CALFO

C S.

received a call from them offering a home boiler check up for $39.99.
accepted the offer.
tech shows up does his job, then at the end of the examination
he shows me everything is OK -- except :
boiler pukes hot water and steam from the pressure relief valve
he plays with the feed pressure valve. (he opened the bypass - did not realize what he was doing at the time)
boiler pukes again as pressure exceeds 30lbs.

Tech: you need a new pressure feed valve and pressure relief valve
if you subscribe to our service agreement - $2050.
If you do not subscribe - $2450

sent him on his way. did some investigating as to how these valve operate, and how much they cost (relief valve around $60, feed pressure valve around $150).

Discovered that what he did was BYPASS the pressure feed valve to open the boiler to full city street pressure (75 - 125 lbs), and did this while the boiler was hot!!!

go back to boiler, turn on water, set pressure feed valve to operate correctly, turn on heat. Pressure never exceeds 20lbs. i.e NO PROBLEM

TLDR; he attempted to scam me into paying over $2000 for work that was not necessary, and risked cracking the boiler's water boiling container by feeding cold water into the hot tank!!

DO NOT USE these people - SCAMMERS!!!

Aja J.

I called Calfo at the behest of my mother who spied a $39 Calfo AC servicing special. I know you're supposed to service AC regularly, but... I've never done it. It took several weeks to schedule, but the tech was delightful, quick, and knowledgeable. If/when I need a repair, I know who to call.

Conor's C.

Don't do it. Paid twice the original estimate to have a dehumidifier installed. Told them I wanted to make certain it worked with the A/C. Well here we are at 85+ and the A/C pumps out warm air. Called to express my frustration and it's well tomorrow or Sunday. Don't do this to yourself

Laurie L.

Wanted simple plumbing job. They said they could do it but turns out ""Oh, we're not that kind of plumber when all was said and done."" Quoted me $1800 plus labor for a job that ended up costing me $125 total from another plumber. They still insisted on collecting ""showing up"" fee of $80 even though they knew before they came out that they weren't a neighborhood plumber and were going to try to sell me something I didn't need. I argued about the show up fee but they kept putting me off saying they were going to process it to be returned. After 5 phone calls I finally gave up.

Jacob M.

they put together an estimate for a repair by looking in my house, was expensive. they completed the repair and then said they found additional bursts about 1ft away from the burst, and it would cost double to fix it. This was after they tore a hole in my wall and completed the signed repair for the job estimate I was given.

they refused to insulate the pipes for further prevention and left a 3 foot hole in my wall.

John L.

Avoid them at all costs.

Non-responsive and avoided my phone calls to discuss the work.

Sue B.

On 12/21/22 Needed a furnace repair and had a concerning experience. Tech quote a temporary repair for $1561.19 but wouldn't last more than a couple of weeks so I should just get a new furnace. Quote $7,000 and tried to up sell me and air conditioning unit. Obviously a second est was necessary.
Next company came out FULL system repaired for $1,363.00. The tech did some research. The air exchange was under a 25 yr warranty and honored despite me not being the original purchaser.
I contacted Calfo. They wanted copies of this invoice to send to management ""to see what they could do"". WHAT!!! No. Potential customers need to be aware of Calfo's poor training and or deceptive business practices. And know folks only get caught for less than 10% of criminal activity they engage in - if acceptable in my experience here.
Happy Holidays
Stay warm I know I am

John G.

Extremely overpriced and will attempt to refund you service fees etc to change your review to a good one. Do your home work and get several estimates.

D M.

Excellent honest plumbing company. Very reasonable prices. Especially when compared with the larger companies who offer $99 to clear sewer pipes the. Hit you with a $23,000 estimate saying your whole sewer lines need replaced. Calfo is an honest, dependable plumbing company. We had service done by Mike and Seth. Two enthusiastic and very professional plumbers. Thanks for the great work!

Tim B.

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.