Building Science, Inc.

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They were absolutely wonderful and went completely above and beyond bending over backwards to do everything they could for me.

In regards to overall quoting and pricing execution of home energy efficiency work (insulation/air sealing and inspection work) I do think this company does good work. I was originally referred to Neil Sullivan from a 3rd party home energy audit contractor who noted I had very leaky air ducts from the mid 90's construction. They have improved the air sealing in my 3rd floor office, conditioned the crawlspace as well as sealed the air ducts in the home. The work was done in a timely fashion for a fair price. I had them quote for an HVAC unit and this is where I do not feel comfortable recommending the company to others. Simply put, although I feel the owner is very competent, he isn't the guy in the field. I do not have confidence in the technician he continued to send to my home, despite our continued requests for a different technician and my recent analysis by a 3rd party confirms our suspicions. On the initial install, the technician was not complete in finishing the insulation of the refrigerant lines, things I caught and then they did correct. That's the problem, we were constantly finding issues rather than feeling comfortable the work was done correctly, and the owner is blindly putting his faith in this guy's skills rather than actually auditing the work being done. The unit installed has been cooling ok, but the refrigerant line was condensing water in the wall causing a great deal of condensation to enter my crawlspace and within drywall. Leaving nasty drywall stains in my garage as well. Rather than diagnosing the problem, the technician first assumed it was an insulation problem, and squirted about a quart of foam where the refridgerant lines entered the attic concluded it when that didn't fix it, they concluded old condensation drain pipe was broken and we needed to install a condensation pump. The owner assured me in writing I was on the schedule, and then they never showed. This was after a number of disgruntled emails and phone calls from me concerned about the water in the wall and crawlspace while attempting to get on their schedule which they were pretty much terrible calling back until you sounded angry with them? I had another HVAC party out to review the issue. sure enough there is no leak or issue in the condensation drainline, checked by physical test and inspection. but the issue is due to the refridgerant lines condensing as I originally stated. The reason the lines were condensing is the reason why I will never recommend this company to anyone looking for HVAC work. The system had been over charged for over a year and the air handler switches not configured correctly in the original installation, not configured to variably blow the air, something again I'd expressed concern to the owner that it wasn't setup correctly. Use them for air sealing and duct sealing, but for anything else. Go elsewhere.

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The team at Building Science was incredibly knowledgeable and helpful. We ordered an energy audit through the RREA and chose Building Science to perform the audit. The auditor was friendly, punctual and knowledgable about old houses like ours. We got the report promptly and James called back to make sure we understood the results and ask if we had questions. Based on the report, we were able to qualify for an energy rebate if we made some energy improvements. We contracted with Building Science to complete the work. Neil, the owner, was so helpful and patient with us as we tried to prioritize the work that we needed to get our home as efficient as possible. He also gave us recommendations on things that we could do ourselves to help improve the efficiency and comfort of our home and was very honest with us about things that would help our home value or not. The team did the bulk of the work while we were out of town. They had hoped to have the entire project complete before we got home but they went over by a few days. They were always prompt, professional and never left any mess when they left daily. Our dog was home and we had someone checking on her. Our neighbor noted that the workers were very professional and friendly and let our dog in and out during the day in between her visits. When we were home, the guys were so great about being quiet and considerate of our small children and their nap schedules. And they were super patient with and kind to our rambunctious toddlers when they were awake. We took out a home improvement loan specifically for the energy work and Neil and Chris partnered with us to navigate our way through the process. I really can't say enough about how great they were throughout the entire process. I would use them again without hesitation.

We had called around to find out what we needed to do to stop the moisture problem. One company said they could eliminate the problem for $12,000. Building Science had quoted us $2000. They were on time, professional, neat and cleaned everything up as it was before they had come. We have not had a moisture problem and our home is cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter.