If you don’t like long reviews, I will sum it up in two sentences. I am so happy we chose this company to give our business to. They did an outstanding job from beginning to end.
We recently replaced our electric water heater with a gas one. It still worked fine but we didn’t want to be in the same situation we had been in 10 years ago when we were told by a different company that it would take 5 days to get a gas one installed. A separate gas line would be needed and the water heater would either have to be moved to vent out the chimney (an option that was not appealing to us because that was a usable area in our basement) or it could remain were it was and be power vented with a big vent running across the ceiling to the chimney. The estimate was ridiculous and with those options given, and the fact that we couldn’t wait 5 days for hot water, we went with an electric one again which of course means higher energy bills. Recently, I saw a coupon for Blau and made an appointment for an estimate. The gentleman who quoted the job did not tell us at the time, but we found out later, was the owner. He actually went through every option possible for us, ranging from a free solution of keeping the electric water heater we have and using energy saving ideas we were unaware of, to changing the water heater to gas, leaving it in the area that it is in right now (out of our way) and power venting it along the wall to an adjacent wall. He also gave us all the options in between. We have a fully furnished basement and our water heater is not located by a drain, so a water heater was recommended that has a safety feature to turn off in the event of a leak or malfunction, and it was suggested that we could get a smaller water heater as gas heats water more quickly than electric. After researching the subject of water heaters leaking and bursting, we realized how important it is in our situation to have that feature, we were sold on that and we took the advice of a smaller water heater as well. Both good choices. Because of poor workmanship we received from other companies in the past, my husband wanted to be there during the installation. It was not necessary. Dave, the plumber, was outstanding. He showed my husband what was being done throughout the project, and when he completed the job, he gave us both a thorough explanation and time to ask any questions. The installment went smoothly with the exception of an issue with the electrician’s part of the job. The electrician was contracted by Blau and is a well-known company. After we contacted Blau with our concern, they contacted the electrician themselves and followed up with us until the problem was resolved to our satisfaction. It was not cheap to convert the electric water heater to gas, but I can see the savings on the electric bill already. There was a lot of work that needed to be done and it was the done to our satisfaction and professionally…with no hassle. I feel the owner was trying to help us make the best decision for our situation, and I was surprised that he would suggest ideas that would not benefit him. We were treated respectfully and the company stood behind its work to made sure they had satisfied customers.