We hired Eckmayer to install an equine waterer and frost free hydrant. We sent them the specs and installation information for the waterer and met with them in person twice to discuss.
We negotiated what we thought was a great deal, we had a separate company come in and trench, and they were doing installation only so it was going to be time & materials.
The overall quality of the work is good, however, they installed the waterer incorrectly. They did not follow the directions provided to ensure the waterer was protected and would not freeze. They were sent the installation instructions and a video prior to ever bidding the job. So, we called them to tell them their mistakes after talking with the manufacturer. The installation instructions were very clear, this was completely an error on Eckymayer's installer.
Admittedly we could have been read through the installation directions so that while we were there we could have been questioning how and why they were doing things. But, we didn't. We trusted that they did the research and knew what needed to be done. We gave them all of the information they needed to do so.
I don't know what made me go back to the installation instructions and verify the install the next day, but for some reason I did. Once we realized the errors, we called to ask them to fix the error. We were told it would be at least 1.5 weeks - keep in mind we have a 6' deep, 4' wide open trench spanning 235' of our property, and we are heading into winter so those lines will freeze if they aren't covered - not to mention the hazard of an open trench that large. This can't be left open for 1 - 2 weeks.
We are going to have to fix it ourselves. So we asked for them to discount the price since we are going to have to re-do the installation. Their response was that they gave us a huge discount already and that they added things we never discussed. This is not true. I was told it would cost approximately $600 and if they encountered any issues it would up to $800. They charged us the full $800 and there were zero issues - they even told us it went much faster than anticipated. They also said they discounted the curb stop from $500 to $300 already. However, he told me from the start he would only charge us $300 for the curb stop, we didn't ask him to discount it. Then they tried to come back and say we never requested a curb stop, until the day of installation - but our original quote from them a month prior included a curb stop. They were the ones that recommended it.
Lastly, we were told we would be given a curb stop key. The installer graciously offered to get us one and said they were easy to make. We don't have one and when my husband goes to replace the install we are going to have to shut the water off in the entire house and drain all the lines since we can't turn the water off at the curb stop. When we asked the manager about this he said essentially it wasn't his problem and if that was a side deal with the installer, that's on us.
I will say the installer did quality work and we liked him overall - we liked him so much we bought him lunch and gave him a $50 gift card to say thank you. However, because they installed it wrong my husband has to go hand dig out the pea gravel and disconnect it himself and put it back together. It definitely wasn't worth the $800 we paid since we have to re-do half of it. Their customer service with this mis-installation has been awful. We were using them for other services prior to this incident and won't be using them again.
