Aqua Rite Pool & Spa Repair

A friend of mine called AHS, his home warranty service, for a pool light issue. AHS sent Aqua Rite (Jim, the owner) to do the repair. The issue was that the pool / spa lights were out of sync (color changes) and that one of the bulbs was out. During the investigation or whatever was done something was changed so now the pool lights do not turn off from the switch in the house and the spa light does not turn on. When my friend got home he tried to get a hold of Jim to get an assessment of the issue. He got a call from AHS saying that the pool lights (original issue) was not covered by the warranty. Finally after getting a hold of Jim almost two days later, my friend asked for a quote to get the repairs not covered under warranty repaired. Jim said he should just hire a local contractor since Jim didn't want to make the hour drive down again for the repair. My friend said ok, but asked Jim to put the system back the way it was before he got there - light switch working. Jim said he didn't do anything and that if the light switch was broken it was related to the original problem and that he wasn't going to do anything about it. My friend reiterated to Jim that the switch was working fine before Jim had come out and possibly during the course of investigation of the issue maybe something was set incorrectly. My friend told Jim he was going to file a complaint with AHS and the BBB and that is when Jim called him names and made rude comments saying "how does your wife put up with you." Very unprofessional. My friend hung up and called AHS immediately and filed a complaint. He also called Jim's business partner, whom he had spoken to before Jim (when trying to get a hold of Jim) to see if he would be more reasonable. He partner, Gary, although didn't insult my friend or call him names, did insist that he believed Jim and that Jim had done nothing and that whatever issues I have now are all related to previous issue and that they would not do anything about it. He also said my friend was being rude and now he and Jim both had proof that both of them had talked to my friend and my friend was rude. My friend hung up with Gary and called AHS again. He also notified the Florida contractors board and is awaiting further instruction from them. He also waiting on response from AHS and has reached out to a local contractor who has a great rating to get his old and now new problem resolved.

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The pool pump is still leaking. I tried to leave one last message today, 12/27/11 and the recording said the "mail box is full, goodbye."

Jim Barber, the owner, came out within a day and gave us a few options. He suggested we look at another pool after dark, where he had installed LED lights. This definitely helped us decide to go with the LED technology, which are brighter uses less energy and are low maintenance. He was able to fit us into his schedule and did the work over a weekend without any extra charges.

Several months ago, I called him to get an assessment and quote for work related to my spa. He came out that day, provided a knowledgeable assessment of what needed to be done, and provided what I thought to be a good price. The work related to the gas heater. At that time, the propane tank was empty, so I needed to get gas. The propane was very expensive, so I waited a few months to call him in for the actual work. I left two messages in a two week period - did not get a return call. The next week I called again and he answered - however, he was with a customer and said he would call me back - he never returned the call. I gave up - if he didn't want to do the work he should have just said so. He may be knowledgeable; his prices may be fair...but his way of conducting business stinks.

Jim was referred by Scott at TSD Pools. He called me back within 30 minutes and showed up within an hour. He quickly diagnosed the problem, showed me what the issues were, gave an estimate, and completed the repairs in the same visit. I was very pleased with his work and skill and would call on him again.