They are "permanently closed." Error message when I called their phone number. They offered good service when they were in business. Sorry to see them go. read more

I have never received a call from such a rude individual as the one that just returned my call from Buck Factory Outlet. I am interested in getting a new gas fireplace insert installed in my home and the representative from Buck seemed agitate from the minute he got on the call. He kept cutting me off, speaking over me, refusing to listen, and was just generally rude. I don't know what the quality of their service is like, but with an average of 3 stars they should try to raise their rating by first being a little more polite. read more

Awful Phone conversation with " Carl" .. Not going to entertain using this company ...I was treated poorly over the phone I can only imagine how frustrating it will be in person....sad read more

I have never left a bad review on yelp but I have never had a the rudest experience/response from a simple question I asked. Unbelievable.

They installed a stove for us 20 years ago. Needed to have it serviced. They not only remembered us but knew what model stove we had and came out within about an hour to have a look. Now thats what I call service. read more

We ordered a replacement back plate for our Jotul fireplace nearly a year ago for several hundred dollars from Buck Factory Outlet. Despite several follow up calls and completely unfounded rude customer service, the back plate finally arrived last week. Buck Stove came out to cut to fit the back plate and continued to make several measurement errors. When we contacted the the principal at Buck Factory Outlet he said claimed their mismeasurements were within a reasonable margin of error and that if we wanted it to be redone, we would have to repurchase a back plate so they could come back up to mess it up again. Now we are forced to take the only couple of recourse actions we have to recoup the cost of the back plate and find a business that actually knows what they are doing to order another backplate and come out to install it correctly. I am filing this complaint against Buck Factory Outlet in Benecia to warn potential consumers to not do business with this retailer. They have zero intent to reimburse customers for their own mistakes and their customer service borderlines on harassment - Carl has issues. The owner, Guy, also tried to overcharge us on the installation time. He tried to charge us an extra half an hour while we waited for him to arrive 35 mins late to cut the back plate. read more

I've had three installations done by Buck Factory Outlet. Each were done professionally and have performed flawlessly. The first was a wood burning Buck Stove insert into our home. Great performance with lots of heat for the house. The second install was in our second home, and the project was converting our wood burning fireplace to a modern gas burner through a bed of glass beads. The effect was stunning with a nice flame pattern that dances across the glass. We get compliments from all of our guests. Very simple and trouble free. The third was to convert a fireplace to a gas burner through glass in a student housing building in Berkeley that I manage. I needed the doors to remain closed to the students, with a remote switch that allowed it to fire up for a specific time frame, and then shut off automatically. Guy, one of the owners, was able to work out a great solution. Permitting was tricky, but he got it. We did a custom fireplace door that matched the character of the building. He installed a pilot light system with a remote activated switch. We added a special timer switch to activate pre-set times. Flawless install, and has run for four years without a glitch. Unless you have a very straight forward situation, this is technical work. My projects were complicated. Every home is unique in age and construction. These people will get it done right. I've referred several friends to them, all very happy. I highly recommend that you check them out for your project. read more

We had a lot of issues. Service with Carl was awful. He doesn't listen and talks over you. During installation they sliced a HUGE piece of siding out of our house and poorly caulked it. The fireplace it's self had issues - logs were installed wrong, starter didn't work and the grate fell onto the logs. It was one thing after another. Buck eventually pulled through after multiple calls and emails on our end. In retrospect I wish we had gone else where. Side note - Dave is their most helpful employee. read more

I guess you can't rate them with no stars. If I could I would rate them no stars!!!! We had very poor service from the manager/ owner! When we walked in, It was as if they know we were not going to buy anything and they were not going to waist time on those people of color. After walking around for a while a worker finally asked if he could help us. The salesperson was very helpfully but the manager was very disrespectful, he walked past us like we didn't exist. At one point I moved my iPad and blueprints because the owner walked up to the counter and just started talking to someone right over my left shoulder. I moved to my right thinking they needed counter space, however they didn't and they easily could have moved to another portion of the counter. The sad part was I was showing the sales person the remodeling project that we were doing in Oakland and I showed him we had budgeted over $5,000.00 for the job. P.S. We ended up going to Blaze in San Francisco and spent over $10,000.00 and the clients are very happy! read more

I had 2 fireplaces updated with gas logs and new fireplace doors. After all every day in the SF Bay area is a spare the air day nay more. One was an easy upgrade, but the other, I was paticular how the final appearance should be with the existing brick. For that one I decided on a custom made Stoll door. It took a while to get but am pleased with the final results. During ordering everyone was patient with me till we got the details of what I wanted finally sunk in. I was worried that they may not get it right but when the delivered the door and I saw it I was pleased. The installation took longer than I though 2 guys 5 hrs. But realized they were being careful and listened to me if I had any objections to what they were doing. For example, at first the mounting brackets for the Thermo-Rite door would have been noticable through the glass doors but after suggesting an alternative location for the mounting brackets everything worked out. Also alignment of the Thermo-Rite doors were off and wouldn't latch. They spent at least an hour fiddling with them until they got it right. After the installation they removed all the packing materials and swept the fireplaces for any debris from the installation. My daughter is considering upgrading her fireplace. I know who I'll recommend. read more

I called and explained that we were moving and needed an insert to a fireplace. We have a condo, 1000 sq feet, upstairs, something for ambiance. We were advised to come in. We drove to Benicia, and walked in and saw Dave. He seemed to recall our phone conversation and immediately took us over to an insert that as he obviously sells, and basically said it was our only option. It gives out a lot of heat, remote controlled, all custom ordered and at $4500, plus installation, was not at ALL what we planned. From our obvious looks of shock and disappointment, he advised he "may have a floor model in the warehouse and will call us!" We have never heard from him. He didn't hear what we initially wanted and somewhat talked over us. It was unpleasant and a waste of time. read more

We are really happy with our new gas insert. David said that they could install it around the middle of February and the install was done on Valentines Day. They completed the install, chimney cleaning and all clean up in one day and our new fireplace was ready go that evening. It performs beautifully and warms the kitchen, family room and living room as David assured us that it would. It's been almost two months now and we have experienced no problems. We love our new fireplace. read more

I've purchased a free standing stove and chimney accessories from these people and found them to be very helpful and knowledgeable. They have been so free with advise, I've purchased from them rather than go to a cheaper source. Just be aware they are closed on Mondays:) read more

I had to call three times to make an appointment for an estimate. Took the day off work and Matt didn't show up because he was sick. When he finally showed up, he couldn't give me an estimate because he didn't have enough experience. THEN I had to call twice to get my estimate and they wanted $1k more than what he originally quoted me for installation. I did not purchase a stove from them and would not recommend them. read more

This has to be the worst service ever. After we had a gas insert installed everything was great until it rained . Yep water dripping from above. Carl (owner) was called and he'll have service right out he'll call back. Two days later, nothing. Called again, he said his worker was sick? Three more days no call, now he says he talked to Guy (installer) and he has never had this problem before so it has to be your roof , without even checking. Not once did Carl call me I had to call him every time! After several more calls and weeks Carl sends someone out. He checks roof ands says everything OK but you have no flashing around fireplace. I Call roofer, he checks and said there is flashing and roof is tight. I give up! This process took a dozen phone calls and well over a month. Seems they think it's not their problem. TERRIBLE service, buyer beware. Still leaks. read more

Horrible customer service, and this was over the phone! I called and left a very detailed message that I needed some help in figuring out what might be wrong with my Buck Stove insert fan (sounds like a bearing going out), and if they could tell me what it was, did they have the part so that I could replace it? They called back about 15 minutes later and I missed the call. When I called back, the man who answered the phone argued with me for five minutes that he didn't call me, and since he was the one who scheduled all the calls, was I sure I had the right number? I said yes, I'm calling the number on my phone back. I explained that I left a message about possibly needing a part. He finally believed that I might have called, and asked the man next to him, who, surprise surprise, said yes, he had called me back (didn't bother leaving a message though). Then he proceeded to inform me that they didn't stock parts, they no longer had a direct relationship with Buck Stove; I needed to go on the internet to get what I needed since I couldn't go to Buck Stove in NC. I said, "OK, but can you tell me if I'm at least headed in the right direction, can you listen to the stove over the phone and tell me if I need to get someone to come look at it or if it's the motor going out." At that point he proceeded to lecture me about doing it myself if I was not bright enough to figure out what was wrong; then when I said, "I would be happy to have a professional look at it but I am so far away and there aren't any, can you please just listen for a minute and it might be obvious to you..." and he said he was 30 days out on a professional and he couldn't make an exception for me and I shouldn't expect that. This is 10 seconds on the phone I was asking for...WOW they must be busy. All this was in the most patronizing tone one could imagine. I know exactly what pelton s experienced...he mentioned people of color...well, I'm a woman and I bet he would not have talked to a man that way. Oh wait, he didn't: Mike Z said the store was very helpful to him when he was INSTALLING A STOVE...I just wanted them to listen to something and that was too much trouble because clearly I was not capable of fixing it even if I was correct in what was going on. read more

Thank you Buck Factory Outlet! I bought a gas fireplace insert years ago from this Factory Outlet and was very pleased back then. Recently I needed my fireplace serviced, cleaned, etc. during this very busy Christmas, but Buck Factory Outlet was not able to get a service technician to my house anytime soon. Obviously I understood and accepted the first available time which was a few weeks later. No reasonable person can expect a fireplace store to get a technician to your house quickly during the super busy Christmas season. When the service technician did come to our house we were very pleased. Damion was his name, and he was extremely professional. Damion was very thorough when cleaning our gas fireplace parts. I asked questions about what he was doing and how things worked and he answered all the questions with confidence. My fireplace insert switch was wearing out but Damion did not have the replacement place on his truck at the time. Buck Factory Outlet called me later to schedule a time for Damion to come back and replace that switch, without charging me another deliver fee. First of all, I had no idea my switch was wearing out. Damion could have just left without telling me I needed it and I would have never known. He went out of his way to get that switch and come back on another day just to take care of that small issue. Dear Buck Factory Outlet, Damion is a keeper. His professionalism and integrity gives Buck a good name. Thank you and we'll be recommending your company for all gas fireplace needs, and we'll recommend Damion as the service tech. read more

This place is great! Karl is very helpful and kind. I didn't even buy my insert from them and they bent over backwards when I had questions about installing it myself. Nice to see that good customer service still exists. I go there for all of my fireplace insert needs. read more

We just recently had our fireplace insert installed. The owner himself came to do the installation because the electrician they usually use was booked out for awhile. We love the insert. The product quality and service was beyond our expectations. read more

I was trying to buy a buck stove from these guys around thanksgiving and they did mention it was there busiest season but it literally took 5 phone calls and two store location visits to convince them to come to my house and spec a solution. They eventually came out but informed me that the owner installer would have to visit again. After two more attempts to convince them I wanted to purchase a stove I was unable to get the owner to visit. I finally just gave up thinking if I couldn't convince them to sell me a stove what chance would I ever have if I needed service. Literally the worst customer service experience I have ever had. Go somewhere else read more

Disappointed in the service. First, our installation was postponed by one week with less than 24 hours notice. We had already taken time off work for this. Then on the first day, they arrived at 1:00 when we were told 10am. Then, they forgot to schedule the inspection with the city for the one day I was off that week. We had to wait another week for the inspection before we could put our walls back up! Will not go back to Buck Stove in Benicia. read more

Earlier this summer I hired a chimney sweep to clean my chimney. I had not used my fireplace since the Napa earthquake of 2014. The man doing the sweep showed me that my fireplace had been damaged during the quake and was not safe to use. I weighed all my options at that point, and then decided to have a gas fireplace installed. I got several bids and did my research and decided to have Guy, the owner of Buck Factory Outlet, do the chimney repair and install a gas fireplace insert. Guy is a general contractor so he has done hundreds of earthquake chimney repairs and gas fireplace insert installations. The chimney repair job he did was like a work of art. He saved the old bricks from the chimney demo, then did the reinforcing work and used the old bricks for the rebuild. While the chimney is now much shorter it looks natural unlike a lot of rebuilds I have seen around town. Guy's store in Benicia is fully loaded with all kinds of stoves. Guy helped us pick out a great stove (not the most expensive stove) and then made a couple of suggestions to make the stove look even better. The middle of summer is a busy time for contractors and Guy warned us it could be several weeks from start to finish. Well, it took only 2 weeks to finish off the job. Guy is totally hands on from start to finish. He has great assistants but Guy is always right there. I took out a permit to do this work and all the work passed with flying colors. I recommend Guy and Buck Factory Outlet highly! I.G Enterprises form American Canyon did the gas pipe and electrical work. Like Guy, Jeff the owner of I.G. is totally hands on. Great work! Guy and Jeff work well together and if you are thinking of installing a gas inset this is a great team to select! read more

This place is great. The owners, Guy and Sharon, are super helpful and willing to go the extra mile. They also have a lot of choices on the floor for fireplaces and BBQ's. We had them install two new fireplaces in our house--one gas insert in an existing wood fireplace and one a freestanding gas stove. They look beautiful! They were willing to search for something that would fit in our house (we had a really small space) and come out and make sure both looked great. We'll definitely go back there. read more

Wow! From the first time we walked into the show room we were treated like royalty. The sales people were professional, honest and very informative. We wanted a new BBQ insert, but had to work within the parameters of our current BBQ island; the folks at Buck gave us a few options, came out to our place, took measurements, and gave us a solid estimate. When they came to install, they brought everything necessary, were very tidy and professional; I felt very comfortable with them......THEY ARE GREAT! When they left, the BBQ almost cooked the food itself.....I'd recommend them to everyone.....WOW! read more

Just had a new gas fireplace installed in our Walnut Creek home. Very happy with the product and the service. When we visited the showroom a few weeks ago, we were impressed with the range of choices, and we were given a careful overview of the choices. There was no "hard sell", no pressure at all to make a quick decision, just thorough demonstrations and explanations. The staff took great care of us from start to finish, coming out to explain to our contractor how to create a space for the fireplace, working with him patiently to explain everything. Then today they came out and did the installation, again taking great care to explain how things work, answering all of our questions. (And they gave us some great tips on other contracting issues in the house as well!) So not sure where the few low Yelp ratings come from: sure, they're busy when you walk in because they have a lot of customers and can't attend to everyone instantly, but they do bend over backwards to give you great service. read more

We thought Buck did an outstanding job installing our fireplace insert.. The insert looked totally custom.. Here's our review - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TRPf62J2sI4 read more

Well, so much about my rave review of Damian and how he saved Buck "a star". As soon as he left, TWO parts fell off the inset cover. How hard could it be to put them back on I thought. One I fixed o.k. The other just kept falling off. Called Buck and explained problem. Took another week for Damian to return. He shoved the part in and said "There, it's fixed". No, fell out again that night. Called Buck AGAIN; spoke with Carl AGAIN. He said that was unacceptable and either Damian would come back again or that he would personally come out because he's more familiar with the "old inserts" (10 years shouldn't be "old" in my mind given that it's only used about 3 months a year!). It's now been 3 weeks and we haven't seen or heard from a sole. I give up. My husband finally figured out the problem and it's now fixed. Anyone want to hire him? It's probably a safer bet than depending on Buck! read more