Home Comfort / All Star Energy Inc

My mother paid almost $6000 for a comprehensive energy review from Home Comfort about 4 years ago. This winter, she had a huge ice dam that caused damage inside. I called Home Comfort to investigate and they initially responded immediately, made an appt to come and then never showed, never returned my calls.

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We got a grant and the grant helped. It was for a more efficient system. They helped us get the grant.

They changed the filter and the filter is kinda expensive. They are very punctual.

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The tune up went well.  They were punctual and very professional.

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This was the first time we've used their services and it was a mixed experience. We were satisfied with the gentlemen who did the furnace tune-up and energy audit. However, when it was time to get the feedback from the home energy audit, we felt like we were being prompted for some services. The loan that was being offered through the State was only good for people in certain situations. It was a 15-year loan and we're both in our 50's and we're just not sure how long we'd actually be in the house. We've been upfront about that but the audit guy thought that we should still do it. We were grateful for the home energy audit and that they pointed certain things that we could certainly improve but at the end of the day, the upgrades were costly and the idea of a loan wouldn't work for us. Maybe they should listen to customers and not try to give them the hard sell.

1st step was an energy audit.  Auditors looked for heat loss - doors, windows, checked for wall R values and used large fan with a plastic cover for outside door to judge how much air was seeping into house thru unsealed openings.  Owner is encouraged to follow them and ask questions and also to answer questions they might have..
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2nd step is a couple of weeks later with an energy consultant.  Consultant will go over the results of the audit and make recommendations.  In my case it was additional attic insulation, foam insulation at juction of basement walls and house framing plus new furnace and tankless water heater.  Owner may accept or reject recommendation.  I decided on the additional insulation and new furnace.  I rejected the tankless water heater.  I also rejected one area suggested for additional foam insulation.  This is all done in a very laid back way.  I did not feel pressured
3rd step is the actual installation.  This was done about 3 months after initial steps.  They were booked until then.  Furnace was installed on one day - and it did take all day.  The insulation was done on a second day.  The attic insulation required entrance thru my walk in bedroom closet.  I have to say I was nervous about the possibility of a mess.  When they were finished you would never know they had been there.  Material like very large plastic wrap was put on the stairs so nothing was ground into the rugs leading upstairs and drop cloths were put on all the other areas they needed to access.  
4th step is someone who comes to check the work was done properly with the results promised.  Again all friendly and professional.
Everyone I came in contact with was friendly and professional.  They put up with my nosy cat and made sure she didn't escape. My understanding is that all the workers involved are direct employees; they do not subcontract out the installations.  This makes for better results.

The final result was completely satisfactory, but it would not have been if I hadn't kept an eye on what they were doing. The initial analyst misrepresented what the construction crew would be able to do with our very old house: he said they would dense-pack all exterior walls, but it turned out that 60% of the walls were of a construction that didn't allow that. Then the construction crew misrepresented to the company inspector what they had accomplished, saying they had insulated 90% rather than 40%.

I truly believe that these problems resulted more from poor communication than from bad intent. When I made the situation clear to the inspector, he made things right: both getting the problematic walls insulated with loose fill, and making the proper adjustment for the 15% of the walls that were already insulated before they came.  But if I hadn't been watching, we would have paid several $1000s for work that wasn't done.

They were okay. They used spray foam, and they were very sloppy when they did that. I let them know it 2-3 times. They were very sloppy and it was a hassle to deal with. They insulated the attic too and that was a good job. I might use them again but not for foam.

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It was done superbly by the hired technicians. The ONLY problems have been the Navien water heater which has never worked adequately, and the lack of integrity in the owner's responses. We waste gallons of water before we can get hot water to the first and second floors and the water continues to suddenly change to brilliant cold. Washing our hands requires more waste unless we're satisfied with a cold water wash, which we're not. THE WORST OF ALL OF THIS is that the owner of the company hasn't wanted to follow up when I call and politely and patiently ask him to address this problem. A few years back, he broke two legs, so of course I quit calling him for a long time. I've since called him three times and the last time, a few months ago, he said, "I'll get back to you before the end of the day. I promise." Silly me, I believed him. I'd like to say, "Oh well, that's life, but it's $15,547 of my life, so I feel that I deserve better attention. I've put off reporting them to Angie's List, because I really believed that we could have this heater problem settled and because the workers and the office staff are truly nice people. I prefer local and small, but this is one that has disappointed me greatly. My friends who have other water heater brands love theirs and don't have these problems. They're also not selling this brand any more. Does that tell us something? If you look at my many reviews, you will see that I've been fair, honest, and positive, that I'm not a picky, nasty customer. Thank you, Angieslist, for what you do. I will call the company now to tell them that I've sent this in. If they make good on the problem, I will be more than happy to take this review down.

There are plenty of companies that offer free home energy audits (paid for by NYSERDA), but these guys were very professional (and punctual).  No complaints with them, except maybe for the fact that I wish I didn't have to wait so long between visits.  I want to save money now, but I understand that they are so back-logged with all the new leads they get.

Upon purchasing a home built in 1957,  we knew it would need work, including improvements for energy efficiency.  We had Home Comfort perform an energy audit and quote the recommended work.  As part of the NYSERDA program, all participating  companies, including Home Comfort, are tightly regulated and monitored.  All work done is subject to inspection after the job is completed, and energy use is monitored for years.
Everyone with whom we interacted, from the initial sales appointment, the assessment, proposal presentation, services performed and post-installation audit was prompt, professional and very pleasant to work with.  The work was done on time and expertly.  The blower test after the work was done showed that the target for energy efficiency was exceeded.
One of the most attractive features of the NYSERDA program is that financing is available under very favourable terms.  The savings resulting from improved efficiency will meet or exceed the monthly payment; essentially it is "free money".
This is perhaps the best investment we have ever made, and will further qualify for tax credits or deductions.  Overall we are thrilled with Home Comfort and the program.

Overall all the employees that I worked with were very professional and cared about my property. The worked efficiently and were very good at educating us on how to make our home conserve heat in the winter and cool in the summer.
After they ran the initial audit of our home. They helped us apply for the NYSERDA program to get financial help for the work we did.
The bill we were responsible for was reduced almost in half. As reflected in the amount above. Someone mentioned to us that the price seemed high, but we feel for the quality work we were very content with what we paid. They also said we will save money in the reduction of our utility bills.
Our home is a lot more air tight now and very well insulated in the attic and the basement. The one problem we did run into was the foam insulation in the basement did cover some pipes, wires, and other things that we have had to carefully uncover. If I were to do this to another house I would mark more clearly what I wanted to have access to before they spray foam. Any issues that came up in this process they were very good at making sure we were happy with the end result.
I would highly recommend this company.

calle for my yearly cleaning doing both in one trip to save on time. He spent a great deal of time cleaning both units . I was pleased , Shortly afterwards I discovered a wire had come lose in the A/C unit causing a large noise as it was hit with fan. They came and fixed the problem at no charge to me. I was  very pleased to avoid a service call fee.

We had contact with their financing people, their installers, our salesperson Chris and even the owner.  Everyone was very professional and great to work with.  The work was done as scheduled and done very well.  The house was much warmer in the winter and was cooler this past summer.

Home Comfort is a great company to deal with. they're service guys are always proffesional and trustworthy.

They are really wonderful! Everything is always done on time and on budget. They’re timely, punctual, and professional.  

I felt they were very professional. They always came back whenever I had a question or concern. They were very personable and did great job overall!

The experience was fine. Save a lot on heating bills now.

Great.

They came out very quickly to do the work. They showed up within two hours. They were very courteous when they were here working. They cleaned up everything when they were done.