Reviews of Energy Co-Op of Vermont (Contractor)

travis young

Been trying to get pellets for 5 days now was told there forklift broke down, but could deliver. Well how the heck do you load them on your trucks with no forklift? Your customer service is absolutely screwed up, also being told the pellets are there and drive 45 minutes to find out they were not. I’m surprised this place still exists.

Silas Saxer

Switched from kerosene to heat pump, worked great so far thanks a lot! Professional installation and great customer service from Joe Cobb

Mebelkit mebel

Very friendly , nice service , good price .

Jeff Kuhn

We have been highly impressed with the level of service the Energy Co-op of Vermont has provided. Joe's knowledge of oil furnaces is outstanding. He is polite, friendly, courteous, highly skilled, timely, and leaves the area cleaner than when he arrived. There is never "it may be this or that". With Joe, he correctly diagnosis the problem at the start and then fixes the problem in the least amount of time possible. The entire team is very pleasant to work with. Amanda is very friendly and efficient. Peter responds to each member quickly and pleasantly. John provides excellent insight. The drivers are neat and clean and take pride in their work. There is never any oil on the ground or on the fill pipes. Plus, the newsletter is insightful and they are constantly keeping the members up to date on energy matters.

Kate Desrochers

We've worked with ECVT to deploy smart water heater thermostats throughout northern VT. The team has been great to work with, and we consistently hear wonderful things from our customers about the ECVT installers. Prompt, kind, and thorough, ECVT has my highest recommendation!

Bill Burrell

TECHNICAL BOILER SYSTEM INSTALLATION: This is a fuel delivery "co-op." It is probably very good at basic delivery of pre-packaged fuel pellets and other general heating fuels to its members. However, in October during an $8,650.00 installation of my Weil-McLain GV+4 stainless steel boiler and hot water tank installers made major, 100% preventable electrical, mechanical and technical errors that resulted in damage, break down and faulty operation. These included: mechanical damage (due to installer error) to main high voltage junction box; loud short circuit and dangerous fireball inside unit; replacement of main circuit board; emergency gas shut off by VT Gas personnel; dangerous start up system failure due to human errors; main hot water tank mixing valve installed upside down and backwards resulting in operation failure; an important safety electrical aquastat operation failure due to reverse polarity wiring by installers; unit unable to shut down resulting in constant and continual overheating; improper installation of exit flue gas vent (carbon monoxide, fuel by-products, etc.) safety banding clamp (inside my home!); low efficiency and continued problems and poor performance of boiler unit; and finally constant, short-cycle heating. Several smaller but no less significant mistakes, accidents and property damage also occurred and are documented. These include charred rafters; soldering drips covering brand new boiler unit, gauges and water tank; over flowing water containment buckets; a crooked, unsecured, poorly installed outdoor house vent; gouged wooden flooring from inside transport of 350 pound unit; and, a significant dent on cover indicating a possible drop or fall during transport. Two months later I did receive written acknowledgement of these errors from the general manager. I was offered a compensation proposal to resolve these issues and to repair property damage to my home. The proposed amount reflects only a small portion of the technical problems and does not come close to the long-term issues and damage caused as a result of these installer errors and work. The proposal neglects to address ALL issues in their entirety. For example the overall pattern and magnitude of these mistakes (all of which I have documented, pictured and videotaped) currently impact the operation, efficiency and resale value of the boiler unit (and therefore indirectly my house). These mistakes leave me with very little, if any, confidence in the long term performance and value of this expensive boiler system. In addition it is highly likely that the unit is over-sized for my small, 1000 sqft one level ranch home. The lead installer neglected to measure the linear footage, high insulation quality of my windows and home and the number of radiators in my home. During heating the unit short cycles on and off all day and night, up to one complete heating cycle every one minute during heating! This not only impacts wear and tear on boiler components, life span and efficiency but the constant firing up and cooling down could be enough to drive any homeowner crazy. The next size down Well-Mclein GV+3 is a likely better size for my home's single circulating radiative zone- albeit installed by a different independent contractor.

Faith King

My experience with the co-op has been terrible. I notified the co-op that I had run out of oil on Monday night before Thanksgiving and was told they "could not" deliver to my town until the day after Thanksgiving - Friday. This was the day before a storm was to hit, with low temperatures expected for the holiday. The gal answering the phone at the co-op told me it was my fault, because I had gone on "will call" - adding they would only assist will-call customers in my town when it fit into the already-established co-op delivery schedule. In other words, there was no meaningful emergency service to will-call customers in my town. I explained I had only gone on will call AFTER the co-op had made an unnecessary, large delivery to me late in the heating season that had jacked-up my balance to an alarming level. (The Co-op knew I had a woodstove as back-up and did not need $900 of oil after the worst of the cold weather had passed!) The customer service rep told me to run my furnace in the meantime by driving to the gas station and filling up 'something' (portable gas jugs?) with kerosene and then pouring it into my furnace. She also told me to "just press the reset button" on my furnace to get it started again. After calling multiple dealers, begging and almost crying, I found someone who agreed to squeeze in a cash delivery. Checking the Co-op's website after this, I confirmed that the Co-op indeed claimed - falsely - that they would "always" have someone in the vicinity of my town and said I could "rest assured" that they would be available to fill my tank on "any given day." This was clearly incorrect, misleading information! Now I am locked-into a contract with them that I may not be able to get out of.

Barry Smith

Energy Co-Op of Vermont is a great organization - we've been members for years now. They recently installed a new oil tank for us. They gave us a fair estimate, and very quickly completed the work in a day. Their technicians found a way to fit it in with some clever last-minute construction, since our "setup" in the basement had the old tank walled-off and was extremely difficult to work with. After we had some questions about the estimate, they gave us a discount, even after we realized the problem was on our end and let them know. Over the years, we've done very well with their early-buy program for the year's oil. We've also been very happy with their website, which shows us in detail how much oil we've used so that we can plan ahead. They're great people to work with, and I highly recommend them to anyone in their service area.

Skyler Genest

Drove 45 minutes to pick up pellets and no one was there. If you use them, I suggest calling and confirming SEVERAL times. Seems like the women in the office aren’t on the same page. Not great customer service.

Vieva Grenier

Our new heat pump hot water heater was installed in an efficient and professional manner and we are sure it will work just as well! Looking forward to our January installation of energy-saving program.

Judy Rowley

Installers did a great job and answered all my questions. They did not try to sell me extras that were unneeded like other companies. I would highly recommend this company for buying and installing ductless heat pumps.

Joan Jamieson

I finally found a way out of the annual stress of choosing the right company to deliver wood pellets. Calling around, comparing prices, figuring in the delivery costs... some years going with Company X, others Company Y, then wondering if maybe I should have chosen Company Z because maybe their pellets were better quality even if they cost a bit more. I discovered the Co-op and I'm sticking with them from now on! They're locally owned by us, their members, so NOT interested in price-gouging or profit-making, just motivated to provide great service and fair prices to members. It is great being part of an organization that's socially responsible and that has a long-term environmental vision. Co-op members care about ensuring that all members keep warm during the winter. For example, the Co-op offers budget plans for its heating oil and has a fund set up to provide fuel to low-income families. It offers energy audits and alternative sources of energy in addition to its heating oil (like the pellets that I buy). Their prices are competitive, but even if I pay a few cents more per bag of pellets, I know all profits are being used locally to help everyone in the Co-op. So instead of getting ticked off, feeling like I'm paying too much to heat my home, I actually feel good about the purchase. I was so enthusiastic, in fact, about the Co-op's mission that they invited me to join their board (comprised of Co-op members) - I was just elected at the 2012 annual meeting.

Brenda Barr

We get our wood pellets from Energy Co-Op and are extremely satisfied with the quality of the Vermont Wood Pellets. We tried something different this fall and weren't happy with those. I called Energy Co-Op (Lisa) and what wonderful customer service. She said they strive for customer satisfaction and replaced all five tons. Of course we had to pay the higher cost for the Vermont pellets but no new delivery charge. I strongly appreciate all they did for us.

Thomas Hughes

I've used the Co-op for energy efficiency projects and find their service techs top notch.

Rachel LaCroix

This company delivers when scheduled and does not,make extra visits when you do not request

David Rogers

Excellent service great employees

Carolyn Krug

Energy Co-op installed a new oil tank. With the new regulations coming in July and the age of our old tank, I won't have to worry about the tank failing. The service was professional and quick. Joe and his staff are great guys, who answer all of my questions.

Anne Linton Elston

We had a new furnace installed a month or two ago. Richie and his team did a great job, cleaned up afterwards and even did all the paperwork for us to get a refund from Vermont Gas. They were very professional and helpful. We'd definitely recommend them to anyone looking for quality service providers!

Laura Reichelt

Just installed a Mitsubishi mini split for A/C and it is great. And for a air conditioning unit you can not hear a sound. Joe Cobb is an excellent tec. along any one he has to help. If you are thinking of an A/C or heat pump unit I would only go with the Mitsubishi as it is so quiet. Energy Co-op did a great job and fast I would highly recommend them. Kurt

Jack Smith

Been keeping us warm for 12 years and just finished a great installation of our new furnace. Good service, great prices, and nice people.

Richard Faesy

Joe and team, thanks for a great installation of our new cold climate heat pump. I was pleased with you arriving promptly for our initial site assessment, suggestions and recommendations on placement of the indoor and outside units and estimate. Your crew showed up on the appointed day and did a very professional job installing the unit. Thanks for a great job!

Roger Kohn

These folks did a great job for us insulating our crawlspace.

John Suri

great service, notice before delivery, competitive prices, online acount and a treat for the dog. .

Brad Kennison

We worked with Joe Cobb and his team in the selection and installation of two cold climate heat pumps for our home. They are super efficient and quiet and met all of our expectations for cooling during the summer and heating this winter.

George Twigg

I've been beyond pleased with my experience as a Co-op customer. I switched to them from an out of state-based company because I wanted the superior customer service that a locally-based provider could offer. Their prices are competitive, I've never been let down by their service, and they offer a great variety of services beyond just selling fuel, such as discounts for energy efficiency work, information about renewable energy options, and a lot more. They care about their customers in terms of helping them address all of their energy needs and issues, not just selling more oil. Highly recommended!