NEW ENGLAND SOLA CONCEPTS

With great excitement we chose to install a solar tube and fan into our bathroom. In retrospect, the price for the unit was very high--but we felt confident given the good reviews of the product and by the fact that the business had been around for many years. In discussing the job, i indicated that I was also looking to have a new roof put on in that part of the house. The proprietor suggested that their installer Louis Mead, whom I was assured was excellent, would be a good candidate. Mead had, I was told, been working with Northeast Solar for many years. In fact, Mead was doing business through their shop, including carrying his insurance. I contacted Mead, received and estimate on a Northeast Solar email account and letterhead. The results were catastrophic--Mead's crew destroyed plants, and left the house unprotected. Ultimately the house flooded three times, requiring a complete gutting of the master bedroom and hallway. Tye, the owner, who I think is good guy at heart, came down with Louis Mead during at least one of the flood events and tried to help out. Ultimately however, Mead did not finish the job and made off with several hundred dollars in money fronted for insulation. Not before, however, doing an flawed job of installing the solar tube/fan. -- which we paid up front for. While Northeast Solar seemed sympathetic and tried--i think-- to help, sending me forms to lodge complaints against Mead. They however disclaimed any business connection with Mead or responsibility for the matter. Me and my insurance company had to pay thousands to repair damages and I had to spend a lot out of pocket to complete the job. The fact is that Mead was doing business out of the shop and was recommended by them--I would not have hired him otherwise. Some level of restitution or redress would have been appreciated and certainly warranted. At present I hope I have a roof that won't leak, and I own a very expensive fan/ light that was improperly installed. I can only imagine how many incomplete installations of this product have occurred during the years Mead worked with New England Sola. I recently did some investigating and found out that Mead had been arrested many times during the period of his association with the company--a fact they undoubtedly realized when they were recommending him and sending him into people's houses. New England Sola Concepts customers--especially with fans and electrical components should have their installations checked. I think these are good people--the product is good, if expensive--but running across the extensive criminal history of the installer really shocked me.

We met them at the RI Home Show several yrs ago and asked them to keep in touch until we could afford what we wanted, they did not pester me at all. I ended up calling them and they did a great job.