BLACK HAT CHIMNEY & FIREPLACE

Great job. Very professional.

Very good.

unknown

.

works fine now

unknown

It didn't go at all!

unknown

They gave wonderful service.

unknown

unknown

unknown

Black Hat Chimney & Fireplace were very good. We didn't have that big of a wall to put the fireplace on, but it turned out the model we liked was big for our space. Most people told us it wouldn't fit, but Black Hat worked it out nicely. They're good at kind of designing where it goes and everything. That's above and beyond just selling a fireplace and putting it in.

Service people did an excellent job. Arrived on time. Provided all the information to start the heater, make adjustments, etc. Shoped at other places but Black Hat was the best as far as the proper stove application and installation.

Another company had failed to install a different stove, irreversably damaging the brick and removing the gas feed in the process, we felt really stuck. Black Hat was super professional, quick, and though they had to get into the chimney through a bedroom wall on the second floor to pull the liner up the chimney, they left virtually no trace by going in behind a molding. Love the insert, and the service. Not cheap, but you absoluetly get what you pay for.

The inducer motor on the furnace failed twice within a few short years and the furnace man said there may be too much moisture in the chimney causing the motor to fail. He suggested I purchase a chimney liner from Black Hat Chimney. The owner from Black Hat (only the owner does the estimates) came out to give me an estimate for the job. My brother let him in before I got home but by the time I arrived he almost completed the estimate. By his truck I asked how much it might cost and he said $550. I waited in the house while he (the owner) went in the back yard to look at the chimney on top of my ranch house with binoculars. He didn't climb up a ladder to check the chimney but just looked at it from ground level with binoculars. When he came into the house to give me the estimate, he said the chimney needed to be repointed (maintain the mortar joints). He could see the mortar in the chimney was bad and they would need to grind it out and replace it costing an additional $150. I called the next day and agreed to go ahead with the estimate paying 50% of the bill up front. The workers came two hour late. They were efficient and pleasant. They didn't talk to me but when I asked one guy some questions he answered me in a friendly way. They finished the job within one hour. One guy in the basement and the other on the roof. When the guy on the roof was done in a short time I asked how could he get the chimney completed in a short time and he said the chimney is sound, the mortar was a little dirty and he cleaned it, but it didn't need any extensive work. He did fill in a small amount of mortar in three vertical joints with his finger. When I was paying the balance of the bill to the workers I stated that I have been over charged because he didn't have to fix the chimney. They then said, no your bill is for the correct amount for the job done, $734.06, but the owner originally told me the bill would be $550. I did pay the stated balance knowing I would call the company in the next day and ask for a refund of the $150., which was a mistake. The rest of the job was ok except the guy who worked in the basement did a messy job of filling two wents in the chimney and the seal around the exhaust pipe has already cracked. The owner returned my call a day later. When I told him that I overpaid because they didn't have to repair the chimney he said his two workers were off that day. He would talk to them the next day and he would call me back the next afternoon for sure. He never called back and it has been two weeks.

We also had a problem with the exhaust from this fireplace melting our upper siding. We feel that this should have been something they should have known about when they installed the fireplace and installed a reflector in the first place. They did make a reflector after the fact and install it but that was after the damage had been done. We are not the professionals they are!!

We got off to a bit of a rocky start as there was severe damage done during a storm and they were not very responsive at first. Once Bob got involved, things seemed to change quite a bit. The work was done through an insurance claim, which made the process that much more difficult, but Black Hat was very helpful and patient. They answered all the questions we had about the installation especially how the damaged chimney was to be repaired. They came out on time, were very clean, and provided an excellent installation. We were very happy with the work they provided.

The workers arrived as agreed. They set up the scaffolding & set out to work. They put a wooden frame on top of the chimney & poured the crown. They left for the day & told me they would be back in a day or two to remove the frame & finish repointing the North & West side of the chimney. I was told they couldn't reach those sides of the chimney with the equipment they had. I paid them in full, that was a mistake. Two weeks later the frame was still there & the North & West sides still needed repointing. I called & spoke with a woman who expressed surprise that the work wasn't done. She told me that she thought it was done. She gave me another date a week out & told me they would be back. They came back & "finished" the work. The crown is 2", not the 4" that was on the contract. I phoned the office & left a message that I wasn't happy with the work and the I wanted Mr. Goran to call me back. He didn't, but one of the workers did, I wasn't comfortable confronting him directly.

Black Hat worked on three fireplaces in my 1895 house (two wood-burning, one gas) and two chimneys. Their advice to repaint was wrong. Other vendors have since told me that it was unneccesary and overpriced. The alterations to the flu's of the wood burners made absolutely no difference in performance. The gas unit is troublesome and seems to make the room colder. They have been unresponsive to my calls and have stopped showing up at all. I am proceeding with a lawsuit to recover my money. I cannot warn strongly enough that these people are CROOKS!

They were a great company to deal with. The workers were very honest and trustworthy. Their work was of very good quality. They were even able to come early ahead of schedule to start the work on replacing my chimney.

Black Hat is the best. The technician who cleans our fireplace each year is wonderful and very clean, always laying a white sheet. He says our unit is very clean and needs cleaning only every other year, but it is a gas unit and I just want to be careful so I have it done annually.

This is the first time I have used a chimney sweep. In retrospect, I think it was rather expensive for the work that was performed. They stuck a pole up, pulled it a few times, vacuumed and left. They were clean, however, and professional.

Black Hat Chimney did a professional job. I liked the way they operated, and the work was very good. I would hire them again for this type of work.

The worker from Black Hat got my house dirty on the inside. I had to hire someone else to come out and clean the carpets because they made such a mess. I wont be hiring them again.