Complaints

The complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:03/08/2025

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  We endured nearly three months without heat on our main floor over the winter holidays due to Janes faulty system design and complete lack of accountability. Their management showed zero remorse, took no responsibility, and treated us like an inconvenience throughout the whole process.We hired Janes to replace our boiler and hot water heater with a combi-boiler. Before the install, both floors of our heating system were fully functionalwe only needed a replacement because the old boiler had started leaking. Instead, after a rushed one-day job, our main floor heat stopped working. They left a mess, and ******, the technician, wasnt given any time to ensure the system was operational before leaving.For months, they made multiple visits, but each time, they rushed out without confirming if their fixes worked because ****** was never scheduled enough time. Eventually, they shifted blame to a manifold they hadnt touched, demanding $2K+ for a custom replacement that did nothing to solve the problem. After more impromptu visits - some late at night - they finally fixed the issue by modifying their own faulty design, yet they never followed up to confirm everything was working.Their management made us feel like every issue was our fault. No accountability. No recourse. Just demands for more money. The only employees who seemed to care were ****** and ******.Janes broke our working system, charged us more to fix things that werent broken, and left us in the cold for months. Easily the worst contractor experience weve ever had.

  Business Response

  Date: 03/25/2025

  Our records present a slightly different account of events. The timeline spanned two months, not three, starting around November 18, 2024, and ending on January 17, 2025. When the original boiler was replaced on 12/2 ****** felt the pipes from it heating up. He thought the system was functioning, which would take hours to disprove and no one wants an expensive technician sitting around for hours. He did note there were some follow-up visit items like a pump and a thermostat that couldn't be finished on that initial visit due to incompatibilities between the old and new parts.
  
  On 12/10 ****** returned for that follow-up work. What we didn't know at that time was that an old manifold also had issues and the original system pumps were fighting for hot water supply. That couldn't be diagnosed until the boiler replacement work was done.
  
  ****** was able to diagnose the original system's design flaw on 12/14 and adjust the pumps to share the flow better. We sent the quote for the manifold work on 12/20. We didn't have homeowner approval until 1/6. The manifold was installed on 1/17.
  
  Custom part orders and scheduling of return visits are always challenging that time of year. We are frustrated about it also. Some of the return visits' labor was not billed. That might not have been communicated clearly. We understand the system is now fully operational and apologize for any inconvenience caused.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 04/15/2025

  Hi ******,

   

  Took a while to respond here unfortunately. 

   

  Janes' response further shows they still don't actually understand the issue their technician finally identified AND that they don't actually know when the issue was resolved. The issue was not resolved on January 17th, as they stated. That is when the manifold was installed that they charged us for that made zero impact to the issues with the system. The issue continued into February where the technician finally made a modification to the system design which resolved it. 

   

  **** *******
  Mobile: **************

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/31/2024

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  A plumber from Janes Radiant Heating, **** visited our home on 10/21/2024 to inspect our water heater and advise on necessary steps to improve the heating of our house's hydronic system. He provided 6 work items that must be done to maintain/fix our system, but did not wait for these to be done and adjusted the thermostat of the heater to "very hot" (it was only ever on an average "hot" setting before). The visit cost $318.92. 5 days later on 10/26/2024 the water heater sprung a leak and flooded our first floor, resulting in a homeowner insurance claim ($1000 deductible), losing all of our brand new flooring, cut drywall, and living in our house with an actively leaking water heater (contained with a periodically emptied bucket), no hot water, and no heating for two months. We contacted Janes Radiant immediately upon discovering the leak. The same plumber came back to our house but was rude and denied any fault in the matter. They offered to install a new pump (the component that was leaking) but when we asked for their insurance details to cover the water damage they cut contact with us and stopped responding. They did nothing at all to help fix or contain the leak that they caused. Last time that we checked with our insurance (********) about subrogation, we were told that Janes Radiant is not returning any phone calls and has not responded to any communication.We are looking to get back the $318.92 fee that we paid to Janes Radiant for the initial visit, and also to have our $1000 insurance deductible reimbursed. Having spoken to several plumbers now, many have told us that (A) changing the thermostat setting on an old system can cause leaks, and (B) plumbers are not allowed to touch the thermostat setting without a proper calibration due to scalding concerns. We believe that the Janes Radiant plumber was negligent in his job and that Janes Radiant is not owning up to their legal obligation to reimburse their customers for faulty work.

  Business Response

  Date: 01/07/2025

  Our records indicate that on October 15, 2024, we were contacted regarding a system that was not heating properly. Our technician visited the residence on October 21. Upon diagnosing the system, our technician found several issues with the aging system which included low operating temperatures for radiators, several stuck and/or bad valves within the system, restricting the water flow to the radiators and that regular preventative maintenance had obviously been neglected.

  Our technician advised the customer of the needed repairs. Several custom order parts would be required to do all the recommended work and the customer did not authorize us to proceed. We offered to turn up the water heaters temperature to help the radiators provide more heat until full repairs happened.Several days later, we were contacted and accused of causing the systems pump to leak due to the increased water temperature.

  This is what is called an open-loop system with a water tank providing the hot water for sinks and showers as well as the radiators. It is simply not capable of reaching temperatures high enough to cause any components within the system to fail from heat. Circulator pumps for hydronic systems are designed for water temperatures over 200 degrees Fahrenheit continuously and the system has an expansion tank to regulate pressure. The mix valve regulates temperature to the domestic side for scald prevention.

  We have repeatedly spoken with the customer and his insurance ********************** regarding the issue, and at no point have we stopped responding. During our return visit on October 28, concerned about an under-heated house in winter, we offered to install a new circulation pump with zero labor charge but the customer declined.

  Typically, plumbers are not knowledgeable enough in radiant mechanical systems to advise appropriately. Janes Radiant Heating clearly advised and offered services to the customer that were denied while we were on-site, and it is not our responsibility to reimburse this customer for any damage that may have occurred as a result of the customer declining to have the system repaired.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 01/21/2025

  Hello, 
  
  The response from the business is factually accurate as far as dates and that the technician identified multiple issues with our water heater system. The main issue is in this part of the response: "We offered to turn up the water heaters temperature to help the radiators provide more heat until full repairs happened". Indeed, the technician modified our system's operating temperature without performing necessary maintenance work to ensure that the system can handle the new operating condition. Several professional plumbers have since told us that this was a bad decision and they would not advise, and in fact are not allowed to, change the water temperature of the heater without proper servicing of the system and ensuring that the output water temperature is of a safe level for consumption around the house.
  
  While the contractor is saying that the water heater components should be able to handle the high temperature, this assumes a healthy system, and our setup was identified by the technician as evidently needing several repairs. Furthermore, our mixing valve was identified as broken (locked in-place and not able to turn), so the VERY HOT water setting caused scalding-level water temperature in the house. The expansion tank that is meant to regulate pressure was also identified by the technician as flooded and needing replacement.
  
  The business says "We have repeatedly spoken with the customer and his insurance ********************** regarding the issue, and at no point have we stopped responding." This is factually incorrect. Janes Radiant spoke with us on the day that we accused them of causing the leak, and broke contact with us personally since then. Our insurance has also reported that they have failed to cooperate with their subrogation department to recoup the costs of the water loss.
  
  The business says "we offered to install a new circulation pump with zero labor charge but the customer declined". They did offer such an install, but when they discovered that we were accusing them of the water loss the technician left our property without a goodbye and left the actively leaking water heater behind. He again actuated the thermostat to a higher temperature setting, and left several access panels of the heater negligently lying around. He also mentioned that a gas sensor was not working in the water heater, but left without repairing it.
  
  The business says "It is not our responsibility to reimburse this customer for any damage that may have occurred as a result of the customer declining to have the system repaired." Our argument here is that this is an incorrect statement. At no point did we disagree to do maintenance on our water heater. The reason we invited Janes Radiant to our house is because we were looking to understand what maintenance work is required. On the day that the technician turned up the thermostat to VERY HOT, it was agreed upon that the technician will send a quote for the maintenance and that we will review it for price comparison before proceeding with the work. The problem is that he made an operating condition change to our system without waiting for us to do any of the required maintenance. Because our system worked for 2 years up until that point, we strongly believe that it is this particular change that triggered the leak.
  
  Kind regards,
  
  ****** *******.