I decided to file this complaint because my elderly, handycapped mother was charged $1,850 for a water heater plus the install. I didn't know she was charged the $1,850 until the installation was completed. My brother, my sister and I, all purchased water heaters, and they were installed in the last year or so. We all paid under just under a thousand dollars, including installation. All three of the water heaters are from three different reputable businesses. I spoke with my friend, who owns a plumbing company, and he told me my mother was scammed and she was charged entirely too much a water heater. So, four different businesses are charging just under a thousand dollars. Calfo charged my mother eighteen hundred dollars.
January 15,2022 Calfo Home Services came out to install an AO Smith water heater in my mother's home. My mother's aid had covid, and she was unable to be there, so I was there for the installation. My mother has an aid because she is blind and hard of hearing. I watched as the water heater and flue pipe were uninstalled and taken out of the home. The first new water heater was too big for the opening, so I was told a new one was ordered, and it would be dropped off shortly. The two plumbers went out and sat in one of their work trucks, waiting for the replacement water heater.
While I was watching tv , I heard the furnace kick on, and I remembered seeing the flue y-pipe being carried out of the home by one of the plumbers thirty to forty minutes earlier. I walked into the furnace room, and there wasn't a flue pipe connected to the furnace. I was able to see heat waves or heat haze coming from the top furnace. Fumes from the furnace were venting into the structure.
I quickly walked outside and told the plumbers they forgot to turn off the furnace, and fumes were venting into the home. One minute later, one of the plumbers walked into my mothers' home and turned the furnace off. After switching it off, he walked back outside and got back in the work truck. If I wasn't there, my mother would have probably died in her home.
One hour later, the second water heater arrived, and the two men brought it in and installed it. After the installation, the men left. I cleaned and mopped the dining room , furnace room floors, and placed the furniture back in its original location.
On January 16 , 2022, my mother woke in the middle of the night because she was cold. My mother walked down the steps, and she turned the thermostat up, and the furnace didn't kick on. Several minutes later, she turned the thermostat up again, and the furnace didn't kick on.
My mother called my sister and she told her the furnace wasn't working. My sister and her husband came over and checked on my mother. My sister told me she walked in the house, and the metal dining room chairs were cold to the touch. My sister called Peoples Gas, and they sent out a service worker. The service worker came in and checked the furnace. The service worker told my sister and brother in-law that the flue pipe was not secured and the furnace. Because the flue wasn't secured, the fumes were leaking into the furnace room, and the furnace shut off and would not restart. The gas company service employee screwed in one screw on the water heater side of the flue pipe. He told my sister and my brother-in-law the connection was temporary, and my mother would have to get the plumbing company to come back out and screw in the remaining screws. On Saturday, January 22, I stopped at my mother home, and I checked the flue pipe, and I took photos and videos. I noticed the flue pipe was starting to separate on the furnace side of the pipe. I went to the Home Depot, and I purchased screws and foil tape. I already had my drill with me because I knew I would be making the repair. The screws didn't cut through the metal, so I wrapped the two seams with the foil tape.
January 23, 2022, I went to Lowes in the Waterfront, and I purchased self-drilling screws and a magnetic driver bit. I drilled the screws into the flue pipe and went home an hour later. I have receipts for all the purchases.
March 5, 2022, my mother still hasn't received a receipt or survey. Why? She was promised both.
Calls to Calfo
January 15, 2022, I called Calfo to file a complaint about my mother being charged $1,800 for a water heater. I didn't receive a response, so I called a minute later, and I left a message requesting a call back.
January 18,2022, I called Calfo, and I left a message with a call taker or dispatcher. I left a message, and I asked to speak with a supervisor, and the call taker said both managers were busy. I didn't receive a call back until January 22.
January 22,2022, I received a call from a supervisor at Calfo. I had an 18-minute conversation with the supervisor. I told her about the flue pipe and expressed to her that I was extremely upset about the unvented carbon monoxide fumes flowing into my mother's home. I have more to add, but I'm unable to fit the rest.
