Service Specialties Inc.

When I first called to make the appointment Lori gave me choice of dates and times. Chris called prior to arrival and was on time to survey the old system. and provide two systems and costs the next day. Given SSI's, cost, their Angie's List rating, Family Business for over 20 years, and their support for the community, we decided on SSI. We choose the TRANE system. SSI estimates were lower than (Home Depot, Sears and HH Furr (Costco)). Joseph and Jose were on time. Joseph removed the inside unit and Jose the out side unit. I can not say how impressed I was with professionalism, and workmanships! DId not rush, answered my many questions and NEVER on their phones. They tested both the AC and heating. Every operational question was answered and they were not in a rush to leave explaining everything in detail concerning the new thermostat. The whole job lasted from 7:30 - 3pm.

Great. Prompt, efficient, competent.

My dishwasher had stopped working and I hired them to come check, everything went fine and they said I needed an appliance repair person to come and take a look. After finally getting the correct problem addressed it took them several days to get back to me but otherwise everything went well.

Called Customer service and the lady told me it would be a $69 charge for the plumber to come out. Not a big deal because I had a $39 Angie's list deal. HOWEVER, the deal said the original price (without Angies Deal) was $99 and I was getting a GREAT discount at $39... Honesty now comes into question with this company. Nice gentlemen examined the water heater. Told me I needed a new one due to the top valves leaking. (Not a shock) Then proceeded to tell me that I might be lucky if I can find a new water heater before May 15th, (about a month away) because a new law went into effect on April 15, 2015 (6-days prior). As a result all contractors and plumbers were buying up all of the inventory to avoid the new efficiency law. He also told me the units are bigger (may not be able to fit through my door) and 50-60% more expensive. When asked the price to install... He said he would go check with his company to see if they had any hot water heaters left in inventory they could install. Came back about 5 minutes later and said, yes they have some they can install, $1,895 for the heater and installation. Luckily I have "The Google" and looked up Home Depot pricing. Next Day installation with a better unit than I have now for $1,168. No brainer... Use SSI as a diagnostic tool.. Not as a fix-it tool.

They were wonderful. We were very pleased. Professional and personable service. A pleasure to work with.

Everything went just fine. They showed up within the window, checked out my problems (which were pretty straightforward), told me what the fixes would be, and what the charges would be. I have an older house and the plumber was familiar with my fixtures and the specific parts needed to solve the problems. The work progressed without incident, the problems were fixed, and I'm pleased with the results.

Working with the serviceman went extremely well, though other problems connected to this particular service call became more concerning. My SSI Serviceman's name was Robert. When he arrived he patiently listened to my explanation of what was going on and then started assessing my immediate plumbing problem as well as what may have caused it. Then he quickly started in on getting it resolved. Unfortunately, the County's emergency services had to be involved and they were having trouble providing the service assistance that we needed from them right away, and this threw a roadblock in the way of Robert's being able to quickly resolve my first and immediate plumbing problem. But, do to Robert's obvious experience and master craftsmanship he was able to work around the County's outside problem and even assist them with his quickness and skill, all the while moving forward on the work I needed to solve and repair my inside problem. Robert was able to complete my work on the inside while the County was still dealing with problems on the outside, and then he took the time to explain the reasons for my problems, make good recommendations in connection with my particular setup and system, then set, test and check all of his work and my system functions to make sure I had no more trouble or future problems to worry about to this day. Needless to say, this was one of the best experiences I've had in dealing with a serviceman or plumbing company and look forward to contacting them for any plumbing assistance of any kind that I may need in the future.

It turned out very well. It was simple and I thought it was. I just needed a professional to come out and confirm it for me. I had had someone to come out and replace a water pressure valve which was working pretty weird when they left and a couple of months later, you could hear noise when you turn the water on. I thought it needed to be readjusted and it turned out what it was.

Our 12 yr old heat pump reversing valve quit working of course during the coldest time in the winter. We originally had another company out to work on it but after a week and multiple "problems needing more money", we decided to get another opinion from an actual certified Trane company since that is what we had (our air handler was 24 yrs old). The technician came out and did confirm it was the reversing valve and gave us a cost estimate to fix it. He was very professional and I felt I trusted what he was saying compared to the other company. We had already talked about getting estimates to replacing the system and had other estimates but not for a Trane system. SSI was able to get Chris (Bacon) out to us the same day to look at our system and take measurements. I was very impressed on how much time he took looking at the system (the other companies quickly looked) and then explaining each system he recommended. He wasn't pushy in us making decision and was very personable (the other companies were either pushy or had a bad attitude treating me like the "dumb wife"). He even gave us brochures for us to read through about the different systems. It was awesome. We got the proposal two days later and we loved how detailed he was explaining everything that was included or not included (way better than the quick carbon copy we got from other companies). We didn't hesitate to go with SSI at that point. The cost was comparable, maybe a bit more expensive but it was for a Trane system. Plus, we are willing to pay more to go with a company who knows what they are talking about. We exchanged several texts and emails with Bacon and he always responded quickly and was friendly and professional through it all. Put our worries at ease. We ended up picking the upgraded system with all the bells and whistles. They gave us a great deal and with the Dominion Rebate it was prefect. He even worked with us on signing get proposal since we were without a printer on a cruise at the time. He got all the parts ordered to be installed for when we got back. We couldn't be more happier with the time and effort Bacon gave us. The installers showed up right at 7:30am. They answered all my questions through out the day. I was a bit worried at the point they were installing the heat pump outside since it is a bad erosion area. All it took was a quick text to Bacon, he called me shortly after and said they were sending someone with gravel to fix it and for us not to worry. How awesome is that! They finished shortly before 4pm. Everything clean. I felt bad because I did have to rush the head installer in explaining things since our company had just arrived and I had to get my daughter off the bus. But he assured me (and Bacon did too) to not hesitate to give them a call if we have any questions. We are still learning how to use the thermostat (it's like a small iPad on the wall) and get it to our preferred adjustments. We couldn't be more happier with the system. My husband was so thrilled to actually feel air coming out of the vents. I do feel the difference with the humidifier and no longer feel like my skin is about to crack and break. So with my long winded review....I can't express enough how great this experience was in buying a new HVAC system. Bacon, you're awesome and keep up the great work in making your customers feel worry free with such a big decision!!! We will continue using them for our maintenance service after our year is over. Once you find those trust worthy companies...you don't want to loose them. Thanks, SSI!!!!

Everything was good and they were great. The technician was really great. They found some other things wrong but I ended up using my home warranty company for the repairs.

Contractor was very responsive to our needs and communication was excellent!

He took less than 30 minutes to fix faucet.

Initially the nozzle was not reinstalled correctly leaving me with no hot water in the shower. However, the provider was responsive and came back the next day to fix the issue at no charge. He was professional and easy to work with, as were the people on the phone who scheduled the work. I will use them again.

My interactions started off well. The phone operator / receptionist was both responsive and informative and got us scheduled quite quickly. The plumber showed up within the 4 hour window and this is where things started to go downhill. From the moment the gentleman walked into the house to the moment he was done with the work and walked out that same door roughly 15 minutes had passed (more like 10 or 11, but I'm erring on the side of caution.) So far so good I thought. He informed me he was going to the van to write up a bill. More than 15 minutes later he returned from the van and with the first words he spoke I knew I was in trouble, "I'm giving you a huge discount." I was presented with a nearly 200$ bill. When I asked whether that included the 40$ I spent on angie's list, I was told "that just gets one of us out here, we don't even see that money, Angie's list gets all that money." So what exactly is my 40$ getting me and why is it valued at 100$? The "deal" is listed at a 61% discount, 39$ for 100$ value. The 39$ didn't come off my bill, 100$ certainly didn't come off my bill. So what was the point of the "deal?" Did I really just pay 39$ simply to get someone to show up? I could have done that with a phone call. To be clear, the work was done and it was seemingly done well (can't say for sure for a few days.) But the fact that our plumber spent significantly more time in his van outside after finishing the work than he did inside doing the work, the fact my Angie's list "deal" was apparently completely worthless, and finally the fact that of the three plumbers I've hired in the greater DC area this was the most expensive by about 300% means I'm very unlikely to recommend and will personally never use this service again. I usually have no problems paying a premium for quality work but even I have a limit. Apparently my limit is 250$ for less than 15 minutes of work.

They provided an estimate for a complicated plumbing problem and did about a great job.

Troubleshooted a leak in kitchen sealing and discovered the 3 new toilets installed by contractor were not sealed properly. Fixed all three toilets with proper seal and saved us a lot of future problems. Very satisfied.

They're very reliable. They're extremely professional and are very well trained. It is usually one or two men that come out and they definitely know what they're doing. They were recommended to us by a neighbor and we've been using them for the past two years now.

I didnt use the deal because I purchased the wrong thing. There customer service was fine and the lady was very nice.

They replaced the a/c and heater. The experience was positive however they made minor errors. There were a couple of things they could have done better.

Was able to quickly diagnose problem

I bought a deal with this company through Angie's List on Monday, December 1. They contacted me within an hour to schedule an appointment for the very next day (!). Although I was given a 5-hour window, I requested they inform me 30 minutes before the plumber showed up so that I could get home from work. Unlike other companies with which I've dealt in the past, they actually did call me, so I didn't have to lose unnecessary time from work waiting. The service person arrived, looked at my sinks and informed me how long each would take and what the price would be. After an hour, everything was completed and he went on his way. Very easy.

I purchased the service call deal on Angie's list and was hoping to get some kind of technical input. Turned out to be a mixed output. I do not recall the name of the person who came in, but this is how it went The leak was in my fitness room ceiling which has a bathroom above it. The leak was not alive...in the sense there was no consistent drip. The plumber checked the toilet, sink and shower in the bathroom above it and could find any leaks. I thought his assessment was fair till now. Then it started going the other way The assessment did not fit in when he said that the leak marks could be very old ones since they are dry and I might not have noticed them before. I was like " That cannot be true. I workout right underneath the spot and could not have missed it until I noticed it a few days ago" He "well, sometimes you only see what you want to see because you are very focused" . I sensed this was going nowhere and was anyways planning to get a second opinion through the home warranty where they will have to cut the dry wall and check. He did explain to me how a leak could get worse, mold and all and what should I look out for. I did manage to get it checked through my the third party home warranty contract. Turns out , the leak was from a drain pipe. which had screws drilled into it from a closet by previous owner ( not that they could be aware of the pipe being there) We redid the closet recently and pulled out the screws, exposing the holes and that started the leak. I know this kind of investigation is extensive but the explanation of dried up marks just did not fit in . Since this was only a service call at a discounted price, I am not sure how much to expect. I have been ripped for XXX $ as service call fees by people whom I found doing a Google search, so trusted Angie's list this time.

SSI from the very beginning coming into our home was very professional, and extremely knowledgeable in every aspect of the job. Our tech Reid knew all the ins and outs of the Eternal tankless hot water heater that was to be installed. He assisted us in getting the proper gas flow to our house to handle the new heater and our current furnace. Once installed he followed through to make sure the new unit passed inspection. Reid and the SSI team did a wonderful job and we are enjoying endless hot water with our Eternal.

No Service performed. The provider cannot make on the date requested.

Fantastic. The service technician was on time, very professional and honest. He only do what was needed and did not suggest unnecessary repairs. The administrative staff was fantastic also and always pleasant to talk to, even when they were very busy. I will definitely use this company in the future. Because I trusted this company, I signed up for their maintenance program.