Kinetico water softner complaint

ComplaintsHome & GardenKinetico water softner

Complaint

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Jean S
Country: United States
Hello, I had a water softner rep. come to my home and sell me a water softner with a 3 month trial, if I was not satisfied they would take the unit back and I would owe nothing. The cost of the unit was $ 2,900.00 I told them I would pay it in full at the end of the 3 months if it really made my clothes softer, use less laundry soap, shampoo etc. and my dishes and silverware would not have any more spots, not to mention I would get a free year's supply of cleaning and soap products.

After a few weeks I noticed the same spots, didn't use any less soap etc. and my family hated the "slimy" feeling we had when we took showers. I called them and requested for the unit to be removed as I never rec'd the free products, and it did not perform as I was told.

I did pay them $900.00 in full for the faucet and the purifier under my sink. I never rec'd phone calls back, I wrote them letters to remove it and I was not going to pay for it. A man from their company came out and added more salt to the unit (even though they said it would last 4 months, this was only a month later) and when I came home from work I found the hose running all over my yard!! I lost thousands of gallons of water and have the bill to prove it. I called them explaining why he came out and what happened with the hose, again they never called me back.

I continued sending letters, I had an Attorney write them as well as the better business beauro and they continue to have a collection company call me as they placed me in a finance company to pay for the unit at a high interest rate without my knowledge!! Now it went on my credit report saying I owe them over $ 3,400.00!!

The unit is still sitting there, we never used it as it was defective since the water hose just lays there and when it runs it drains the water out from my house since it is hooked into the main water valve not to mention even if it didn't drain the water it still did not do what he said it would do. I showed them in good faith by sending them the $900.00 since the water from the sink filter they installed actually did make a difference by paying for that.

This company is really a scam and I still am trying to get this removed
from my credit report as well as all the collection calls I receive daily, I just want them to take this unit back and be done with it. This was installed in May or June of 2006.

Comments

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  • 0
    Norm
    Where are you located? There are lots of Kinetico dealers.
  • 0
    Walter Andrews
    My neighbor had a similar situation with kinnetico. I used Culligan and their service is very personable, and my systemm really works. i believe each kinnetico is a franchise, have you contacted the home office? Good Luck.
  • 0
    M. Cruse, Corona, Calif
    Thanks for your information. They came to my house and I told them I had to check consumer satisfaction reports before I would purchase one of their units. I really thank you for this information. You are not the first to complain about this company. I've read that they are over charging for the system and many people are having trouble with pipes busting and water all over their yard...and especially about the poor service. Contact your local BBB. this may help.
  • 0
    R.J. Van Dussen; Canyon Lake,TX
    | 1 reply
    Sounds to me like you have a dealer problem not an equipment problem. Kinetico systems are notorious for their simplicity and stingy salt and  water use on recharge. I personally installed our system and it has performed flawlessly for the last three years. Dealer support has been impeccable.
    • 0
      benjammin replies to R.J. Van Dussen; Canyon Lake,TX
      first of all if you had purchased a new unit it should have been installed by the dealer not you. Kinetico corp. wants all units to be installed and not sold in the box.  This keeps the price up high and keeps dealers from selling into other area.  Also some dealers will not service if they didn't sell it.  They are not any simpilier than any other unit.  I have sold them both for years and that is the way they are preceived.  It isn't any more complicated to own anything else.  Go ahead and pay way too much for a unit from them.  It is set up to screw you.  I know,  I was a dealer.  I am too honest for them!!!!!!!!!!!!!
  • 0
    Houston
    | 6 replies
    It sounds like the old Rainsoft scam. You are usually better with Culligan or going to a retailer like Lowes or Home Depot.
    • 0
      Eric replies to Houston
      | 2 replies
      Electric unite are absolutely NOT the way to go.  I've sold and serviced these units for years and they're the most reliable softener on the market!  They use very little water to recharge because the drain and rinse cycles utilize soft water instead of hard water.  The salt consumption is much less then an electric unit as well.  I'd have looked for a more reliable dealer if I were you.  The company's customer service department is very helpful as well.
      • 0
        benjammin replies to Eric
        | 1 reply
        obviously you are not in the business like me.  why don't you throw out your laptop and your ipod if electronics are so obsolete.  don't you know that they base their sales presentation on the old clock timer.  that means regenerations no matter what!  that hasn't been used by any water dealer in years.  today everything is metered.  the kinetico can only get close to giving the total capacity.  the electric can give you the most for you money.  also, remember you are referring to a soft water regen.  all you need to do is buy a twin electric and you blow the kinetico out  of the water with lower price and efficiencies.
        • 0
          waterman` replies to benjammin
          Benjamin, you are simply out of your mind.  Please send your Fleck 9000 or 8500 specs over and I will disprove everything you just said about efficiencies.  The Kinetico systems have been manufactured for over 44 years without any planned obsolescence such as the Rainsofts, Clacks, Culligans, and you name it.  I have serviced every brand under the sun for over 20 years and 85% of our calls are related to electronic failure (i.e.; timers, drive motors, solenoids, and now of course motherboards).  The new Kinetico Accudial allows efficiencies that are completely unparalleled in the industry.  Jean S.'s problem sounds like a dealer related item, not a manufactured product related problem. I am pretty confident more Non Kinteico branded dealers have gone out of business due to poor reputation that any Kinetico dealers will ever do.  That's because the product is designed right, not to take advantage of the consumer.  And of course, lets not forget complete NSF certification for performance as well as counter-current regeneration for efficiencies.  On a final note, why don't you put your Ipad or latop in a dirty damp crawlspace, or maybe on top of a salt drum and let me know how it works in a year or so..!
    • 0
      BPWagonet replies to Houston
      | 2 replies
      We GOT our Kinetico through Home Depot so that we would have recourse. Fortunately we haven't had any issues with it. It does use far less salt than I would have imagined, but the water is definitely soft.
      I think they got a crappy dealer.
      • 0
        Arizona replies to BPWagonet
        | 1 reply
        That's exactly it, when you have a lousy dealer it changes everything.  I am beyond words that Kinetico corporate continues the current business model forcing customers to have only one choice when they want to purchase a system or need filters.  Protected sales territories without customer surveys breeds laziness.  For nine years we've had multiple problems with our local dealer - from never returning phone calls, to rudeness on the part of the tech who came out to our home, most recently I made four 'emergency' phone calls over the course of two weeks because of a lead, and not once did they return my call so I am washing my hands of this company.  Kinetico corporate doesn't seem to care or listen to customers.  I've explained the situations as they've come up, and their answer is always to have the local dealer 'make it right' -- well, nine years of bs excuses is enough.  Our RO is out of warranty and when they other stuff goes we'll be looking for a completely different system, simply because of where we live and having no other choice on where to purchase and get serviced.  They have a great product, but lousy channel, which means poor management.
        • 0
          Arizona replies to Arizona
          PS...forgot to mention one of the bigger issues -- during a move and reinstall from our previous home to current home, the 'expert' installer forgot one of those small round plastic rings.  Well, that tiny thing meant our system was running constantly and we dealt with monthly water bills in excess of $400 for about four months before the problem was found.  The local dealer repeatedly said the Kinetico didn't have anything to do with this and we must have a leak somewhere within our home.  We spent over $1,000 for an inspector to come out - one of those people who will 'x-ray' your home and property underground to see what's going on.  They concluded pretty quickly it was our water softener.  The local dealer accused us of putting 'cheap' or 'dirty' salts in our tank.  I can't tell you how much that pissed me off.  When they took it apart then realized the missing ring, and they did NOTHING to compensate us for the almost 3k in expenses we incurred because of their over $500 remove and reinstall job that was poorly done.  Kinetico corporate, I hope you're listening --- you have a superior product, but you need to clean up your channel and listen to the customers.  In posting this and doing other research I am seeing numerous complaints over this same local dealer.
  • 0
    benjammin
    wow,  sounds like one bad apple has ruined the whole bunch!  I am sure somebody trying to make a sale will tell you what you want to hear.  you have to know how to make a decision.  i am a firm believer that one night specials and crazy finance programs should be avoided.  remember to ask for referrals.  call people you know.  as a water treatment owner i know the product to be superior.  the salesperson didn't do you justice and you should have done due diligence.   contact the manufacturer,  they are good people and will make it right.
  • 0
    Randy
    I've had a similar problem with the Kinetico dealer in Las Vegas. My unit has never worked since I got it and the dealer has done nothing to fix it. 3 years has gone by now and my 4000 dollar unit still does not work and they want to charge ridiculous amounts of money just to look at it. I would never recommend Kinetico. It's terrible
  • 0
    benjammin
    Randy did you get your Kinetico system through the home depot?  Did you know that home depot gets on average about 600.00 for every kinetico sold through them?  Some of the dealers and salespeople only care about selling something before they leave your house.  They don't care what is best for you.
  • 0
    Louise
    I started tasting salt in the water.  Contacted Kinetico & they sent a repairman out.  He said needed new filter & one small part.  Bill paid in full $356.  Salty water still coming in faucet.  Phoned again.  Was told that the well water has increased in hardness, & that the water in undrinkable.  I should buy an under the sink purifier for $1,300.
    If anyone has any suggestions for my next step please respond.  I'm really frustrated over this.
  • 0
    VK
    I just bought myself a Kinetico home softener system. It will be installed this Saturday, April 26th, 2010.  I hope that it performs well as I have researched all over the internet for a good softener system.  Kinetico has had the least amount of complaints and the most compliments of all the major brands that I have looked into.

    I bought my system from a local distributor located in Davis, CA called Blue Fountain Water.  What's funny is that the owner himself goes out to the houses and commercial buildings for the appointments.  He's a really nice guy and definitely not as pushy as the RainSoft rep.  It's only my fiance and myself in a 2400 sq ft. house and we wanted something that will give us water all around.  We were interested in their lowest end product, but wanted to upgrade later down the line.  He told me that if I wanted, I can have the 2040 model for the same price as the lower end one (He is the owner of the distribution company).  We took the offer as we were definite that we would purchase from him anyways.  I'm excited to finally experience soft water :)  Hope all goes well.  I'll be back with an update.
  • 0
    James
    | 2 replies
    I am a Kinetico sales rep in California. I had this exact same situation happen with one of my customers. While it is a rarity, it is definitely possible. Are you on city water or well water? If you are on well water, try properly chlorinating the well. Chlorinating a well is a lot like turning off the power when your computer is on the fritz - it just usually seems to work. :)

    Also, can you please post your previous and current readings for hardness and TDS (total dissolved solids)?

    Thanks, and good luck!
    • 0
      BPWagoner replies to James
      Thsnks that's good to know. We have a well but never chlorinated it what product do you recommend for that
    • 0
      BELL replies to James
      I suppose all our problems in AZ come from our dealership. We are having problems here and many complaints from our dealtership. I have a system that the serviceman just walked out of our house and said it would cost more to repair than to put a new one in. We spent a lot of $$ on this and my daughter had 3 children who now have to drink salty water in her house because the serviceman refused to fix her water filter ...he wants her to buy a totally new one and she is unable to pay for it with an ex husband in jail and living on meager means. What would you suggest. Can anyone else fix this for her as she cannot afford to have no filter for the safety of her kids and she cannot afford to buy a new one for thousands of $$ anymore.
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