Interesting info for those looking to purchase Hilkoil coils

Some of you have followed my saga here My HW coils are looking rough after summer in damp basement when my hot water coils corroded to almost nothing over this past summer.

Well I just went to their website, because I DISTINCTLY REMEMBER seeing something along the lines of "our coils are 316 stainless steel & feature a lifetime warranty" posted right on their website. I know for a fact they offered a lifetime warranty because another member pointed that out to me on that thread. I now cannot find any references to a warranty, nor to materials used, on their site.

What I received was NOT 316 stainless -- it's clearly marked on the pipe 304/304L ..... & I saw another members recent pic showing the same. I was going to post the link to the site as I felt that is a pretty deceptive business practice .... especially for what you pay for these things! It looks like they have updated their website & now post NO WARRANTY. If I'm going to pay $220 per 21T coil, it damn well better last a lifetime!

I'm a little bitter since I just had to pay my credit card with a $220 balance, when at the time it was clearly stated that all their coils have a lifetime warranty.

BUYER BEWARE.

EDIT: Thanks Dan for pointing out that the site does still mention lifetime warranty. I overlooked that. The part about the 316 I still can't find though. ...

A lifetime warranty was an empty promise for me though!

Did you try the Wayback Machine.

http://web.archive.org/web/*/http://www.hilkoil.com

Wow thanks - I learn something new every day about the internet.

I remember seeing the 316 reference this year though ... actually just about 1 to 2 months ago. Could just be me ...

SMITTY wrote:I remember seeing the 316 reference this year though ... actually just about 1 to 2 months ago. Could just be me ...

Smitty, no it's not just you. They did advertise that on their site. In fact the lifetime warranty is what they are advertising in the description on some of the coils on Ebay right now. Look up "thermo-bilt" on Ebay and you will see a list of his auctions. You have to read the listing carefully. In two places it says LIFETIME warranty and in another it says 5 yr warranty. It no longer states the grade of material they are made out of. If you can't get any satisfaction out of them, I would call them up and tell them you are going to call the Better Business Bureau. Sometimes that alone is enough to get them to come to an acceptable conclusion on your claim. Good luck.

Jeff

If you get no satisfaction and want to build a fire under their ass, here's what you do. File a complaint with the State Attorney General's office in your state and with the state the company is located at. Most have a online form now. You will get results. I have done this a few times, once with a computer falsely advertised, and just recently with a brand new Dremel tool that started smoking the first time i used it. The Dremel tool wasn't the cheaper model, a little better one, it started smoking and when i went to the web site it said to return it to Dremel Corp, not to them(CPOROTARYTOOLS.COM). So i lost my invoice number(2 months old) and when i asked for it they did not even respond to my emails. Had wife email them, same thing, called and got the run around on the phone. After i filed a complaint, i got this so very nice letter in the mail with my invoice number and i sent it off to Dremel and was treated to a new Dremel and some free wheels. Try to find the web page with the warranty and copy the whole web page.(save page as) thats the proof you need for them to honor it. To me, the BBB means nothing except that other people have complained also. Look at http://www.resellerratings.com/ and see if they are listed.

Thanks for that info guys. I'll keep ya posted .....

Were you using your hilkoil for domestic hot water (potable DHW) or hydronic heating water?

The ebay ad for hilkoil indicates the stainless coil is for heating and carries a lifetime guarantee.

But, the website says it is for domestic hot water and shows a schematic diagram for a hot water heater "sidearm" arrangement. Originally I thought the guarantee might be usage specific. However, the July 28 2008 ad on the "wayback machine" shows in the copy that they are covered by a lifetime warranty.

You should be covered. Do you have proof of purchase?

I'm going to have to dig, but I'm pretty sure I still have the receipt. My coils are tied into my boiler ... so they indirectly make DHW, but it's not the same water.

I had just seen the add on E-Bay the other day. Went back and looked now, and it refers to the coil as "16T" a couple times, and mentions the lifetime warranty. You have to cursor down the Ebay page to the description part, but it definitely says "16T" a couple times. (not 316T, but that seems to be what they are indicating, by the context of the description.) It's the one priced at $198.00

Paperboy wrote:but it definitely says "16T" a couple times. (not 316T, but that seems to be what they are indicating, by the context of the description.)

The 16T is the model of the coil. They have models such as 16T, 24S, 21T, 18TL etc. They used to state the material the coil was made of, but they have removed all references of it now.

I was getting ready to purchase a second coil to add to my setup, is there another option to the "Hilkoil". I just did a inspection of my current coil and it looks fine, but kinda hard to tell as it is still in the burning stove.

TdiDave wrote:I was getting ready to purchase a second coil to add to my setup, is there another option to the "Hilkoil". I just did a inspection of my current coil and it looks fine, but kinda hard to tell as it is still in the burning stove.

Wow, I just found this website....
http://www.hubbellheaters.com/html/heatcoil.htm

Therma-Coil
Kewl home page.....
http://www.therma-coil.com/index.html

Therma-coil is made of the highest quality stainless steel

No mention on the alloy....

DVC500 at last wrote:Therma-Coil
Kewl home page.....
http://www.therma-coil.com/index.html

Therma-coil is made of the highest quality stainless steel

No mention on the alloy....

I sent them an email requesting info on the alloy. If I hear anything back from them, I'll post it here.

Jeff

Good deal guys There has to be an alternative, & you've found 2 .... Nice work!

I'm fairly certain I'll be in the same position next year .... if not a few years down the road. I'll be shocked and awed if I get 5 years out of my Hilkoil replacements. This is the final order from that company -- screw me once, shame on me .......