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vmastro87

Chimney company trying to screw me? any help appreciated

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 I am in the process of selling my house, and i have run into a snag. Jackson TWP requires a separate "Fireplace Inspection" in order to get a CCO when you sell. I called a company last week who came into my house to clean and inspect it. After 2.5 mins in my house (he just finished putting the blanket down) he looks up into the fire place and says to me you sure you want this cleaned? Of course i asked him why, which he then told me was a waste of time because the damper and pipe are "Rusted out". Now being a frantic home owner at the time I of course ask how much is the repair, with that he tosses me a number in the ballpark of $5,000-$7500, charges me $110 (for two mins in my house) and tells me someone from the company will get me a written appraisal in 7-10 days.

 

Now Im a machinist by trade, i never work on fireplaces i never claim to, but i do know metal, and i have yet to see the "Rusted out" part anywhere. there are a couple small spots of rust flakes no larger than a quarter each. I even tossed on a mask and some safety glasses so i could get up close and personal with it. I tugged on it, pushed on it, tried to break the rust spots and then even continued with some "punching" jsut to see if could find anything that was loose or rotted, NOTHING.  Does anyone on here know a little more about these things? is there something im missing? My plan is to get a second opinion but tossing away hundred dollar bills is not really in the cards right now with all the other money i have put out to sell this damn thing. 

 

Also he told me this "soft quote" was for them cutting a large hole in the back of my house pulling out the firebox and replacing everything and then new masonry work. WHY? its a metal pipe that goes straight to the roof? It sounds like to me they are looking to strum up some business but im really just looking for some advice if anyone knows a little more. 

 

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Definitely get a second opinion.

 

I am a plumber, not a chimney specialist, but it really does not look bad from the pictures.

 

If the damper does not work anymore, there are options as well.

 

Make it safe, but you shouldn't have to replace the whole thing.

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I would clean it up and paint it with a Firebox paint and then get a second inspecion from someone else.  I'm not a chimney guy but have been in construction for 20 years.  Typically they can simply drop in a new liner if theres an issue.  Their quote seems a little excessive. It sounds to me like they're trying to take advantage of the fact that you need a C/O to close on the house.

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Definitely get a second opinion.

 

I am a plumber, not a chimney specialist, but it really does not look bad from the pictures.

 

If the damper does not work anymore, there are options as well.

 

Make it safe, but you shouldn't have to replace the whole thing.

 

Damper is fully functional

 

I would clean it up and paint it with a Firebox paint and then get a second inspecion from someone else.  I'm not a chimney guy but have been in construction for 20 years.  Typically they can simply drop in a new liner if theres an issue.  Their quote seems a little excessive. It sounds to me like they're trying to take advantage of the fact that you need a C/O to close on the house.

 

thanks for the inisght guys thats exactly what i thought

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I'd say they're trying to pull a fast and expensive one on you.

 

I've used Central Jersey Chimney for several years now. I needed some repoint work done, cap put on, and masonry steps redone. Mike is a straight shooter, no BS type guy.

 

609-259-8800

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I know a little bit about Chimney liners since I've had a wood stove insert installed and also had to extend my chimney by 6 feet during a renovation.

 

I can tell you that you can have a stainless steel liner installed for about $30/foot material cost for the pipe, $16 per 6 feet in perlite insulation plus two guys for for as long as it takes them to do it.  If it comes out easy and goes in easy, they can get it done in a few hours...if a piece is stuck it can take all day.  re-install takes about 20 minutes for pipe and they pour in some bags of perlite and seal the top.   You'd be all in for no more than 2k.   That jamoke wanted to have you rip out the firebox, i.e. he's an ahole looking to make his month's pay on you.

 

That said, I don't see any issues with the pictures.   Find a different inspector.

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Did you pay his $110 inspection fee??  That's a little excessive too -- I'd give him $40 for his 2 minutes

 

That chimney looks good to me -- you could run a brush thru it yourself  -- buy the brush at lowes for like $12

 

Let the code enforcer who gives you the CCO tell you it needs work...

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Did you pay his $110 inspection fee??  That's a little excessive too -- I'd give him $40 for his 2 minutes

 

That chimney looks good to me -- you could run a brush thru it yourself  -- buy the brush at lowes for like $12

 

Let the code enforcer who gives you the CCO tell you it needs work...

 

No i did not pay him yet i was seeking advice first. I'm going to let him know this morning, and yes after i get a second professional opioin i will be sure to share the name of the company all over the internet.

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If the second opinion verifies the chimney is in good shape, I wouldn't pay the first inspector a dime.  If he didn't provide a written report showing the repairs needed or give you the cert for your CCO, then what service would you be paying for?  To be robbed?

 

If this is a sale with a realtor I'd share your experience with them.  Like them or not, realtors send lots of business to inspectors through referrals and they have a lot more influence with the inspection companies than anyone else.

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Don't delay in calling your card issuer and disputing the charge. If you've been a good customer with them, their first action should be to request the credit card authorization (pin, card present, or signature) from the merchant.

 

I know have to wait for the pending transaction to no longer pend and then they said they would be happy to help me.

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After talking to the company and telling them im not paying they went ahead and charged my card anyway, and have given me zero proof of anything and no estimate!!!!  unfortunately this is turning into a debacle now.

 

WOW  -- So they lied then stole from you

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Advance apologies to anyone out there in the trades, but I'd say 80% of them combine various proportions of laziness, untruthfulness, crookedness, incompetence, and fraudulence. Not being very handy myself and owning an 88 year old house I could write a series of books on this subject.

 

Never get just one estimate. Get ten. Don't feel bad that you have to tell 9 of them you're not interested. Providing estimates for big jobs comes with the territory and a professional doesn't mind. 

 

We had a huge chimney job 4 years ago, about 1/3 the way down and new liner. Our estimates ranged from $12,000 to $2400. 

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Never get just one estimate. Get ten. Don't feel bad that you have to tell 9 of them you're not interested. Providing estimates for big jobs comes with the territory and a professional doesn't mind.

As someone who does this with millions of dollars worth of construction every year, this is the best approach. Also educate yourself what you're getting into and make sure that whatever contract /proposal you sign spells out exactly what you're paying for and what is excluded from the job.

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As someone who does this with millions of dollars worth of construction every year, this is the best approach. Also educate yourself what you're getting into and make sure that whatever contract /proposal you sign spells out exactly what you're paying for and what is excluded from the job.

As someone who does this with millions of dollars of contractor projects a year, if you try to get 10 quotes you won't get any quotes. Talking about proposals in response to bid specs. Word gets around, and nobody puts in $10K or $20 in effort to get a package together when they realize they are competing against everybody on the block. Unless it is an 8 digit job or a government project for which they have a boilerplate and a dedicated government liaison using the shotgun approach.

 

Probably does not apply to chimney repair, just my 2 cents :)

 

For small stuff and also for home stuff I usually like to limit contractor quotes to 3 or so unless I'm getting bad ones and need to get a few more. They know each other as well. But that is just a personal habit of mine and not any special wisdom. Even on tiny jobs without anything official, if you keep calling the same guys and a few of them never get any work they will stop showing up if they are not getting paid for it. That is what I do. A high percentage of the people that call you just want you to figure out the source of their problem and offer a solution. That they can use to go to their own guy or to shop around. I rarely do any free estimates anymore unless it is quick or there is a real prize. And, "Hey, we have a lot more work coming, I just want to get you in the door" is the same to me as, "No MSG," "Check is in the mail," "It's for the community," and "I won't come in your mouth."

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As someone who does this with millions of dollars of contractor projects a year, if you try to get 10 quotes you won't get any quotes. Talking about proposals in response to bid specs. Word gets around, and nobody puts in $10K or $20 in effort to get a package together when they realize they are competing against everybody on the block.

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As someone who does this with millions of dollars of contractor projects a year, if you try to get 10 quotes you won't get any quotes. Talking about proposals in response to bid specs. Word gets around, and nobody puts in $10K or $20 in effort to get a package together when they realize they are competing against everybody on the block. Unless it is an 8 digit job or a government project for which they have a boilerplate and a dedicated government liaison using the shotgun approach.

 

Probably does not apply to chimney repair, just my 2 cents :)

 

For small stuff and also for home stuff I usually like to limit contractor quotes to 3 or so unless I'm getting bad ones and need to get a few more. They know each other as well. But that is just a personal habit of mine and not any special wisdom. Even on tiny jobs without anything official, if you keep calling the same guys and a few of them never get any work they will stop showing up if they are not getting paid for it. That is what I do. A high percentage of the people that call you just want you to figure out the source of their problem and offer a solution. That they can use to go to their own guy or to shop around. I rarely do any free estimates anymore unless it is quick or there is a real prize. And, "Hey, we have a lot more work coming, I just want to get you in the door" is the same to me as, "No MSG," "Check is in the mail," "It's for the community," and "I won't come in your mouth."

 

LMAO last line, perfectly finished, no pun intended.

 

Yea i feel very taken at this point, I consider myself a smart guy and rarely do I not see a problem coming. This is my first time selling a house though and everything that goes a long with it is new to me, so unfortunately some things have slipped through the cracks with the hectic nature of it.

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After talking to the company and telling them im not paying they went ahead and charged my card anyway, and have given me zero proof of anything and no estimate!!!!  unfortunately this is turning into a debacle now.

They're obviously crooks. Your CC company will erase the charge and put those guys on some sort of fraud list. Just tell them the charge was unauthorized and no work was done. 

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As someone who does this with millions of dollars of contractor projects a year, if you try to get 10 quotes you won't get any quotes. Talking about proposals in response to bid specs. Word gets around, and nobody puts in $10K or $20 in effort to get a package together when they realize they are competing against everybody on the block.

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Which part do you disagree with? It's my professional experience, and I don't know anybody else that would disagree.

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Which part do you disagree with? It's my professional experience, and I don't know anybody else that would disagree.

I disagree with the statement that I quoted. I've done hundreds of millions of dollars worth of construction since 1997 and have never experienced that in my entire career. I'm currently the largest private construction owner in Mercer County and probably the central New Jersey region and have been since 1999. I have people knocking down my door and begging for a chance to propose / bid on my work.

 

Additionally, my wife is a consultant / contractor and has been for the same amount of time that I mentioned above. It's not unusual for her company to spend that much money and more responding to a solicitation. She goes after millions of dollars a year and is an overhead (non-billable) part of the company, so they pay her even if she doesn't get a project / job.

 

Please stop making false statements. I've seen the way that you operate. I do appreciate some of your input on this forum since you live in the free world, but you are not an authority on absolutely everything.

 

Now leave me to go feed my mountain lion...

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I disagree with the statement that I quoted. I've done hundreds of millions of dollars worth of construction since 1997 and have never experienced that in my entire career. I'm currently the largest private construction owner in Mercer County and probably the central New Jersey region and have been since 1999. I have people knocking down my door and begging for a chance to propose / bid on my work.

 

Additionally, my wife is a consultant / contractor and has been for the same amount of time that I mentioned above. It's not unusual for her company to spend that much money and more responding to a solicitation. She goes after millions of dollars a year and is an overhead (non-billable) part of the company, so they pay her even if she doesn't get a project / job.

 

Please stop making false statements. I've seen the way that you operate. I do appreciate some of your input on this forum since you live in the free world, but you are not an authority on absolutely everything.

 

Now leave me to go feed my mountain lion...

False statements? It's my professional experience, and 100% valid and true. Perhaps it is because you are in a different line of work or perhaps you have handled a lot of the 8 figure contracts I alluded to. But simply telling me I am full of shit and making false statements based on my life's experience tells me you need to calibrate your crystal ball a bit, plus your bad attitude.

 

You've certainly done more business than me, I would guess I've prime managed about $50 MM in projects in my life. The largest few about $3 MM, including one recently. Obviously I have participated in much larger projects, but not as the program director/PM and they are not included. 90% of the work I have done I was the top guy, because I've owned the companies that were the primes since 1997. I haven't been an employee in almost 20 years. I have always had to worry about what engineering firms and contractors I had involved in work, and how many, and had received feedback that too many were involved and people didn't want to bid or merely did so symbolically with some rate sheets and a tiny package. The phenomenon is ubiquitous over many industries.

 

I certainly do know what I am talking about, and you certainly throw around some ignorant accusations. Not disputing that your business experience might be different. I am not a contractor, I am a professional. I put out specifications and hire people for engineering and construction contracts. Process engineering/chemical plants, drinking water plants, pollution control, hazardous waste cleanup, industrial compliance, Veterans Association Physical Plant or compliance, stuff like that. There is some general construction but that is ancillary the the purpose of my projects.

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