- Approximate cost of services:
- $150.00
- Company Response
Mr. Ainsworth’s post unfortunately seems to be a case of shooting the messenger: Our technician, Julio, attended Mr. Ainsworth’s home to investigate why a section of the home was not heating well. Upon arrival he took great care to double up his floor protection boot covers specifically because of the intense weather we have experienced over the holidays. Once in the basement, Julio found the wall-hung boiler was in a finished bathroom, and literally had a wall built around the middle of the unit, rendering the system piping inaccessible. The renovation work was clearly done after the boiler had been installed. This also meant the installation was now no longer to code according to the manufacturer’s specifications.
Julio explained there was nothing he could do to the system because of these circumstances (the wall around the face of the boiler will need to be cut away to achieve proper clearances and access to piping). He recommended having a system consultant examine what could be done to bring the system to code – which will likely mean replacing the boiler and rethinking the whole layout of the bathroom. Mr. Ainsworth was aware of this circumstance, yet still seemed to take this suggestion as an attempt to create more work for Belyea rather than solving the immediate issue he wanted solved. As it stands, no licensed company can work on this system without first bringing it up to code, or replacing it entirely.
This is an important and useful example for homeowners finishing or planning to finish their basements. Often inexperienced general and mechanical contractors will simply slap something together knowing they will not be the ones solving any of the future issues that will inevitably arise. In this case, the solution will likely be extremely invasive, and cost Mr. Ainsworth thousands of dollars more than it should, whomever he chooses to unravel this unnecessarily complex installation.