I needed a gasket to be replaced on my wood stove. I called and made an appointment for that. A day before the appointment, I received a call from their service department verifying the appointment time and that they were coming to CLEAN my wood stove. I corrected her and stated that I only need a gasket replaced. She said she wold make a note of that. Next day, Marco shows up and reiterates that he is there to clean the wood stove. Again, I corrected him and stated that I clean my own stove and that I just need the gaskets looked at and replace the ones that need it. He stated that hid notes were for a cleaning but he would just replace the gaskets that need it. He only needed to replace one, the damper gasket, which is about a 10" piece. He was there 20 minutes. He said to wait a few hours before using the damper so the glue can dry properly. Since it was only September and wouldn't need the drive for a couple months, I told him I'll wait a few days. Marco said the service call cost $299 because he was there for a cleaning and his time there was up to 1 1/2 hours. I reluctantly paid him $300 for a piece of gasket 10" long and that took him 20 minutes to install (I know I'm an idiot). A few days later, I go to check on the damper gasket and I can't move the damper at all. It was out of its bracket and I didn't know how to fix it and didn't think I should have to anyway. So I called the number cell number Marco had on his card and it went right to voicemail and the voicemail box was full. I called Higgins service and told them the situation. They made another appointment for Marco to come back about a week later. He comes back and takes about 5 minutes to put the damper back in the bracket. Then he says the charge will be $99 for having to come back. I told him there was no way I was paying again. He then says that the damper was working properly when he left the first time (calling me a liar) and that he will take the hit on it this time, but in the future, I will have to pay the charge. I won't be an idiot a second time. There will never be a next time!!! Update: Upon starting the stove for the first time this year, the damper was still not working correctly. Took me about 10 minutes to figure out that one side was not seated correctly. Unbelievable!!! read more

Knowledgeable, responsive, competent and friendly staff. Excellent selection of wood and pellet stoves, motor sports equipment, chainsaws and line trimmers, etc. excellent service dept., fair pricing. read more

Overpriced and poor service. There are much better options in Worcester. We checked out pellet stoves here and the salesman did not know his products and they are overpriced. read more

RJ is a tech that is more focused on blaming the customer for any mechanical issues than actually fixing the issue like he's supposed to. I recently had to go away for a work-related trip so my mother-in-law had to be here for the service appt. Long story short, the pellets weren't feeding into the burn pot. I had recently cleaned the stove after only a few bags so he wouldn't be able to blame anything on that at least. I come home from my trip and my mother-in-law wrote down his "diagnosis." He said the pellets were damp. Funny, bc the pellets were just delivered and immediately moved to safe and dry conditions like they always are (he didn't have an issue last year regarding where they were stored). He then told her that the stove was old and should be replaced and he could get us a deal. It wasn't old last year but now all of a sudden it is. He ended up charging my wife $371 and we're still left with a stove that doesn't feed (provides no heat). The invoice shows the stove lit by the way. He left right after he took the picture. I have every reason to wonder if he put the pellets in the pot by hand and lit it to simply show on the invoice that when he left the stove was functioning properly. When my wife got home a few hours later we were back to square one and down$371. Now I'm left getting the runaround by an older guy that answered the phone on 12/14/24, Kelly, and Cheryl has not answered my voicemail. Stay away from Higgins! read more

This is a great place to get a woodstove or pellets. The employees are very pleasant and easy to work with and they're very helpful. The only complaint is that you will never get anything that even remotely resembles a deal from this place, but you know that they'll stand behind the product. read more

Higgins caused damage to our home: Be warned! My husband and I hired Higgins to install a fireplace in our newly built home. Yesterday, we discovered a water leak. There was water visible in at least one light fixture, on our basement steps, and on our basement floor. Our builder investigated the source of the leak, and we discovered that the chimney chase cover was never installed. Higgins' installers went up on the roof, cut a hole to install the chase cover, and upon finding that it did not fit, they put a piece of plywood over the hole they had cut. The hole was never properly sealed for water -- the plywood effectively did nothing to keep water out -- and we ended up with water coming into our home. I am extremely upset at the service provided by Higgins Energy Alternatives. The installers clearly did an absolutely terrible job, potentially causing serious damage to our home, and there has been a complete lack of communication with regard to our project. We were told the installation of our fireplace was complete (and I was billed for the completed project), when it was clearly not finished. It's a good thing we have not tried to light a fire in the fireplace yet. I can't even imagine what might have happened to our home and potentially to ourselves if we had tried to light a fire in the fireplace that we were told was finished when it was not. Further, even though it sounds like Higgins has ordered a replacement chase cover, we cannot get an ETA for when it might be available so we can actually finish this project. In the meantime, our chimney is wrapped in a plastic tarp that our builder had to put in place to try and keep additional water out. My builder has indicated that he thinks the plastic on the chimney should keep out additional water. We are hoping that with no new water coming in, the drywall, etc. will dry out. However, we are going to have to keep an eye on the house for signs of lingering water damage, mold, etc. It is possible that our builder will have to cut a hole in our walls to further inspect/repair damage, though we plan to wait and watch the condition of the house for the time being before we go that route. It would be a major setback to have to cut holes in the walls of our brand-new house, especially as we work toward final inspections and obtaining our occupancy permit so we can move in. Throughout the project with Higgins, there have been continual delays and a complete lack of communication--even before the company caused us actual damage. read more

After having my appointment rescheduled, they final showed to repair my pellet stove. A part needed to be order, I called a few weeks later and asked if the part had been order, I was told they would call me back. More than two months later they still have not called back. They were more than willing to take my money for the repair that did not happen. If you like wasting money Higgins is the place to go. read more

I like to try and support local biz. My pellet stove purchase and install was smooth some years ago. Had it serviced once and was happy with that as well. I've been buying pellets from them for years, knowing they are more expensive than elsewhere . BUT this year they started charging 70 bucks for delivery AND they left the pellets in my yard rather than in my garage like instructed . Not sure I can justify using them for pellet delivery next season . read more

5 years ago I purchased a pellet stove from Higgins. I always bought my pellets (5-6 tons every spring) from Higgins and they clean my stove annually. They always did a great job with everything. I gave them a 5 star review at the time. Due to health and financial issues I wasn't able to schedule this years annual cleaning until October. I left a message every day for a week with Cheryl. I explained that my exhaust pipe had a birds next inside and I was afraid to light my stove. After a week of no response from Cheryl or anyone else at Higgins, I called again and asked if they were to busy to clean my stove to let me know so I could stop waiting for them and begin to look elsewhere. Nope, no response. I stopped ordering my bulk pellets from them last year. I explained that due to surgery (I'm a single woman in my 60's) I wasn't able to carry the bags from my garage to my porch. My SUV can hold a ton of pellets at a time, so would they help me load my car ( I would pay them extra) so I can drive right up to my porch and unload them myself. Nope! I guess they are doing so well they don't need or want the business and customers aren't important enough to return their phone calls. I have always supported small businesses. Higgins won't be one of them. Now I buy my pellets at Home Depot. They gladly load my SUV for free. Another business returned my call the next day. They cleaned my stove the following week. Darlene 11/19/19 read more

I purchased a small solar system from Higgins for my home in Holden, MA. It went live 2 months ago. I received stellar service all the way through the process and was impressed with their installer (subcontractor) as well as their follow through on commitments made and questions I had following the completion. It was all in all pretty fast and efficient. I would absolutely work with Higgins again in the future. read more

Higgins is a very frustrating business to deal with. I have bought two pellet stoves from them. Any time I have needed my stove fixed for some reason it takes days or usually over a week to get the stove fixed. Not good in the middle of winter when you are dependent on the stove to keep warm. To get routine service on the stove takes weeks. Schedule an appointment they will tell you one time and then day before appointment you are notified it has to be done at a different hour. Higgins knows they are the only business in the area that deals with pellet stoves so you are at their mercy. They could remedy this if they had more people working for them but they won't. Not sure why. There is clearly a need. read more

I just bought my first pellet stove, a free-standing Harman Accentra. I went to Higgins and two other dealers for information about stoves. Higgins excelled in their customer service! When I entered the building, one of their salesman, Jerry, asked to help. He walked me through the pros & cons of the different stoves, explaining which ones would be appropriate for my situation. He took his time to show me exactly how the pellet stove functioned inside & out, how to clean & maintain it, and even came up with a price quote, all without any pressure to buy! The two other dealers I visited didn't seem to want to spend the time with someone that they weren't positive was ready to buy on the spot. So.......I went with Higgins. Jerry was there again to answer any questions. I bought the stove and it arrived & was installed within a month. The technicians who installed the stove were very professional. They avoided any damage to my home, scratching floors, etc. They had the stove installed and & running in two hours. I am so happy with this stove and the service I received at Higgins. I can't wait to use this stove this coming winter! read more

I dealt with two sales guys here, Tim and Sam. Sam seemed really nice, like he was trying to help you get a good deal. Tim seemed like a snoot, and I noticed him twice either not being aware of in-store promotions (and quoting prices that were higher than what they advertise) or not caring about getting me the best deal. All in all they had good prices (better than Stove Keepers in NH). They are kind of out of the way. My stove hasn't been installed yet so I'll write a follow up review once it gets installed. read more

Went there today for a few items and to schedule a service appointment for my pellet stove. I was told, "we'll only service it if you bought it from us." Well, I didn't purchase the pellet stove from Higgins, and I can assure you I will not spend a dime at Higgins, EVER!! Clearly they have very poor customer service, and have no interest in new business. read more