Ernie’s Pool & Spa Supply

STAY CLEAR OF THIS COMPANY… THEY WILL RIP YOU OFF!
Ernie’s has been servicing my pool for several months. Things were going well until July 2015. We asked them to look into a problem we were having with the hot tub not heating up. I received a call to schedule the appointment and told the technician to please let me know what the problem was before doing any work. I did not hear back from them.
A few weeks later, I receive a bill in the mail for $ 250.08 saying they replaced the temperature sensor on the heater. They charged me $ 142.60 for the part and $ 95 for the labor. They never called me to tell me what they found the problem to be and they did the work without my approval. I did some research on the part they replaced and found that I could have ordered the same part through
for $ 20.10. Not to mention that this part basically plugs into the equipment and probably took him less than 15 minutes to replace it, but I was charged $ 95 in labor.
I called and spoke to Lynn first and explained to her that I was not even notified about the work that was done and that I could get the part for $ 20 through Amazon. She told me that the technician usually charges $ 125 for labor, but I had to speak to the technician who did the work. Seriously, $ 125 in labor for a part that just plugs into the equipment? So I called the technician and explained the situation to him. I asked him why I was not notified prior to him doing the work. He did not have an answer for me. He told me to fax him a printout from Amazon showing the price and he would get back to me. I sent the fax and did not hear back.
Today I received a voice mail from Lynn telling me she was going to run the charge for the work on my credit card and was going to charge me $ 40 for the part and $ 95 for the labor. I called her back and told her that I was willing to pay $ 20 for the part, the price I could get it for, but I was not going to pay $ 40, especially because the work was done without my permission. I explained to her that had I been told about the work prior to the repair, I would have priced the part out, purchased it myself and had them do the work, or being that the part just plugs into the equipment, my husband could have done it himself. Lynn told me that they just can’t get the part online because it just would not be right for them to do that and that she thought she was doing me a favor by completing the work and just getting it done. She told me that she was not going to go any lower for the part, so either I pay the $ 40 for the part or she was going to write off the repair in full and cancel my service. Seriously?
Ernie’s is in the wrong and she’s going to cancel my service because I was still willing to pay them, just not $ 40 because the part could be purchased for $ 20. Are you kidding me? After trying to get her to understand that I didn’t have to pay for the repair at all under the circumstances, but I was going to pay anyway, her only comeback was «we have to make money, this is a business».
Right, you make money by ripping your customers off and charging them 7X more than the actual cost of the part and $ 95 in labor for a part that costs maybe 10 minutes to replace. I pay them $ 150 a month for service. And she’s going to cancel my service over $ 20. After about 20 minutes of back and forth with her, I finally told her to go ahead and remove the charge and cancel my service. I don’t need to do business with a company who prides themselves in ripping their customers off. I wish them the best of luck, but I will never use them, buy anything from them, or recommend them to anyone ever again.
There are so many pool service companies in the Bay Area, who needs Ernie’s anyway. And it seems from the reviews here, I am not the only one who feels this way. I wish I could give them no stars,

Great service and installation on our pool filter heater and pumps thanks for also giving us a great deal! John and Kristina

Jeff and Mauricio came on several different days to make some major repairs (pool sweep pump replacement and gas heater bypass). Lynne in the office is great. Here’s the summary:
1. Competent — got the job done correctly
2. Honest — didn’t try to up-​sell a lot of unnecessary stuff
3. Pleasant — nice people to work with
4. Professional — timely and left the worksite clean and did what they said they would do

Canceling pool service. They changed technicians. Moron leaves the driveway gate standing wide open while he goes behind house to pool even after seeing the dogs. Thank god i happened to be looking out the window. I talked to him directly and called his manager. Fast forward two weeks, same guy comes back with a trainee. sees me on the treadmill in the garage in the back of the house… sends trainee to the truck and what does he do? he leaves the driveway gate wide open again after seeing the dogs! I could see it from where I was. What moron service tech doesnt know to close gates when going inside peoples fences who have dogs? I came unleashed on both of them and the store. Canceling service because they just are not responsible people.

I bought a pump from Ernies last summer to power my skimmer. Last Friday I noticed that it was leaking and called Ernies to tell them about the problem. The lady on the phone looked my name up and said that she could have the technicians on on Monday. The two technicians came out and fixed the leak. They also tested the water in the pool (no charge) and gave me some advice. I’d give Ernies five stars if the product they originally sold me didn’t leak but their customer service was excellent.

RUN AWAY FROM THIS SERVICE COMPANY.
Purchased Pentair filter and paid for them to replumb Intelliflo pump/​heat, filter system and new Suntouch controller (very confusing time clock). Ernie’s (pool professionals NOT!) installed pump incorrectly per manufacturer’s specs and system leaked from day one. Owner (Jeff) came out twice couldn’t fix leak (even tried using silicon sealant instead of teflon sealant) twice but still didn’t work. His customer service attitude and lack of knowledge with these Pentair products convinced me NEVER USED THEM AGAIN.