W & J Heating Ltd

Heard bird in furnace chimney in morning, called and a technician was sent out by noon. Was almost time for furnace and humidifier inspection so was able to have that completed at the same time. Bird got out himself just before Gil got here!

W & J replaced my furnace and installed central air conditioning, a new humidifier, and thermostat. First Jordan asked me questions, like how long we were planning to stay in the home, explaining that he didn't want to sell me an expensive system unless we were going to benefit from the long term efficiency. After a 15 minute chat, he actually down sold me on the central air and humidifier. What Jordan did was sold us the right system for us at a great price. His crew arrived on time and not only did a clean install, but replaced the hotwater tank exhaust because it was not done right, no charge. I recommend W & J to my family and friends because:
1. They're honest and trustworthy
2. They're priced fair and do excellent work
3. They're local to Calgary. (one place i called for a quote had a call center in California. Companies that give their business to other countries don't get mine.)

The W&J Technician showed up on time at 9:00 AM and was very neat and thorough in all his work. He came up with an idea to avoid a second hole for the electrical wire going outside and fished it over to go out same hole as other lines. He ran into some real “challenges” with getting the controls systems working and stuck with it until about 9:30 PM that night to ensure he had the problems licked and the system was working properly. He demonstrated a strong commitment to quality work and getting the job done right.

Furnace died middle of the night -25, phoned my usual furnace repair A1 Chesney who said first available appointment was a month from now. W&J came out within hours and had furnace up and running immediately at a reasonable price. They were on time and courteous, definitely recommend and will use again. Thanks for the great service!

If you are thinking about hiring this company you should read my review closely.

We have hired W&J on two separate occasions to install furnaces for legal secondary suites. W&J has done nothing but cause my company money and time. Below are some of the highlights of our working relationship with W&J.

- lack of knowledge or laziness OR BOTH during installation
- Terrible communication when coordinating times to show up and do work (this is a challenge when notice has to be given to tenants)
- Telling us what we want to hear on the phone and then not following up.
- Not following basic mechanical code and blaming the inspector for not catching the mistakes on rough in inspection but finding it on final inspection (Either way they did not follow basic building/mechanical codes)
- hanging up on a building inspector during an inspection they didn't show up to
- Not following basic instructions clearly communicated in writing
- Generally not caring about customer service or the job

We tried really hard to make the relationship with W&J work but it wasn't until we started working with other mechanical contractors we realized how poor they are.

It is hard to put a numerical figure on how much money they cost our company in mistakes and time because it is still an ongoing issue. It will definitely exceed the $5000 mark after we fix their mistakes and factor in the lost time during renovations. This is a big number considering they only did two furnaces for us. If something isn't done right the first time then it costs a lot of money to fix.

I think when it comes to installing furnaces for a secondary suite W&J is in over their head. Why else can they not pass an inspection? Why else do I have to hire other companies to come in and fix their work? If they are aware of the requirements for a second furnace in a secondary suite then why do they cut corners and do the installations incorrectly? We have since used other contractors that pass inspections with flying colors, so it CAN be done.

Some stuff we have learned.....
Building inspections and a permitting systems are a great thing for renovations. They will expose the weak contractors that don't know what they are doing. It is also great to have websites like HomeStars where we can share our experiences.

Learn from our mistakes and ask for copies of the rough-in and final inspections. DON NOT PAY your contractors until the inspections pass. Make sure this is in your contract with them before engaging in work.

This is nothing personal against W&J, as the president of my company I take full responsibility for not firing them earlier. I have heard similar stories from other property owners using them.

I hope with this review is helpful. My goal is for others to save time and money and learn from our mistakes.

great clean work; on time; professional staff. follow ups comparable price. good management to deal with; honest and accept any recalls without any problems. work done on a timely fashion; have recommended them to my friends and they have been very satisfied!

After diagnosing a non-working furnace, two parts were suggested to be the problem. Upon replacement of one part, the furnace was working again and the second part was not needed. Honesty at its best!

These guys are very professional. Were quick fair and honest. Recommended them to my mom and she was happy as well. We had a/c and furnace replaced in house and also a furnace replace in garage.

This was the simple install and was done in a speedy fashion. Neat, they cleaned up after themselves and the permit approved with no problem. Very happy with the service. They came when they said they would and I could not be happier with this service.

The service rep was very professional the only issue I had was the cost of the ignitor the part sells between 17 to 34 dollars, I do realize everyone need to make a profit so I'm was OK with 170 service call but selling this item at an inflated cost of 150 dollars is a little extreme,