W & J Heating Ltd

If you are thinking about hiring this company you should read my review closely.

We have hired W&J on two separate occasions to install furnaces for legal secondary suites. W&J has done nothing but cause my company money and time. Below are some of the highlights of our working relationship with W&J.

- lack of knowledge or laziness OR BOTH during installation
- Terrible communication when coordinating times to show up and do work (this is a challenge when notice has to be given to tenants)
- Telling us what we want to hear on the phone and then not following up.
- Not following basic mechanical code and blaming the inspector for not catching the mistakes on rough in inspection but finding it on final inspection (Either way they did not follow basic building/mechanical codes)
- hanging up on a building inspector during an inspection they didn't show up to
- Not following basic instructions clearly communicated in writing
- Generally not caring about customer service or the job

We tried really hard to make the relationship with W&J work but it wasn't until we started working with other mechanical contractors we realized how poor they are.

It is hard to put a numerical figure on how much money they cost our company in mistakes and time because it is still an ongoing issue. It will definitely exceed the $5000 mark after we fix their mistakes and factor in the lost time during renovations. This is a big number considering they only did two furnaces for us. If something isn't done right the first time then it costs a lot of money to fix.

I think when it comes to installing furnaces for a secondary suite W&J is in over their head. Why else can they not pass an inspection? Why else do I have to hire other companies to come in and fix their work? If they are aware of the requirements for a second furnace in a secondary suite then why do they cut corners and do the installations incorrectly? We have since used other contractors that pass inspections with flying colors, so it CAN be done.

Some stuff we have learned.....
Building inspections and a permitting systems are a great thing for renovations. They will expose the weak contractors that don't know what they are doing. It is also great to have websites like HomeStars where we can share our experiences.

Learn from our mistakes and ask for copies of the rough-in and final inspections. DON NOT PAY your contractors until the inspections pass. Make sure this is in your contract with them before engaging in work.

This is nothing personal against W&J, as the president of my company I take full responsibility for not firing them earlier. I have heard similar stories from other property owners using them.

I hope with this review is helpful. My goal is for others to save time and money and learn from our mistakes.