Black Magic Chimney & Fireplace

This is the first review I have ever written. John the service guy finally called me back after 2 weeks of back and forth calls. He had immediate attitude on the phone and asked how I got his number (he called me first from an inquiry on the Heatilator website). As if I wasn't in the right to be calling him. He sounded super annoyed to even be on the phone.

He tells me it will be 325 just for the visit, not counting any other parts or additional service. We made an appointment for March 9th. I asked about the cancellation policy (if we found someone sooner) which is a totally normal question. He gave me a very rude response as if he was chastising me for even asking. Being a customer that wants my fireplace fixed in a timely manner and given his past response rate I don't think it was an abnormal question to ask.

I had a bad feeling from the start of the call from his attitude alone. Go elsewhere for your fireplace needs.it's unfortunate because the first guy that called me from black magic chimney to set me up with John could not have been nicer.

Company was very responsive to our call. The technnician, Alex found the problem and gave us a temporary solution until the new part could be installed. He was a pleasure to work with and very helpful.

I looked everywhere for an elusive stove part and they not only had access but had it in stock. They were friendly, prompt, and helpful, whereas other places didn't even return my calls. A pleasure doing business with them.

DEFINITELY AVOID! If I could give them negative stars I would! This whole process was extremely painful - from first speaking with a very rude and abrupt receptionist to dealing with the actual service people. Called in mid December - had to wait 5 weeks for an appointment. John (service guy) called and said to be sure to ANSWER MY PHONE. on the day of the appointment.

He was very abrupt about his demand. The day comes. i check in with John. he reports that he's having a rough day. but he will be there. a few hours later I'm expecting John but someone named Alex shows up. I ask him if he was able to solve his earlier problems and he states 'of course there's really nothing I can't fix' (I note his arrogance. but say nothing. hoping he can just do his job). after awhile he states the gas valve is frozen- and i need a gas valve but he has to order it.

I ask him if he knows why this happened - he states that he cannot look into the past. but just deal with what he sees today. (Ah. ok. pretty rude. he could have just said IDK). then I ask him how long it would take to get a gas valve. he states that he has no control over delivery (ah. ok. still being rude). after some more strained interaction and complaints that the work would be difficult to complete. he leaves. 5 minutes later I get a call from John.

He states that Alex says my house wreaked of smoke. The job would take 1 1/2 hours to complete and both of them are NON-SMOKERS so they don't want to come back. Huh? These guys work with chimneys and they can't handle cigarette smoke (no one was smoking in the house when he was there). Also he could have worn a mask- which he should have had on anyway.

Their prices seemed extreme as well - $325 for a service call, $300 gas valve, $150 for pilot assembly plus more labor charge for installing the items. Thankfully I paid 0 today. DO NOT CALL black magic Chimney- even if they completed my service - I would have written a negative review for their attitude. Just an FYI. John & Alex just because you know something about gas fireplaces (not sure just how much though) does not mean you are God's gift to the world. Get over yourselves.

We have used services offered by this team of professionals for decades. Reliable, efficient, and helpful! The young man discussed the pros and cons of treated/ untreated wood as well as java logs, fire starters and how to keep ashes safe for composting. They will also look up the chimney and make sure you don't accidentally end up with slow cooked squirrels, chipmunks etc. Thank you for making our hearth winter ready.

If you enjoy cancelled appointments, No-call No-shows, and unreturned calls, this is the business for you. If there is any other company that can get the work done for you, please save yourself the aggravation.

Black Magic does not respond to phone calls. Many phone calls. Save yourself time and aggravation and call The Fireplace Guys.

I had a meeting scheduled for friday between 11 and 11:30. After 11:30 i tried to reach the office to determine if anyone is coming and are late. i got a "please leave a message" routine. i left a message if anyone is going to come and keep the appointment. i thought of calling again after no one called. this time i got the receptionist or whoever she was. she told me Larry is busy with customers and can't come to the phone right now. i am here wondering if anyone is going to show and she is telling me he can't come to the phone. pretty outrageous customer service. at the extreme end of as poor as possible and horribly rude. this is not a cheap service and who wants to work with someone that wont even let you know that he isn't coming and who's receptionist is extremely rude.

Amazing place. It's a little like going to Dyagone Alley in Harry Potter. They have everything and then some. It's a real treat! Go just for the experience!

We just had the pleasure of having black magic install a new gas fireplace. The entire process from the beginning was amazing. Perry, Jay and Mario were very courteous and professional. I highly recommend this company to anyone interested in purchasing a gas fireplace. I also want to recognize Devito Plumbing, Kyle and Paul you guys are the best. Thanks to all. RFM Somerville MA.

Our gas fireplace stopped working back in November after 12 years of keeping us warm during winters. Black Magic Chimney was not the first phone call I placed and it turns out there are people out there who have no idea what they're doing. My second phone call was to Black Magic Chimney and I cannot praise them enough. John and his partner were super knowledgeable, professional, meticulous and I highly recommend them for any fireplace related issues. Our fireplace looks and works better then when it was installed. I'm a very happy customer.

Thank you so much for excellent service. When I called and explained that my elderly parents use the gas insert as a source of heat in their living room, a very kind older man with his grandson came out at 7:30 pm on Saturday night and fixed their fireplace. Highly recommend Black Magic Chimney.

Had them come for a repair of a malfunctioning gas fireplace. We just moved in and the previous owners didn't leave us a manual for the fireplace. This made them very mad. They were so visibly angry and disrespectful, my husband and I had to ask them to leave the apartment after 10 minutes. I've never experienced anything like it. I would REALLY advise against working with them.

A woman named Heather said she would let me know when my order came in. Never contacted me. When I called to check on the order, she admitted that it had arrived but that she didn't know and that she would have called me eventually. When I questioned when that might have been, she hung up on me. I do not recommend this place to anyone. They were terrible to work with and I don't know how they stay in business.

I called for some questions a few times and got to talk to Perry twice. He always rushed me and said there were three other calls waiting, got my number and never called me back.

We've used these guys before when we bought a gas fireplace-the shop has many choices and they know their products but customer service is awful! No one answers the phone and if you leave a message don't plan on a return call. They charged $250 just to walk in the door for a service call plus parts! The office also screwed up our phone number so I had to call back 5 days later to find out why the service guy didn't call for an appt. No excuse!

John from Black's Chimney (Masonry group) came out after I placed a desperation phone call. A referral from our stone supplier (Mutual Materials) after the Mason we hired turned out to be a mess. John came out and after assessing the situation, he worked with our tile installer to create a fabulous solution. A couple of weeks later (we ordered a custom cement mantle) Matt and Ryan came out to install the mantle and Masonry and the result is magic! Matt and Ryan were exemplary. Polite, courteous and extremely neat. Their work was beautifully and quickly completed. Thanks everyone, you made a terrible experience turn out to be the best!

I found their prices for a particular gas stove to be very competitive. The service was terrible, however: never called to let me know when it was in, had a tough time scheduling the install, and their recommended plumber was offensive and barely competent. And, after a year, the stove developed a problem staying lit, but their repair guy couldn't fix it because the stove would was too hot after I showed him the problem. Is it just me, or wouldn't a stove repair person have to deal with warm stoves pretty much all the time. In the end, I saved money, but it wasn't worth the hassle.

They don't seem interested in doing business. We picked out a fireplace insert and have asked for a quote so we can buy it at least 5 times over 3 weeks via both email and phone. This is from the sales rep who already spent time visiting our house to show us options. No response. Completely incompetent at communications would not trust them at this point.

We had a G4 installed from Black Magic today, . There were several problems but the worst are that the black riser that is supposed to be under the unit does fit so there is a 3 space above the unit and the batteries cannot be changed without taking the unit apart. We asked a Black Magic to have a riser made. They said they can't. The installer recommended getting a mason to build a riser out of brick.

Again Black Magic refuses to do this. They had no answer to the battery issue. We have never been treated so badly by a company. We just got a call from Black Magic. Apparently the riser can be installed in our fireplace to eliminate the big space at the top. They are coming on a Tuesday to stall the riser. We will post a picture when it is done.

If you want a fire They have no desire for hire Should you get lucky and light a spark It only leads to you being left in the dark. Maybe a billow of hot air But alas your harth will still be bare Good luck lighting a fire under their a$$ Do your self a favor and pass!

Got an excellent service! I love my new fireplace. I did get nervous by reading the reviews but the team was very helpful during the entire process. Highly recommended

Terrific. I had two previous guys come to look at my chimney problem. Let's just say each of those earlier two had major red flags going on. With Black Magic, they picked up the phone immediately, made an appt for 2 days later, showed up on time, and did an amazing job identifying options. Basically I need chimney caps, but my house has a roof that would need scaffolding to install those, so he just said, "It would be less for you to hire a roofer than for us to do the scaffolding." This is so rare-- someone letting go of a business opportunity to do the right thing by way of the customer.

I was so impressed. He also took a look at my chimney liner (which another guy said I needed to have replaced asap, but which is only a year old). Black Magic said, no need to do it now, just have it looked at in 5 years; it likely will last at least 10. He was truly outstanding, knowledgeable, honest, and pleasant!

Look, drive up in a Lexus or have your Butler do it. You would be shocked at how helpful they suddenly are. My experience as a property owner for many years has been very disappointing. I think my Yankee way of dressing down keeps me from getting even a hello.

Terrible customer service! Took over a week to get a call back. Used a better and cheaper company

Wanted for a simple chimney cap that their chimney cleaners actually recommended. They kept me on the "line" for months that I was on the list to get it done. I must had called 4-5 times waiting to be next. Never showed, called, or emailed. Awful customer service. The chimney sweepers were very knowledgeable and experienced. just wish their customer service was somewhat decent.

No response. No desire to sell. Crickets. Perry just would not give us a quote. It's summer so it's not because they are overworked. Called five times and went by twice. They must have better things to do. Bought from Chelmsford Fireplace Center instead.

I don't know why I tried again, but I decided to swing into Black Magic and check out their selection of freestanding fireplaces as I wanted to replace a p.o.s. Vermont Castings that has never worked correctly in 10 years. I had a decent experience at the store and I left with an assignment to measure my current chimney pipe and send that information back to see if the replacement Valor would fit.

I emailed Larry back the information and requested an estimate. No response. That sealed it. I went to Yelp to look for the best rated fireplace shop and found Chelmsford Fireplace. I went up on Saturday, purchased a Valor fireplace and it will be installed this Friday (less than a week since the order). Do yourself a favor, don't waste your time with these nitwits or anyone in the Boston area. Head up 18 miles to Chelmsford and deal with professionals that know how deliver customer service and return emails and phone calls. Worthless.

I don't know what the bad reviews are all about. We got our unit within 2-3 weeks of ordering it and they scheduled the install right away with us. Their installers were exceptionally friendly, professional and helpful. They recommended a gas fitter that shared all of these qualities as well. The gas unit they installed exceeds our expectations and was the best deal we could find locally. I would definitely recommend these guys!

Really bad service and support. Purchased the Lennox vent-free gas wall stove. Worked for about a year and then failed. Called 5 times for service.no return calls.called a 6th time to ask for Bill and was shuffled off the phone and they never repaired the unit. Stay away from them and their supposed repair person, Derrick. Check out this link instead. Plenty of other qualified dealers: http://www.lennox.com/locate/default.asp

I do not recommend going to Black Magic Chimney in Cambridge, MA. I purchased a pellet stove, which they said would be installed 1-2 weeks after payment and ordering from their supplier. For 2 months, after ignoring phone calls and emails, they finally replied saying they were "busy." 3 weeks later, they brought the wrong stove to my home. It took almost 2 more months of calls and emails to get them back. I dealt with the owner, Perry who doesn't seem to have both oars in the water. stay away from this place.

Was told they carried piping for wood stoves. Enter building and immediately was extremely unprofessional. No one looked at me, spoke to me, or asked me for help. Store set up is messy, sloppy, an extremely unorganized. Finally asked a person behind a desk for help. He basically hardly acknowledged me or provided any answers to my questions. Did not know if he was helping me or not.

Finally some one else asks if I need help so I repeat myself to this person. As soon as I do that the person in the chair starts yelling at the both of us. I was shocked. I had no idea what to think. Turns out they don't even have simple parts for hooking up a pellet stove. Up to this point I was extremely patient. So after I left I decided to go back into the place and make sure they knew how disappointed I was with their attitude, service, and professionalism.

I spoke to the 2nd guy who tried to help me and told him how unbelievably rude the other person was to me. He agreed stating that he did not know what his problem was. As I was walking out I told the rude guy that I thought he was a complete a hole. And then I was escorted off the property by some young loser he kept on putting his hand on me and pushing me.

I told him that if he touched me one more time I would be calling the police. I can still smell the cheap cologne he had on on my hands and jacket. He reeked. I have notified the Cambridge police of the incident and they are looking into it. I would never, ever recommend this place to anyone. Its a dump.