Please be aware that this business has changed hands and is no longer affiliated with the previous owner.
This will document the problems we continue to have with the hot water heater and recirculation kit that were installed by Trademark Mechanical on September 8, 2020.
We asked for a bid for a tankless hot water heater for our residence and an on-demand heater to be installed at our kitchen sink. The salesman showed us our options for a tankless water heater, then talked us into installing a recirculation kit to the kitchen sink instead, saying it was a cheaper and better way to accomplish getting the water hot faster.
After both were installed, the hot water heater worked as we expected. However the recirculation system did not. The water at the kitchen sink was now always hot. This occurred whether we used the hot or cold water. To get the water cold, we had to run the cold water at the sink for a long time. We called Trademark to complain and they sent a technician out. When the technician arrived, we described the problem we were having. He said that was how a recirculation kit worked. We said we were not happy with that and he suggested unhooking the recirculation kit. We decided to do that, but we were not happy, as we'd paid for the recirculation kit and now had no demand hot water at the kitchen sink.
Shortly after his visit, we started having problems with the hot water heater. When we turned on the faucet in the shower, it would take a while for the water to get hot. We would then get in the shower and the water would suddenly get cold again. If you continued to run the water, it would gradually get hot and then stay hot. We again called Trademark to complain that now the hot water heater was not working properly. They sent a technician out. He said that when they turned the recirculation kit off, they forgot to change one setting on the hot water heater and that was causing the problem. He changed the setting and left. The problem with the "cold water sandwich" continued.
We complained to Trademark again about the hot water heater. Another technician came out. He told us that since it ran alright at first after servicing, it probably needed to be flushed more often. He serviced the hot water heater at that visit. Shortly after, the "cold water sandwich" returned. On top of that, we now have a loud noise that we hear periodically throughout the day and night, even when the hot water isn't running.
We complained to Trademark again about the hot water heater. Another technician came out. He told us that we needed a water softener for the hot water heater to run correctly. The quote for the water softener was ridiculous and we were very upset that no one previously had told us we needed a water softener for the water heater to work properly.
My husband bought a flush kit and flushed the water heater himself.
Approximately six months later, on December 9, 2024, a technician came to service the furnace and the hot water heater. We told him about the issues we had with both the hot water heater and the recirculation system since the beginning. He witnessed the "cold water sandwich". He checked everything on the water heater and said everything was working properly. He wondered if the loud noise we hear is the internal recirculation that the system does since the external circulation was disabled. He then checked with a plumber at Trademark and told us that the plumber said the recirculation kit was installed incorrectly. The plumber said it should have been installed with a dedicated return line under the house, instead of using the cold water as a return. One option was installing the dedicated return and reactivating the recirculation system might solve the problem with the hot water heater. He quoted us a price of $1,600. Another option was to reinstall the recirculation system as it was originally installed, but to fix the "timing" of the recirc so that it happened less frequently, which should minimize any hot water being drained into the cold water line. There would also be a charge for this. He also found that the elevation setting on the hot water heater had NEVER been set. He set it to the correct setting while he was here and suggested we try that for a couple of days, as it might make a difference.
Trademark now refuses to fix this problem, either by changing the timing on the recirculation system or by installing a dedicated line, without us paying for it. According to them, they bought the name, but are not under any obligation to warranty the service. We will be taking our business to a competitor. read more