Universal Mechanical Service Co Inc

As of Friday morning and no call back from Mechanical, I have hired another Angie's List company to repair the heater. No follow up, no call, no hot showers, no more of my business.

Of course it was in the heat wave when the air conditioner died. I was surprised that Universal could come out the next morning. The tech came on time, made a quick and professional diagnosis, determined he had the right part on the truck, and installed it. Very good professional service.

I got three quotes from different contractors, including the one from Universal Mechanical Services, Inc.. UMS is highly rated on Angie's List and with good reason.They came out and did measurements using the Manual 'J' method by measuring each room for heat and cooling use and loss. They went over the various compatible unit configurations and 'system' set-ups. They were knowledgeable and communicative. They did not use any 'hard sale' techniques and they didn't attempt to 'over-sell.' Their price was close to the quotes I received from the other two companies but I preferred their interaction and 'presentation' as well as explanations much better than that from the other companies. After the selection of the 'system' components, I was scheduled to have the work done and they also recommended Puget Sound Cooperative Credit Union (PSCCU) as a place for financing. I got a loan for part of the price for 3.5%. I paid the balance myself. They called me on Aug. 6, 2012 to ask if I would like to have my job started earlier than scheduled as someone had cancelled their job and they had an open slot. They started the job on Aug. 8, 2012 and were finished by Friday Aug. 10, 2012. I'm retired and so was home all the time and I talked with the installers and took pictures of the progress. Everyone at UMS is very customer-oriented, polite and friendly. They took care of scheduling the mechanical inspection from the City of Shoreline and called me first to ask when would be a good time. Then they called me back to inform me of the scheduled date for the inspection. Sandi at UMS took care of these matters and was very thorough with her communication. The entire job was handled in a most professional manner and we had a cool (67°F) house all during the Seattle heat wave with outdoor temperatures in the 90s.Rhett was the estimator for the job and the equipment needed. He also was responsible for over-seeing the job progress and quality. Corey and Cenobio were the installers. All involved were most pleasant and easy to work with during the entire job. September 14, 2012 (UPDATE) Well, I don't have quite the same 'stellar' impression I had before. It has been 6 weeks since the job was 'finished' but there are still 2 glaring omissions, both of which were discussed 5 weeks ago and again recently in a phone call to UMS. There is a missing 'fascia cover' that goes over the wires and tubing exiting the house and a missing 'return air' grill. The heat pump unit also makes what I consider to be too much noise on 'start-up' but was reassured by Rhett that it was 'normal' and was simply weights 'spinning out' for balance in the compressor. I recorded the noise and sent it to two different Trane authorized installers who stated it was largely due to lose panels. They agreed that it wouldn't all go away but that what I had was too loud. I found at least 2 screws that are installed at angles and therefore not making good contact and not 'holding fast.' I spent the better part of an afternoon tapping on all possible outside panel areas for vibration and used Gorilla tape to try to hold them still. That makes for a unit that isn't exactly good looking for $13,000. That is aside from the marks, scratches and dents that were on the heat pump at installation. I feel that the 'condensation pump' should be isolated from the 'return air' box by rubber or foam backing behind the brackets securing it to the 'return air' box so that when it comes on to pump out the water from condensation, it doesn't resonate throughout the house. UMS has been paid, the job is 'done' and I haven't heard a word from them about the parts required to 'finish' the discussed and outlined 'job.' October 16, 2012 (UPDATE) So, here it is 2+ months after installation and the work still hasn't been finished. There is no 'line-hide' installed, no 'condensation pump' isolation pads installed and no new panels to replace the scratched and dented panels on the air handler and the heat pump. The heat pump compressor that 'strains' at start-up making noise has not been fixed / replaced. UMS stated that they would order the panels and then 'look at the compressor' to see what could be done. The technician has never taken a compressor apart and I am not sure why they would even try. I'm baffled why they don't just order a new and tested unit as this one is only two (2) months old and under warranty.

Very nice experience! Front office was very professional. Rhett was excellent, explained what he did, and gave me his phone number if I needed to contact him prior to appointment.

Very professional service, bought a coupon on angieslist for AC maintenance and called the company, Stephanie was able to schedule a tech to come in and service my 5 year old Carrier central AC. Rhett was prompt and professional and took his time to figure out my hydroheat system which is connected to the AC. He serviced the AC, changed the air filter and recommended to be careful handling the external switch, as it did not have a fuse. I asked him why the AC seemed less efficient , and he spent a lot of time trying to identify the issue (as the AC was functioning well but the hydroheat system was pumping hot air as well). He admitted his experience with hydroheat was limited and he contacted dispatch and scheduled a hydroheat specialist to arrive during the week. I really appreciated him being straightforward. We had a second visit by the heating specialist and he serviced the water heater and was able to fix the valave that was pumping hot water into the ac unit. He admitted his fix was temporary and called the manufacturer to get a replacement valve, and to our dissappointment the manufacturer (apollo hydroheat) has discontinued servicing the producst and does not make parts anymore for the model. The tech was very realistic stating that the valave could fail again but showed me how to fix it temporarily. He did not sell me on a new system like the many HVAC folks have before. When the water tank dies I will not hesitate to have Universal install my new heater. Highly recommended.

The service technician (Rhett) arrived spot on. He was courteous, friendly and seemed quite knowledgeable. He gave us helpful information regarding finding our odd sized air filters and when to change them. He completed his work and advised us that all was AOK.Service people such as Rhett seemed to be rar, however, I have never been disappointed with an Angie's list referal.

It went fine except for not following through on secondary services (electronic air filter) I want installed. They never got back to me on that part.

Rhett arrived about 5 minutes early and immediately got to work. When finished he gave me recommendations 1. Not to use two filters because my brand of furnace tends to overheat. 2. Provided me with a regular (and higher rated) filter rather than the washable ones and wrote down the website where they can be purchased for a good price. Let me know when my furnace and water heater were made, and gave me signs to look for that indicate when the water heater needs to be replaced. Also said the furnace heat exchanger might need to be replaced in 2-5 years if not sooner- price approx. $200+ service fee- it was showing signs of use.

The service was excellent. Timely service and well done with excellent efficiency and clean up.

Did the work they said they would in the time said it would take to do it. Very professional.

Good: arrived on time, explained the job performed in detail. Provided useful tips for taking care of the A/C.Ok: I called their office to schedule the service, I was put on hold for 5min and then I was told the service department will call me back next business day. Everything was super smooth except the 5min wait in the initial call.

Excellent at every stage- Helpful money-saving advice.

Service man on time & performed service. Explained thoroughly problems & gave satifation on increasing furnaces performance.

They were very responsive, informative and professional. They did and excellent job with great follow up and when the job was complete I recommended this company.

Technician arrived on time and performed service as contracted

RHETT called to say he may be late because of traffic - much appreciated. Checked out a/c & diagnosed problem. Very personable, pleasant experience.

,Rhett arrived on time. He was polite and informative. He checked the heat pump outside and then went into the attic to see if the heat strips were set correctly. He found they weren't, so he reset them. He also discussed improvements in the thermostate technology since the house was built and how it could improve my furnace efficiency. He offered to provide me with an estimate. Overall, he was knowledgeable about a complex system, and I felt confident that he was being honest with me and not just trying to sell more equipment. I've been searching for a furnace/ac service company I could trust and I feel I've finally found it.

Told me I would need a new heat pump, Not True, they tried to make more money off of me. Dishonest company.

Contacted via email to schedule and got an immediate response with an appointment time convenient for me. They also confirmed the day before. The technician arrived exactly on time. He was very professional, neat and clean. He performed the service, did a little clean-up and gave me some advice on how to keep the unit clean and functioning properly. He didn't try to upsell me to something I didn't need. I was very pleased with the service and will definitely call upon this company to check out my furnace later this summer.

On time, explained my system & answered my questions.

The technician, Rhett, was completely professional and very nice. He was running about 25 minutes late, but called to let me know and it didn't interfere with my schedule, so it was no big deal. Rhett got to work right away and did a thorough job checking everything out! No additional services were needed above the tune-up at this time, but Rhett let me know I will need to get a part replaced in a year or so and he told me what to expect as far as cost, too! He was also checking out my neighbor's A/C and found a problem. They were pleased with his services, too, so they scheduled another appointment to get the necessary repairs done. Rhett gave us both very helpful information and useful tips! I would not hesitate to call on these guys again!

Rhett was excellent. Professional, efficient, polite and informative. Would definitely use the company again. Their office staff were also professional and efficient. Very impressed!

We shopped around several people. They gave us the best information. They were right on the spot with their price and the service was wonderful. They followed through with everything. They were great.

They were very professional, competent and responsive; and we were totally satisfied and very pleased with all aspects of our experience with them.

On time. rhett very professional and knowledgeable. Great job.