Raymond A. Bramble, LCI Services, Inc.

I was in a ?no-win? situation. LCI had my money and I had a furnace that was being held together with a 2 x 4! I guess that since LCI was non-responsive, all things taken into consideration, I should have sued them; but, as I said, caring for my relative was all-consuming, so I was just patient. The furnace and A/C issues that I was dealing with were: 1) The installation of the top portion of the furnace was never completed and it was being held together by a 2 x 4 that I had put there myself to hold it together; this caused a great deal of lost energy dollars; 2) Neither was the furnace filter was properly installed. It would not stay in place and perform as it was supposed to, thereby making its presence totally useless ? and causing a major health hazard; 3) Since the 2 x 4 that was holding the furnace together was very close to the humidifier, and I, therefore, had been unable to clean the humidifier during those 36 months, mold was growing in it, thereby causing another major health hazard; 4) I discovered mold in one of the living room vents; and 5) The A/C made a very loud BANG every time that it went on. During that June 15 appointment, I told Ray that there was a great deal of humidity in the house and that, on a couple occasions when the A/C was running, I had to run a couple of space heaters to dry up the humidity because the humidity level was so high. I asked him if perhaps the drainage pipe (or condensate line) was not angled properly and therefore, not permitting proper drainage. He responded that ?everything was correct?; however, beyond that, he did NOT address the excess humidity problem. I also told him that, when I removed the furnace filter to clean it, it was not in the correct and same place that I had placed it; and I asked him if that was OK. His response was that ?that was fine!? I showed Ray the mold that was in one of the living room vents; he said ?that was to be expected!!!? What a stupid response, I thought. I then asked Ray if he would inspect the furnace and A/C. He said that ?if I wanted to have an inspection done, I would have to buy a Maintenance Contract?. He then put his hand on the furnace and said ?that itSEEMS to be running OK and that it looked good!? I was practically in shock ? that such an ?inspection? ? in HIS opinion ? was deemed to be ?OK!? I may not know very much about furnaces, air conditioners, and the inspection of them, but I DO know that ?putting your hand on a furnace and saying that ?it seems to be running OK and that it looked good? does NOT qualify as an inspection ? by any stretch of the imagination whatsoever. Regarding the purchase of a Maintenance Contract: Since I already had a Maintenance Contract with LCI at a cost of $475, which was not to expire for another 6 months, and which was sold to me by another employee, I was more than taken aback by Ray?s remark that I?d have to buy ANOTHER Maintenance Contract! Additionally, I?d only received 1/3 of the number of inspections that I was supposed to have received under that already-purchased Maintenance Contract! About 3 weeks later, on July 6, Ray called and left a message saying ?that he wanted to do the right and honorable thing? and that he would extend the Maintenance Contract for 2 ½ years. That was a good thing. However, he also added that ?he counted his visit on that day ? as an inspection!? I repeat: I may not know very much about furnaces, air conditioners, and the inspection of them, but I DO know that putting your hand on a furnace and saying that ?it seems to be running OK and that it looked good? does NOT qualify as an inspection ? by any stretch of the imagination whatsoever. In the meantime, after Ray supposedly completed the furnace installation on June 15, I had the City Inspector come over to inspect everything on July 12. The Inspector found that: 1) The bottom of the furnace was not properly sealed, thereby also causing a great deal of lost energy dollars; 2) There was a negative grade on the condensate line and it had NOT been draining properly. This caused a great deal of humidity in the house, the result of which was very unhealthy mold. This confirmed what I?d said to Ray; 3) There was no shut-off valve for the gas line; 4) The humidifier filter did NOT have a pad to filter the water. Also, there was mold in the humidifier, which was the result of being unable to clean it, as I mentioned earlier; 5) LCI had NOT obtained any permits! As a result of those 5 violations discovered on July 12, the City Inspector issued a Stop Work Order! He mailed a copy of it to Ray and gave him until July 20 to correct the violations. I wrote to Ray on July 26 and reviewed what happened in our June 15 meeting, what we had discussed, i.e., the problems with the so-called ?installation?. I told him what the City Inspector had discovered (noted above); I also commented about the Stop Work Order that the Inspector had sent to him. Also in that letter, I told him that, as a result of the excess humidity in the furnace due to the condensate line not draining properly, the furnace filter installed incorrectly, and the humidifier that I wasn?t able to clean for far too long, I was in very poor health, being treated on and off for 3 years for a low-grade lung infection. My prescriptions alone totaled over $2,000, which did NOT include doctor and lab costs! So, the City Inspector came here on July 12, wrote up the Stop Work Order, and mailed it to Ray. I wrote to Ray on July 26. Ray finally called me a month later on August 26, acknowledging that he received my letter. Finally, 4 months later, NOT 8 DAYS LATER as ORDERED by the Inspector, and after a series of unreturned phone calls and missed appointments, Ray came over on November 12 to correct the items that the City Inspector had noted on the Stop Work Order. And Ray had only just obtained the Mechanical Permit earlier that same day, November 12, which was probably the reason why he was 1 ½ hours late for his appointment with me! Regarding all the problems that I?d been dealing with for 36 + months as a result of the ?partially? installed furnace, i.e., furnace held together with tape and a 2 x 4 (see photos), the subsequent loss of many incalculable energy dollars, the improperly installed furnace filter, the mold in the humidifier, the mold in the living room vent, the already-paid-for-Maintenance Contract that LCI failed to completely fulfill, but, more importantly, my health that had been put at risk (at a cost of $2,000 +), Ray?s idea of ?doing the right and honorable thing?, (the comment that he made in his July 6 phone message about the Maintenance Contract), was to bring a new humidifier filter ? at no charge! I think that they cost about $35! Recognizing that one cannot ?get blood from a stone?, I did not persist in trying to get reimbursed for my medical bills. In any case, understandably, my relationship with Ray had become a bit acrimonious. Naturally my trust and confidence in LCI and Ray?s competence had definitely come into serious question over this extended period with all the unresolved problems, and that took so very, very long to resolve, and especially since an inspection by the City Inspector was required in order to make sure that everything was done correctly. I had no idea if my experience with Ray was standard operating procedure for him, i.e. he really had no clue what he was doing ? at all, and was totally incompetent, or if he was completely lacking in ethics and morals and was one of those who you hear about who just take your money ? and run. Shortly thereafter, the City Inspector inspected everything on November 18 and found everything ? finally ? OK. So considering what I?d already experienced with Ray, and even though I could still get some furnace and A/C inspections done under the current/extended Maintenance Agreement, rather than take the chance that some future, faulty inspection that he would do on my furnace and A/C would result in even more problems, possibly even more serious than already experienced, I decided that the smart thing for me to do was to move on from Ray and LCI and find another company to inspet and maintain my furnace and A/C. I did and my new company is extremely knowledgeable and competent. Had I been aware of Angie?s List years ago, and if I?d had a membership, I would have posted this Review ? long, long ago.