Terrible experience. I purchased a new kitchen faucet from Lowe's (Apopka) and they sent AquaFi out to do the install this past Monday. The tech came in and was very polite. First thing he did after looking under the kitchen sink, which is part of an island in the middle of the kitchen, was try to upsell me a water softener. I tried to be polite and tell him we weren't interested and he said okay, but kept talking about it. Then he goes under the sink to start the install and I hear "Uh oh, your shut off valves just came off in my hands." He takes a picture for his records and offers to change the shut off valve handles for an additional $90. He then tells me he can't reach the spot to replace the valves because it's recessed behind pipes, further commenting he'll need to cut a 14 x 14 hole in the island wall to reach the pipe. If he doesn't do that, he can turn the water off at the main and install the new faucet. He tells me if they don't replace the shut off knobs, they will notate my account and if I have any leakage, they will not stand by their work and Lowe's will not honor the warranty. I remind him that he broke the parts and his company bear some responsibility. He calls he office manager who repeats almost word for word what the tech told me.
We told the tech to do the repair, but shut off the water main and not cut the wall. He reluctantly says okay, but our pool deck is being pressure washed at the same time and we tell him we need to reschedule. He agrees and says the office manager will call me later that day to schedule. No call.
Wednesday of the next week the office manager calls to reschedule. She tells me they're not liable and they'll notify Lowe's if I don't do the repair the way they want. I push back and remind her they broke the valve knobs and should be willing to work with me on the price. She says she'll check with the owner. Calls two hours later and says the owner looked at the picture, stating what she and the tech told me. I told her I'll get back with her about scheduling. My next call was to Lowe's.
I explained everything to Lowe's who had another one of their plumbing companies on the phone in less than 5 minutes while I was on hold. Lowe's was sending this other plumber out for a free second opinion and he would be at my house in 1 hour (5 pm). Great. He comes to the house, looks at the issue under the sink, and says it's a 5 minute fix. No cutting necessary. Can't do the repair, but will be back tomorrow morning.
The second opinion plumber shows up on time. Super nice guy. Gets under the sink and in 5 minutes, he's removed the valve fittings and fully replaced the valves...handles and all. Lowe's authorized the work and picked up the tab. No cutting, no weird angles, no games...just a plumber with experience. He had the faucet on in 10 minutes and then showed us how to care for it, as well as showed us some of the special features. This is how it should have been all along.
Called Lowe's later to rave and they also told me that my warranty would have been fine all along, regardless of how I decided to have the repair done! They stand by their contractor's work unconditionally.
Beware of AquaFi. I have absolutely no confidence they know what they're doing and question their integrity as a company. read more
