

My air conditioner was leaking into my apartment causing my flooring to warp and come up. My stove and oven also wouldn't ignite. I contacted Elliot through Angie's List but called within a few hours, because I was desperate. He told me he could come that night. His other jobs were running late, but I was so thankful that he made it a point to still come to my apartment at 9pm. He and his team fixed both of my problems within an hour. He gave me suggestions for how to improve some other minor problems I was having, as well, which was very useful for me as a first-time home owner. He is extremely knowledgable and I have complete trust in him and his team should I have any other appliance failures in the future.

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I called Tristate on a Saturday afternooon, after my refrigerator stopped cooling. One of the repairmen, Angel, came within 20 minutes, as promised. It turned out the vent was clogged with dust--which, Angel said, had likely caused overheating, which had damaged the relay (it rattled when shaken) and caused the freon to boil away. Cost to fix: $300 total, including the $50 diagnosis fee.
Angel replaced the relay on the spot but didn't have the right kind of freon in his truck, so came back the next day (Sunday). After he added the freon, unfortunately, the refrigerator still did not respond. Angel said that the filter dryer was clogged. He consulted with Elliott, and then told me that I would be better off buying a new fridge.
I thought I would still be on the hook for $250--I had already paid the diagnosis fee--but Angel told me that I didn't have to pay anything else, because the problem was not fixed. I was impressed because he had spent at least an hour on each day of the weekend working on my fridge. While I'm disappointed that my fridge couldn't be fixed and that I'll have to buy a new one, I found Angel's recommendation credible because he gave me clear explanations of what he was doing and because he could have likely earned a higher fee by doing the repair.

The repair was conducted in a very professional manner and quickly. I was kept informed of their arrival time. The new compressor has been in operation for a few weeks now and I've had no problems.

They are horrible, they ripped me off. He came here to fix my refrigerator, supposedly fixed it, but he only did half the job because the problem came right back. I called him up and said he needs to come back. He took my money and he wanted a check and i never heard a thing from him. A called him a number of times and nothing ever happened. I got somebody else to fix it. He was pretty nice and he seemed to know what he was doing but it didn't work out that way.

I called Sears repairs first and they couldn't give me an appointment until two days later! With a machine full of wet clothes, I turned to my Angie's List and as I was turned down one by one by providers I suddenly remembered I had used Tri State last year for my broken dryer.
By that time it was six p.m. I had spent over 11/2 hrs. On the phone. I called tri State's number and I got Elliot. He was sitting in his dentist's chair. He remembered who I was from last year. I was very desperate because my clothes were wet inside the machine.
Elliot was very understanding. He told me that he would be about an hour at the dentist, but when he was finished, he would come to me directly.
He called me when he was on his way and arrived after 8:00 p.m.
In less than an hour, he repaired my washer. He explained that one of my garments had twisted around the door lock. My laundry room is very small. Elliot had to lay down on the floor to work. He removed the garment from the lick very carefully from the bottom of the machine. He got the door open, checked it and restarted the wash cycle. It worked perfectly.
Elliot told me that I need to make sure that the clothes are loaded behind the rubber gasket.
He did not charge me the full price for the visit, only a nominal fee for his time. He explained that he didn't "repair", he just opened the door and gave it a check up to make sure it was in full working order. Who does that? Specially after regular working hours AND with a mouth full of gauze?
I am grateful to Elliot for his prompt resolution, his fairness, and humanity. I am also very grateful to Angie's List. If it wasn't for Angie, I would have gone bonkers.