Warm Front - Lets Make Them Accountable

palman

letty2 wrote: »

your condensate pipe may have leaked because it froze up ,then exspanded then leaked in some cases,,,

it wasnt welded properly TWICE, its inside the house

the orion guy welded it properly

i am not here to argue with you. we all know there are good workers and bad workers no matter who they work for. The stilsons guy worked for warmsure not orion

the orion guy ( Carl ) replaced 8 ls's 6 of which were leaking the following morning. Why they can't use local people i have no idea. He came from burton on trent, the last one came from even further a field as i said i could write pages.

i know first hand how hard orion work its contractors, always wanting you to do more and more and travel further away from your home

when you have had 2 months of lies and bad work and fob off from warmfront / warmsure and orion as i have, you'll excuse me if i get defensive

letty2

dkitch wrote: »

I am posting on behalf of my Mother and Father who are not the richest of pensioners who need Hot Water and Heating to survive the winters.

Once more they have found themselves without Hot Water and Heating thanks to Warmfront.

We had an "Ideal Icos HE15" boiler fitted in 2007 which was a help at the time, as they couldnt afford a top quality Heating and Water System.

Roughly 1 month after the 2 year warranty ran out in 2009 the boiler began breaking down. We were left without Water and Heating for the winter of 2009 as Warmfront told us they "were unable to send an engineer until the 2nd week of January"

In March 2010 the boiler broke down again after only being "fixed in January". Since March 2010 until present day 27/12/10, Warmfront have had to send out engineers 3 times. Each time costing my parents £240.

We looked into getting insurance cover, but the system we have in place from Warmfront is so unreliable, companies and engineers will not service.

We have just spoke to a Team Leader for Warmfont today 27/12/10 that told us "engineers left the boiler in working order each time" in order to get the system FIXED AGAIN !! we have to pay another £240 call-out.

My parents are elderly and disabled and need the Water and Heating system working in order to get through the cold weather, so we have paid once more.

I dont know how to get money back from Warmfront, but if anyone finds out please please post here !!!

Thank you

wot went wrong then with the boiler,, these boilers have a few fault codes on them,,,,,most common thing on these are the condensate pipe blocking up ,,not the boilers fault or or the pcb blowing or not displaying any thing

palman

letty2 wrote: »

bigger rad may not solve the problem if temp in room is only 17 degress ,,,is the return pipe work on the radiator hot ?? ie ,,if the flow pipe on rad is 60 degress then the return pipe on rad should be 10% less,,estimated about 10 degress,,,,,or could have sludge in rad ,are u getting cold spots in that rad?? ie,,,hot on top cold on the bottom???????

brand new install. so no sludge, 17 degrees on a warmer day and heating has been on for a few hours. yes both sides hot, lockshields on both sides due to combi, no cold spots (air blockages) and setup by installers, warmsure and orion guys. i make that 6 people in total have looked at it in one way or another.

i did say there were pages not quite 24 pages though, which is how many lockshield valves i have had

each new guy that comes along diss's the previous guys work. I would assume all went to plumber, indeed gassafe school

letty2

palman wrote: »

it wasnt welded properly TWICE, its inside the house

the orion guy welded it properly

i am not here to argue with you. we all know there are good workers and bad workers no matter who they work for. The stilsons guy worked for warmsure not orion

the orion guy ( Carl ) replaced 8 ls's 6 of which were leaking the following morning. Why they can't use local people i have no idea. He came from burton on trent, the last one came from even further a field as i said i could write pages.

i know first hand how hard orion work its contractors, always wanting you to do more and more and travel further away from your home

when you have had 2 months of lies and bad work and fob off from warmfront / warmsure and orion as i have, you'll excuse me if i get defensive

i dont no the guy but they have about 60 enginneers on there books..i know how u feel being let down ,,wot area do u come from,,,they dont care were u live as long as they get the job out ,they could have an engineer in your area and they will give it to some one 30 miles away,,,all because me/them didnt pick the phone up,,,,

letty2

palman wrote: »

brand new install. so no sludge, 17 degrees on a warmer day and heating has been on for a few hours. yes both sides hot, lockshields on both sides due to combi, no cold spots (air blockages) and setup by installers, warmsure and orion guys. i make that 6 people in total have looked at it in one way or another.

i did say there were pages not quite 24 pages though, which is how many lockshield valves i have had

each new guy that comes along diss's the previous guys work. I would assume all went to plumber, indeed gassafe school

if new install ..then this should of been referred back to installers within 12 months of boiler been installed,,,some times will be referred back ,then somes times asks orion maintaince to fix/repair problem wot installers have ballstd up,,,,did they fit new boiler in only and connect to existing pipe work or did they put new pipe work through out?????gas safe is there to protect the public and make sure the boiler or gas pipework/flue is installed correctly ..this does not cover the primary/secondary heating pipe work via gas safe regs:T

letty2

tiamaria wrote: »

Going way back to 2004 my mum had a new boiler fitted by warmfront. I did complain big time on her behalf but I wished I'd pushed it more as the devastation was unbelievable.

This was our list of complaints,well the ones I remember.

1. They drilled through her house,over the party wall and into next door's bathroom!

2. The twin copper pipes were fitted all around horizontally at the top of the dining room wall and vertically in the dining room and the lounge, complete with burn marks at every pipe join. They are a real eyesore & I reckon it's knocked a lot off the price of the property.

3.Very large holes were drilled in the walls, not concreted up, just left there.

4. Large white pipe not fitted correctly from the boiler to outside (slanted & only partially cemented)

5. The old boiler was ripped off the bathroom walls, breaking adjacent tiles with some cement slapped on but not in such a way the tiles could be replaced.

6.The mess, dust, concrete left behind was everywhere, looked like a bomb site. Not all elderly people have family or friends to help them, how they could leave an OAP to sort this out is beyond belief.

7.Despite all this, the boiler has frequently gone wrong or stopped working altogether, we've had a number of plumbers look at it who have pointed out that one of the pipes is upside down. Right now we've been told that it should be totally replaced as it's broken beyond permanent repair, shame she can't afford a new one:(

So basically, they all but ruined the house and she still has no heating! Don't touch them with a bargepole!

Oh and I forgot to say, when we complained they insisted on sending the same contractor to sort it out, even though we asked for someone else.

He said "Please don't complain to warmfront, I'll give you £50)!!

they might of used semtex to get through the wall ,,lol,,,r give u 100 quid

Catlover123

I experienced many of the delays and tactics by Warmfront, and their sub-contractors Eagaheat. I qualified for the grant in September 2009. The job was put out to one company, Gloworm, immediately who kept it for four months then turned it down. It was then given to Eagaheat. The surveyor was pleasant enough and told me precisely where they would fit a combi in the kitchen. The fitter turned up at gone 10 am on the appointed date in late April 2010 and said he could not do the job because there was nowhere to park (a frequent excuse, I gather). If he had come at 8 am there would have been no parking difficulty. He also said that I was not entitled to a combi because my existing boiler was an older type and I was only entitled to that. He called his boss who, when he arrived, said the flue was sited too close to the house next door on the survey - and I was not entitled to a combi - so they could not do the job.

They then called me in September - well outside the six-month waiting period - and gave me a few days' notice of when they could fit it provided I made parking arrangements. I live on a main road but it is always possible to park before commuters arrive just before 9 am. I put some bins in the road - it is very easy here as there is an unwritten code amongst parkers but I fail to see why I should have had to do it. The same fitter arrived with a large Baxi boiler. He spent four days and nights fitting the boiler and a greater eyesore could not be imagined. There was a hole in the outside wall which he later botched up with plaster and fitted the boiler round the corner on an internal wall. He could not remove the old boiler himself but called out another company, because he said it contained asbestos. He then said he had the wrong flue and left for several hours to purchase the right one. If he had fitted the boiler in the right place, he could have used the flue supplied. During the process he damaged my worktops, which will have to be replaced and blowtorched my double-glazed window. He also left extensive damage to my newly decorated hall, by wiping his oily hands all over the walls. I wish I knew how to upload a photo of the boiler for everybody to see as I am considering sending it to the press. It is surely a health hazard to have such a myriad of pipework in a kitchen where food is prepared.

He was in my terraced house until 9.30 pm banging away, yet on one side my neighbours have a baby and a 3-year old and on the other there is a very elderly couple who are unwell. Nobody could sleep. He was disappearing throughout the four days, after calls from his boss, and I am sure he was doing another job elsewhere at the same time.

After installation, only one radiator worked. I tried to bleed them but could not turn the radiator key and eventually found a gardening pliers/clippers. I was frozen to the bone during December and could not stay in the house all over Christmas. A load of air came out and I managed to get the two small radiators in the front bedroom working. There is a new radiator in the back bedroom which still does not work. The radiator in the hall completely flooded and has damaged a newly-laid wooden floor. I managed to tighten it so it is now just leaking and I got it to work. I bled the radiator in the bathroom but it comes on and off regardless of the heating elsewhere and overheats. I managed to bleed the radiator at the back of the lounge but burnt my hand when boiling water spouted out. The radiators bang and creak all the time and I cannot sleep, as does the boiler and sound as if it is going to blow up. The boiler is leaking water and oil over the ruined worktop. When the heating goes off at night, water gushes out of the overflow pipe at the back of the house.

Warmfront came to inspect the work last week and the inspector said it was the most disgraceful job he has ever seen and they will have to compensate me for the damage to the property. I said I had not been consulted over the positoning of the boiler and I consider that legally I should have been. He said the house really required a combi.

I am now "waiting" to see what their proposals are. Meanwhile I have been obtaining quotes to fit a combi and have had one so far for £2,000. When I obtained quotes before, from the large companies and from Warmfront contractors like Gloworm, they were between £3,500 and £4,000. I felt that there was a price-fixing cartel amongst these companies, and that is illegal. Gloworm told me about the free scheme when I contacted them for a private quote. However, whilst they were keen to fit the boiler privately for £3,500, they did not want to do it under the Warmfront scheme. I am now getting further quotes.

I will be writing to the MD of Eagaheat and Warmfront, both of them elusive as I cannot find out who heads these organisations. Warmfront gave Eagaheat £3,500 to fit the boiler and I think we should be entitled to know why it cost that much to fit an old-model Baxi boiler and put the pipework in the kitchen. The impression I had, which is reinforced by a blogger who works for these organisations, is that there is a grievance over people claiming this grant "to improve the value of their properties" and that the purpose of the scheme is to provide "cheap" replacement heating. That, bluntly, is not only none of an employee's business but factually inaccurate and wrong. I agree they are doing the work on the cheap but they are charging Warmfront as if they have done a first class job and fitted a top-range boiler. I am over retirement age and in the summer of 2009 found I could not get any work, and thus I qualified for the scheme. Nevertheless, had I known I would have to go through this, I would have sold the bloody house. I am going to have to do that now on account of this incident. The damage and inconvenience - which has prevented me taking jobs in other locations so I am still out of work - is incalculable.

Morglin

It must be a matter of luck with the installers.

My parents had Warmfront install central heating about 3 years ago, and they were brilliant - lovely contractors, an excellent job and the multi-point and rads have been just fine.

Lin

palman

Catlover123 wrote: »

Warmfront gave Eagaheat £3,500

i have had at least 3 people come to my house, plumbers, say you got it for nothing. I had to pay an additional £400 ontop of the £3500. All i hear is well you got it for nothing. Like why is my kitchen got no heating? I'm sure if i paid a private company £4000 i would get heating in my kitchen and in my freezing toilet. But they aren't classed as living rooms so don't need heat apparently.

I was also told the boiler i have installed is a good one, but the one above it costs a few pounds more but comes with a 5yr warranty

palman

Morglin wrote: »

It must be a matter of luck with the installers.


Lin

It is indeed. This is also the case for the sub contractors too for warmsure and orion.

Even the people in Warmsure call centre are amazed at the amount of phonecalls i have had to make, and how slow things have erm havent happened. they said i am a rare case, but woudlnt say that ?