Review freshly posted, by me, of Leslie’s Swimming Pool Service, on Angie’s List:
My pool pump stopped working about a week ago. It’s one of the old single-cycle pumps, and I’ve expected it to go out sooner or later, but this could NOT have happened at a worse time: one unexpected expense after another, starting in early January, has drained my emergency savings and then some.
I tried to reach my go-to service, Swimming Pool Service and Repair, but when I called the number I have — and that’s still posted on the Web — I got a “no longer in service” message. So fell back on Leslie’s.
On Saturday they sent a guy over. He took one look at the thing, listened to the “hummmmm” it made when power was turned on, and announced I needed to buy a new pump…to the tune of $1500!!!!!
This is $1500 I don’t happen to have. I explained that I’m trying to live on Social Security and that I’ve had a series of burdensome unexpected expenses. I asked if he was sure he couldn’t fix it. He said no, it couldn’t be fixed. I said I’d seen a pump like it at Leslie’s website for $625, so why can’t I have that? He said our lovely legislators had passed a law stating that only the new power-saving multicycle pumps can be installed. That sounded a little fishy — you can say many things about Arizona’s elected representatives, but “environmentally sensitive” is not one of them.
As it developed, the soonest the new pump would be in was today, Tuesday, but this particular service dude was going to be off work today. So, he said, they’d send another guy.
Thank heaven for small favors!
This morning, a young man named Chris shows up.
In the course of conversation, I happen to mention that $1500 is a hit I can’t afford. He says, “Well, do you mean you don’t want the pump?” I say, “Well, I’ve gotta keep the pool running — it would cost more than fifteen hundred bucks to fill it in.” He says, “I think all it needs is a capacitor.”
Say what?
I say, the guy who was here last week said it couldn’t be fixed. He says, I’m sure I can fix it. I say, will you get in trouble? He says his boss will be mad. I say, I don’t want you to get canned. He says, no problem. He goes off to acquire the part.
Not counting the junket to get the part, it took Chris all of about 10 minutes to replace the thing and get the pump running happily. Total cost: $141.97.
The part itself cost $32.29. Leslie’s gouged me $85 for the “service call” (what d’you bet Chris never sees much of that?) and $22 for the “trip charge”: that would be $107 just to drive over to my house.
Chris obviously is worth a great deal more than that, since an honest man seems to be hard to come by these days.
I’m hugely relieved to save $1400 that was needed to cover food bills. But on the other hand, I’m not pleased that at the outset Leslie’s sent a guy who obviously tried to cheat me. I don’t think I would do business with Leslie’s again: evidently their business model is such that their workers are treated in a way that tempts them to rip off customers. Next time I’ll come back to Angie’s List and look for some other provider.
Does that take the cake, or does that take the cake?
Glad you lucked out with the second guy from Leslies!
FL passed legislation requiring the more energy efficient pumps (ours went just before the legislation went into effect, so we still have the single speed), but those prices seem atrocious! 3 or 4 years ago we got a 1.5HP pump for ~$250 or so. Quotes for an equivalent variable speed pump at the time were in the $700-$800 range. Have they really doubled in price in just a few years?
The prices I saw were posted (in some cases as “SALE!” prices) at the Leslie’s website, and also at sites of a couple of other retailers. A 1 hp single-speed pump that looks very much like the one on my pool was $625.
Let me add to that: There’s a 1 HP pump for $225, but it doesn’t appear to be as good quality. One pump that looks very similar is $467, and another is $659.
At Amazon, prices for similar or identical pumps range upward of $300…but of course, unless you’re pretty handy, you’d have to hire someone to install the thing.
So no, they haven’t doubled in price, apparently. It looks like the pump on my pool was probably a mid- to high-range piece of equipment when it was new; replacing it would cost around $600, give or take…except that you CAN’T replace it. The variable speed pumps are a lot more expensive.
Wow, I can’t even believe anybody would have the gall to rip you off by that much, or at least try to. That’s a lot of money; I am glad you got a second opinion and that you got it fixed for so much cheaper. That is so shady.
The only reason this guy showed up is that the original service dude was off work today. Otherwise, I would have gone along with it like a good little sheeple. The pump was probably old when I moved in here, and I’ve lived in the house for 10 years…so it’s reasonable to think it’s about time for it to crap out.
One wonders whether Chris is open to a little side job now and then? Might be worthwhile to get an email address or cell phone number 🙂
I asked. He said not. Alas.
That does take the cake! It reminds me of my “dilemma” with my electrician who wants to charge me $1550 to install 7 electric baseboard heaters with stats ….To be clear I will purchase the stats and heaters…he will provide the wire AND labor. I’m thinking the job will take a day and the wire will run about $100. $1450 for a days work….good work if you can get it! Will be getting additional quotes this week. The sad thing is I’ve used this gentleman for over 30 years and have always paid him promptly… I hope the pump holds up….
Heh heh… Sounds like it’s $1450 for about a month’s work, if he’s annoying his customers that much. Have you asked him why it’s so high? Maybe there’s a reason. Or maybe he doesn’t want to do the job and so is quoting a ridiculous price so he doesn’t have to say to your face that he just doesn’t want to do it.
There’s a chance the pump may hang in there, at least for awhile. I mean, it’s not THAT complicated, as pieces of equipment go. A site like http://www.poolpartsonline.com/s-5-pump-parts.aspx makes it appear that most or all of the parts are available, assuming the company is still in business. Probably some parts aren’t worth replacing or can no longer be had…but if none of those goes very soon, it could in theory go along for quite some time.
I made the interesting discovery that a pool pump does NOT have to run anywhere near as long as alleged experts claim, especially in the absence of a nearby tree dumping debris into the water. My pool does just fine with the pump running three or four hours a day, unless we have a bad dust storm. Using it gently may prolong its life.
Hm. That gives me a thought: I wonder if my electrician can install a pool pump. It doesn’t look like a very difficult job. So if you’re allowed to install yur OWN single-cycle pump that you buy, say, off the Internet and it’s only illegal for a pool company to put it in, maybe you could hire some other craftsman to get the thing installed. Especially since my guy is an old friend and has been known to do a number of chores above and beyond the call of duty.
You just might want to ask your electrician if he’d be interested. I plan on asking my Dentist if he would be interested in doing some electrical work on my heater install…LOL…his bid would probably come in cheaper…
LOL!! Brilliant idea!
We could go on Saturday Night Live together.
$1500 for a pool pump?!? Glad you didn’t get ripped off after all. I mean, I have no flippin’ idea how much a pool pump costs, but I know that’s ridiculous!
When I get an insanely expensive estimate (no matter what the service — car repair, tree removal, doesn’t matter) I ALWAYS request time to “think about it” and then call another provider of the same service. Second opinions are not just for medical procedures. And lucking out with an honest service person from the same provider is pretty uncommon.
“Trust in God but tie your camel to a tree”
Ain’t that the truth!
Leslie’s actually was my fall-back when the much preferred service — and one experience has shown in the past to always be honest — seemed to have disappeared from the face of the earth. Although the woods are full of pool guys around here (about every second house has a pool), it’s not easy to find a good one.
Maybe you should have gotten Chris’s number. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind a little freelance. Or just make sure you specifically request him in the future.
Also, I hope you emailed Leslie’s to let them know that one employee wanted to charge $1,500. Then you say that you got a second opinion (don’t have to say it was one of their guys) and it was under $150.
Glad you’ll have the money to eat this month.
I’m afraid I tattled publicly on Angie’s List.
Just to put the frosting on the cupcake, the filter now needs to be cleaned. That’s a $150 job.
Back to Angie’s List: found the name of a local company (BUY LOCAL!). He’ll be over on Wednesday and will do the job for $90.