ARS / Rescue Rooter Indiana

It went very well, my Furnace went out on me while I was out of town right after Christmas. They came out the next day which was awesome because I don't know how much longer I could have waited! Because my A/C was also the same age as my 10 yr old furnace, I went ahead and replaced the whole thing. The Comfort Advisor was very knowledgeable and helpful! He performed an Energy Analysis which educated me on the efficiencies and showed how much money I'll be saving on my utility bills and he also informed me about all the rebates and tax credits associated with my purchase. They even threw in a WIFI Nest thermostat and a Whole Home humidifier into the deal as well as a 10 yr warranty on parts/labor and a 20 yr warranty on the Heat Exchanger. I found out that American Residential Services is also used by Home Depots and are their preferred vendor which says a lot about their company and make me feel better about an investment like this rather than going with somebody's brother uncle that's an HVAC guy lol. Overall I am very satisfied and am recommending them to my sister who has an ancient system :)

I recommend Jon Hartley (cell: 317-710-8071) of ARS Rescue Rooter for insulation, A/C, and furnace. He came out on time, did an estimate, and followed up. He was honest, straight-forward, and gave the best discount he could for ARS. He listened to what I wanted and offered suggestions. Although I ended up going with a different company, I was impressed by his attitude, and I may go with ARS sometime in the future. He offered a free estimate of work.

I purchased a home in early 2015 with a geothermal heat pump. Not being familiar with the unit, I called ARS for a diagnostic and tune up, as the sticker on the system showed that they had initially installed the unit in 2004 and have serviced it regularly since. The technician that arrived was pleasant and very helpful. He was thorough and identified a minor problem, which he was able to fix on the spot. He said that the system had been well maintained and would likely still have several years of life in it. 9 months later, I noticed a small leak in a PVC pipe that brings water from the well to the geothermal heat pump. I called ARS and described the situation, stating that the leak did not seem to impact the performance of the unit, but was in need of repair. ARS was quick to schedule a technician to service the unit, and the technician arrived as scheduled. After taking the technician to the unit and showing him the area of concern, I was very disappointed to find out that he was only trained in HVAC and could not handle the issue at hand, since it required a PVC pipe to be replaced. He called back to the office, and a plumber was dispatched, arriving approximately 30 minutes later. The plumber confirmed that there was a small leak (in fact, 2), and he could complete the repair, but did not have the appropriate materials on the truck to fix the leak. This was the second disappointment, as I would expect a plumber to carry at least a few standard sizes of PVC on the truck. The plumber left the site to get the supplies necessary. During that time, the HVAC technician continue inspecting the rest of the unit. He took apart a gauge that was used to show the visible water pressure and cleaned it. Upon putting it back together, he said that the interior piece of the gauge was no longer fitting properly, but it wasn't a concern, since it did not impact the functionality of the unit. I later found out that this gauge now causes a rattling noise each time the unit kicks on. He continued his inspection of the unit. He reported to me that the blower motor with capacitor needed to be replaced, as well as a compressor capacitor, and some other pieces that accompany each. He assured me that replacing these things should be done before winter, as I was at risk of the unit failing during cold weather if these issues were not addressed. The estimate for these repairs was $1470, but I could save a little money if I joined the ARS home service plan. Given the amount of repairs, he recommended that he have someone else from ARS come out to provide an estimate for replacing the unit a whole. This was not simply a disappointment, but a huge shock, as the previous ARS technician who had serviced the unit did not share any of these same concerns. In fact, this technician stated that he was pretty surprised the previous technician had "missed" these things, seeing as none of them were issues that would occur overnight and were the result of wear over time. The plumber returned and fixed the 2 small leaks that had been identified. The cost for this repair came to $378 to replace less than 8 feet of PVC pipe, along with a few 90-degree angles. While I don't have extensive plumbing experience, the repairs performed turning off the water and replacing this piece of PVC pipe seemed to be elementary at best, and I know that the materials run no more than $20 at my neighborhood Lowes. Due to the first technician not being qualified to service the issue, and the second technician leaving to get supplies, the repair time on this issue was approximately 3-4 hours. I was wary of having the recommended $1470 in repairs completed, as the previous technician had said nothing of those issues. I've tried to contact ARS on 5 occasions (via email, phone, and online chat) to get a better understanding as to how I received very different diagnosis from technicians at their company. Each time, I've been told that someone will follow up with me within 24 hours - and I'm yet to hear from them. I finally called another company for a second opinion. After spending an hour inspecting the unit, this technician found no issues with the geothermal heat pump, and actually commented on how well it appears to have been maintained, showing very little wear or signs of age compared to most units he repairs. He had no immediate concerns with continued use of the unit, even stating that the numbers he was reading were mostly aligned with those of a brand new unit. I'm disappointed that I was charged $378 for a simple fix of a PVC pipe. I'm even more disappointed that it appears ARS is trying to upsell me on products that are clearly not needed. I handed my business to ARS and had no intention of changing providers. However, due to this series of events, I will not use ARS in the future. If you use ARS, I would strongly recommend getting a second opinion before having any repairs completed. UPDATE (2/9/16): Following the response from ARS on Dec 31, 2015, I never received a follow up by phone or email from ARS (as of this 2/9/16 edit). I have attempted to call ARS, which seems to direct me to a call center operation, and chat with them online. Both options have resulted in multiple people promising me that "someone will contact me soon to resolve." However, still no further communication or action. UPDATE (2/15/16): I attempted to chat with ARS support again on the evening of 2/9/16. The associate was not able to assist me, but passed along my concerns. I received calls on 2/10/16 from both ARS at the corporate level and managers from the local Indianapolis offer. The contacts I spoke with from the local office apologized for the incident and offered to send a technician back to my home to resolve any outstanding issues. Later in the week, I received a letter from them apologizing again, providing their direct office and cell phones, along with a coupon for $50 off of my next ARS service and a gift certificate for a restaurant. I appreciate their attempt to smooth things over and make the situation right.

Ryan came out the day after I placed the order. He cleared the drain and explained what had clogged it. He was very kind and professional. A great experience

They have been out about 6 times and it is not working. They keep coming out with new products but it has not ever worked. They are handling the whole situation unprofessionally I keep asking for warranty papers and have not yet received them. They keep sending me papers with information about a heat pump. I don't want a heat pump I want an air conditioning unit. I am disgusted with this service provider.

Sales person warned me that they would be destroy the lawn. What I didn't realize was that they would be leaving 3 ft mounds of dirt all the way from the house to the ally, about 50ft, that I will be responsible for getting rid of. They told me it would settle, and there is no way that will happen. They said it would be an extra charge to fix the yard. They also destroyed my fence and garden. They didn't even bother to repair the damage.

They're a bit pricey, but we like them. They're very punctual, reliable, and follow-up properly whenever there's an issue. The only times we've had minor problems with the service over the 15 or so years we've used them, they have been corrected immediately.

Reed did a very good job. He explained everything. He was very knowledgeable. He was personable and professional. They were quick with their service and reasonably priced.

Provider communicated pre-appt. Let me know when he was on the way. Arrived on time and completed all work as expected.

Sam was excellent and a pleasure to work with.

He solved the problem by putting in some new parts. We have the same issue now with another toilet and I think it makes more sense to replace the toilet, which was offered to me and I chose against it, but am thinking I don't know how long the parts will last and a new toilet will last a lot longer. My toilets are twenty years old.

Greg was so professional and knowledgeable about his work. It was so refreshing to have this type of service provider come out. He was very neat and clean in appearance, not only knew what to do, but he was knowledgeable and was able to explain what he was doing and why. He had quick acess to the part I needed and was very quick and efficient. Thanks Greg!

After first appointment was cancelled plumber, Reav Wood arrived promptly for the next scheduled time. He accepted a $59.00 coupon for inspecting the hot water tank. He determined that the anode rod needed to be replaced which he accomplished. Also cleaned out the tank. Mr. Wood was very congenial and helpful. He supplied a presumably more effective drain cleaner without charge and instructed in its use. He gave information about the condition of the water heater tank which did not require replacement at this time. He made sure we had numbers to call for emergency service if needed

Great price, great explanation of procedure to be completed, kind, knowledgeable, prompt service with NO ATTEMPTS TO UPSELL ME. I will only use ARS in the future.

Always good results when doing routine maintenance on AC, furnace, and water heater.

Initially I called another local plumber who was so busy that I couldn't get an appointment for 5 more days. Then I remember working with ARS in the past ,so I called them. Within less than an hour of my call to ARS, the plumbers arrived at my door. I was astounded, yet so pleased by how quickly they came to help. A+ for punctuality ! They were really nice and got to work immediately. They fixed my shower drain and gave me a 90 day warranty on their work. I would definitely hire them again.

We called with an urgency due to a clogged toilet and the scheduler gave us an approximate time the plumber would arrive then the plumber, Joe called and let us know when he was on his way. Joe arrived within the approximated time, assessed the problem, set down with my husband and I and gave us an estimate on time and cost. We agreed to go ahead and have it done so he began work immediately . He was very knowledgeable and professional. He had all the latest equipment and worked to get our problem resolved quickly. After the clog was fixed we talked to him about another issue we had with the toilet being unstable since we bought our home and the fact that it"wobbles"back and forth when we set down. We had been told by a general contractor that the pipe directly under the toilet would have to be replaced. And Joe basically told us the same. Another estimate was given and the work was scheduled to be done a few days later to accommodate our schedules. Again joe arrived on time and completed the work in a timely manner and also left no clean up for us. This company and Joe are very professional and I would recommend them to anyone needing any pluming work done. We will defiantly be using them in the future for any plumbing needs.

He did a great job, he offered us multiple options for fixing the issue and was very honest and open with what he was offering and what the job entailed. I would certainly contact him again.

I bought a big deal for this service. That one wasn't very good. I use Angie's List regularly and this was not one of the better ones. I ended up procuring a lot higher price once they got there. The job they came for was not what actually needed to be done and then they quoted me on that job. But I had a second opinion done and the quotes I got after theirs were substantially cheaper, like thousands of dollars cheaper. For the original issue, I ended up paying more than I intended with the big deal. Then the actual problem that they identified once they got there, the bigger issue, they did not do a good job of pricing it out and did not do a good job of identifying the root cause of the problem. So I was not really impressed with the company. I did not actually use them for the bigger job.

This company did a much better job at inspecting and explaining the existing water heater to me. We have multiple water heaters on our property. The guy that came out was a talker but I learned lots about my existing system not a future system that might have to go in. Very helpful. We had issues in the past with ARS in the HVAC arena so I wasn't sure about using them again but a $49 deal could not be passed up and I was going to watch the entire time. I would give them a chance in the plumbing department. I would start with a small project.

It was delayed a day. We were on the 1 to 5 schedule called at 4 to change the day of service. They cAme the following day. Lucky we were not working.

It went very well. They checked everything and let me know about a couple of minor problems. They were very polite

ARS installed our new system in 2010. Thereafter we maintained a service contract with the company to keep the system in good order. We allowed this contract to lapse in the end of 2014 because of an anticipated move. When I called to schedule our spring tune-up I had the usual good phone experience. They could not schedule me for almost two weeks. I was OK with that. 24 hours before my scheduled appointment I was called by dispatch asking if I would mind moving back my service because they were overbooked and had lots of emergency calls from people without AC (it was unseasonably warm that week). Because I am a nice person I was fine with this and the service was scheduled for last Friday. Friday came and I had no received my usual confirmation call regarding my appointment. I rang their office Friday morning to confirm that I was on the schedule and dispatch confirmed that they had someone down to visit by 4pm. By 4:30 no one had contacted me so I called again. Dispatch indicated that the tech had been overbooked, apologized, and asked if I was OK with service by 6pm. I said yes. When I was still not contacted by 6:00 I called again and told them to cancel the call and move it to another day because I had to leave by 7pm. The dispatch person apologized and placed me on the schedule for Tuesday. She could not give me a specific time and said that someone would call Monday to confirm the time of my appointment. No such call was made. I called Tuesday (today) at about noon to confirm that I was on the schedule. I was assured that I was on the schedule for between noon and 4pm. I needed to do a few things so I made sure they had my mobile number so I could be sure I was able to take the call and be there when the technician was available. Once again there was no phone call. By 4:30 someone called to say that they were sorry and would someone be there till six and/or did I want to change the appointment. I told them I was going to be here all night and that I was very disappointed that after three attempts I still could not get a service person to my home, much less at the expected time or with correct customer service. I told the dispatcher that I expected to see a service person today and that I was tired of wasting time waiting around and that yes, I was going to be here so tell the tech to come. After six I still had heard nothing. I called again and the dispatch person said she would have the tech call me. When he did call he said that he was the after hours person and that he was only supposed to do emergency calls and that they had to take precedence and that if he didn't get any more calls he might be able to be at my house by 9pm. I explained that I was going to be here and that I expected to see him. I then asked for his supervisor's name so I could leave a message regarding my dissatisfaction. For the record, that person's name is Jason Ball. I then attempted to leave a voice mail (since it was clearly after business hours) for Mr. Ball only to be given back to the dispatcher I had spoken to earlier. She told me she did not have a way to transfer me for voice mail so I was very explicit with regard to my issues. She indicated that she would leave an email for Mr. Ball and suggest that he call me if I did not get to him first at start of business tomorrow. I must say I am sorely disappointed in ARS and that after this experience I will likely never use them again. I have had nothing but good experiences with courteous technicians up to this point, but it seems clear to me that their dispatch team is regularly overbooking technicians and/or not keeping their eye on the ball anymore. I suspect at least part of the problem is the fact that I am no longer a regular service member and therefore noted on a technician's schedule as "preferred" in some way. This whole situation has now lost me 16 billable work hours in addition to the frustration of moving around my own life and my client's needs just to wait for someone to not show up. It is totally unacceptable.

The technician was timely and professional in the water heater flush and inspecting the plumbing. He even replaced at no cost a regulator on a bathroom faucet that was running slow.

The technician, Joe Koen was great. He was prompt, professional, neat and explained everything to me. The job was well done and the area clean in short order.