We purchased a set of gas logs and a remote control starter system from Bill's Fireplace Center on October 10, 2019. I initially called the store on October 9, 2019 to get a quote and had to leave a message. Bill, the owner, called me back and quoted $695 for the gas logs and $800 for the remote starter system. He said that the price also included inspecting and cleaning out our fireplace and fixing any cracks in the brick. He told me to look on realfyre.com to choose the logs we wanted. He wanted to come by and take a look at our fireplace, so we set up for him to come by on October 10, 2019, which he did. He determined we needed a 30" set of logs. We had already selected the logs we wanted and he quoted me a total of $1495 plus $120 tax = $1615.00. I wrote him a check that day so he would order the system. Check #7201. He had forgotten his receipt book, so he handwrote me a receipt on a blank piece of paper, which I have. He said it would take 7-10 days for the system to come in. I didn't hear anything from him, so I called him back to follow up on October 25, 2019. He said the system was there, so he set up a time to come by and install the same day. He did the installation on October 25, 2019. We started having issues almost immediately. The remote starter would not light easily, as he had said it would when he was trying to sell it. We also started hearing a very loud whoosing sound, like wind or gas rushing quickly through it. It was so loud you couldn't enjoy being in the room. This noise was constant because the pilot stayed lit even when the logs weren't burning. We had to completely shut off the gas valve to get the noise to stop. My husband called RealFyre and spoke to a technician and also called Bill about it on October 29, 2019. He was told how to make an adjustment to help control the noise. He initially wanted Bill to come take a look at it and he was told that it was their busy season and Bill couldn't get by right now. So he asked Bill before he adjusted it if the warranty would be voided if he did anything to it and was told no. So my husband made the adjustments as instructed. It helped a little at first, but did not stop the issue. The remote system continued to become harder and harder to light, so we ended up having to turn on the fireplace using our built-in gas valve on the wall. We decided that we wanted to return the faulty remote starter system, so we called Bill and asked him to come remove it. He got angry and said he has been selling this for 40 years and has never had a problem with them. I told him that wasn't true because he himself told me of numerous issues when he was installing them. Things we should avoid doing because he had had other people complain about them. I told him we just wanted to return it. We were not happy with the remote starter system at all. I said we are happy with the logs, just not the remote system. We waited a few days and he hadn't come or called. My husband called him on November 18, 2019 and asked him to come pick it up. He got very irate and said he would come get the whole entire system, logs and all. My husband said "No, we want to keep the logs." He and his grandson came to pick them up the same day. He dealt directly with my husband. He was very rude from the beginning. He continued to insist that in all his 40 years in business that we are the only people he has ever had a problem with. He removed the remote starter system and replaced the burner. When he was looking at it, he told my husband that he could see the problem. He said it was defective. Damaged at the factory. He said he would send us a refund check and left. We never received a refund check. I waited and waited and finally called him on December 10, 2019 and had to leave a message. No call back. I called again on December 11, 2019 and left another message. I called a 3rd time on December 13, 2019 and left yet another message. He finally called me back. I asked for our $800 refund, which is what he originally quoted me as the cost for the remote starter system. He said he wasn't giving us $800. He said he was refunding us only $300. When I got upset and objected, he tried every excuse to dissuade me....my husband messed with it, he cleaned out our fireplace (which was literally 5 minutes of sucking up some ashes with a ShopVac), said that isn't what he quoted, said I should've looked at the refund policy posted in his store that he only gives store credit, etc. I told him I was never in his store and that he came directly to our home. The conversation escalated and he told me he was done. I told him I can't believe this is how he does business and that we chose him because we thought he was reputable. I told him that I would file a small claims suit if he didn't refund me the $800 he quoted. He said he was mailing us a check for $300 only and hung up. That was weeks ago. To date, no refund has been received. read more
