ComplaintsforBlack Magic Chimney Sweeps of Southern Vermont, LLC

• Initial Complaint

  04/17/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I had a chimney cleaning and inspection done by Black Magic. After the cleaning they told me my chimney was a fire hazard and I couldnt use it until they came to fix it and that they would send me a list of all the problems. When they did it was a long list with an estimate of almost $4,000 of work. That seemed really high to me so I reached out to another company to get a second opinion. I paid them for another inspection. They were very confused about why they said we needed some of the things, and they said some of the others were a quick easy cheap fix. They said that all we needed to do was to fill in a couple cracks with mortar. Black Magic was saying we needed a liner, which the new company was saying would only apply if we were putting in a new wood stove, which we are not and that was never discussed. Nothing on their list was valid. I would think that this was a one time mistake if I hadnt started hearing the same exact thing from multiple people. My fiancs family was told they needed almost the exact same repairs, including a liner. They got a second opinion and were also told everything was fine and no repairs needed. A friend was quoted $8,000 of work from them, a second opinion brought it down to $700 of repairs. We were having work done on the house the other day and it was brought up. The window repair guy said he has heard the same story from over 20 people! Our area has a lot of wealthy second home owners so Im sure they get the report and think theyre doing a great thorough job, when really they are scamming everyone. I paid $300 to have a report done but it ended up being completely false, and then I was unable to use my fire place for the season. I never ever write reviews about places but when I heard it was a common problem with them, I knew something has to be done. Theyre professional conmen.Attaching their report as well as the new report that shows what they are saying is not true.

  

  Business response

  04/21/2023

                  Thank you for taking the time to submit feedback for your chimney service that was completed February 18, 2022. We sent the repair quote to you on March 1, 2022.  Over 12 months later on March 27, 2023, at 11:23am, you called for 3 minutes and 36 seconds to discuss the repair quote and any adjustments needed due to the lapse of time.  That latest call seemed normal in both tone and content.  There was no indication you were upset by anything.   After the past year where almost everything has gone up in price due to the severe inflation problem, your revised price quote was reduced by $290 from $3965 to $3675.  You can probably understand our surprise when we were notified by the BBB of your review and your concerns.  It was such a surprise for two reasons: 1) we had no idea you were not happy, 2) our business is based on making recommendations based on the factual observations and pictures taken during the service and inspection.  Our company tends to be considered one of the better companies in our state and when our prices are compared to other high-*****************, they are usually very comparable.  Now, lets address the big concern about recommendations. 
                  How do we come up with recommendations that other local competitors or other contractors feel are not valid?  The simple answer is that we follow the rules. In the State of Vermont, the rules for construction and building repair are set by the adopted regulations.  The industry standard is the ************************************ (NFPA) and the International Residential Code (IRC) which are both adopted by the Vermont ******** of **** Safety as the rules for single family residential buildings in Vermont.  We understand that and work to meet the criteria it is defined and prescribed in those standards.  We must also meet the strict requirements set forth by the manufacturers of products in the chimney and hearth industry to include stoves, parts, liners, chimney caps, and so on.  Our technicians work very hard to stay current and informed in these rules as they apply to our customers homes.  We spend time and money training our teams to be informed, which includes attending national conventions, online training,and in-house training programs to get certified and then maintain them through continuing education on topics such as combustion, codes, proper installation,problem diagnostics, and many other topics. This may seem like a lot of work, but our teams take this business seriously because we all understand the importance of a trusted and knowledgeable technician.  I cannot overstate the importance of this: we base our recommendations on the observations at the specific home as compared to information in the various code books or manufacturersspecifications.  We do NOT just assume,nor do we give subjective opinions about issues related to personal safety or risk to the property.
                  One clear error in your review was the claim that we were pushing to put in a liner.  There was no mention of the liner being a problem in the service report our technician sent to you.  Also, there was nothing in either the original quote or the revised quote that reflected repairs on the lining system.  The report and quotes identified other areas of concern: the cracked or damaged mortar in the firebox which needed repointing work, clearance to combustibles being too close and creating the risks of thermal transfer or combustion of building elements, the smoke chamber (area above the firebox area) needed parging to create the smooth transition between the firebox and the flue liner to reduce turbulence and improve flow, and   the work at the chimney top included removal of the broken stone cap and damage pillars to be replaced by a custom formed crown and new multi-flue stainless steel cap. All these recommendations are based on the observations at your home.  If another ***** or contractor decided to tell you not to do some of them, then that is between you and them and it is most certainly within your right to do the work or to not do the work.  That decision is always the customers right and responsibility.  Chimney sweeps do not have the ability to stop someone from using their heat source, but we do have a duty to warn when there are issues with the existing system.  If you hear customers complaining about the recommendations, please take a look at the facts. 
  We were just hired to service the fireplace and give you the report of our findings. We did that.  For this reason, we will not be refunding the payment for that service.  We hope this resolves the misinformation.  Thank you for the questions and the feedback.    

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