The main swamp cooler motor spun it's last today.... (how much, Home Depot)

[Stanrice]

Just out of curiosity, what was the labor on replacing the motor?

[Mike Horrell]

Stan;

The job was not broken down by category; just a flat total.

FWIW, the house is very noticeably cooler now than it has been all summer so I guess
the old motor was in a slow fail mode and not turning rapidly enough until it seized.

[mortimer]

Originally Posted by berncohomes

... motors alone would retail from around $75 to $125 ...

I found some here for > $200
Adobe air evaporative cooler motor - Shop sales, stores & prices at TheFind.com
That doesn't mean they wouldn't be cheaper at Lowes, however.

Originally Posted by berncohomes

... TLC would pay wholesale ...

Any company delivering a motor would be entitled to charge retail though.

[Mike Horrell]

Originally Posted by mortimer

I found some here for > $200
Adobe air evaporative cooler motor - Shop sales, stores & prices at TheFind.com
That doesn't mean they wouldn't be cheaper at Lowes, however.
Any company delivering a motor would be entitled to charge retail though.

Thanks.

I think the consensus here is that, despite my initial impressions, I paid a "premium" price
for the service, but what is being overlooked by some is the service call minimum that
any a/c company is going to charge as well as the actual installation labor.

But I've been given some valuable info. Next time I need similar service, I'll look around more
if I have the time to do so.

[nmnita]

Originally Posted by Mike Horrell

Maybe. What would you consider a 'good' price for a service call and a 3/4 hp motor installed?

doesn't matter if it was high, think of what central air would cost? You are happy, you liked the company and now you have a cool house. Enjoy the rest of the summer.

Nita

[berncohomes]

Originally Posted by mortimer

I found some here for > $200
Adobe air evaporative cooler motor - Shop sales, stores & prices at TheFind.com
That doesn't mean they wouldn't be cheaper at Lowes, however.
Any company delivering a motor would be entitled to charge retail though.

We could go back and forth forever on prices - I just checked Home Depot because you said Lowes and I wanted to be awkward and their 3/4HP Motor is $94.99

I understand that the company would charge retail (probably above retail), I was trying to point out that they would make money on the motor and money on the installation too. I just didn't do a very good job of it.

[mortimer]

Just asking here:

Originally Posted by Mike Horrell

Next time I need similar service, I'll look around more ...

Would it have been worth $100 to wait one full day to have the motor fixed?

If their "fix" breaks in the next 12 months, what kind of guarantee do you get?

Once I know and trust someone, I never shop around unless they let me down.

Example: my wife just ran her nice car into a gaping hole that the
city of Albuquerque left open in a Northbound lane of Juan Tabo
and an Eastbound lane of Lomas. The high winds of June 16th or
so blew away the visual barriers. My good treatment by Farmers
confirmed that I don't care what their rates are - I won't shop.
( I had to file a claim on my renter's policy in 1988. Since then,
I had made the assumption that they were still good. )

I have a second choice in State Farm if I ever have to move based
on the good treatment I got when that same car was damaged by
one of their customers in 1998.

[Mike Horrell]

Originally Posted by mortimer

Just asking here:

Would it have been worth $100 to wait one full day to have the motor fixed?

If their "fix" breaks in the next 12 months, what kind of guarantee do you get?

Once I know and trust someone, I never shop around unless they let me down.

That's been my basic approach as well but the chorus here has made me wonder if
I really did pay too much.

I'm sure I could get cheaper home owners and car insurance that I currently do through
Farmers, but when the garage door was blown in by a micro-burst last year, their claims
agent's initial response was "Oh, my gosh!! Are you sure there isn't more damage?"

Hard to turn your back on that...

[aries63]

Don't they charge more for same-day ("emergency") service also? So I don't think you did poorly. You don't want to have to wait days for something like that.

I've always been pleased with the level of work TLC has done and usually their technicians are very friendly and professional. I still call around for estimates when I need work done, sometimes TLC is a bit more but usually they also offer to come sooner.

I hope your motor didn't go out because it hadn't been oiled properly.

[Poncho_NM]

Originally Posted by Mike Horrell

Thanks.

I think the consensus here is that, despite my initial impressions, I paid a "premium" price
for the service, but what is being overlooked by some is the service call minimum that
any a/c company is going to charge as well as the actual installation labor.

But I've been given some valuable info. Next time I need similar service, I'll look around more
if I have the time to do so.

Mike, Swamp Cooler maintenance is not difficult but, but it is required more often than A/C (with the exception of changing filters in A/C).

Changing pads in your cooler is more difficult than changing the "blower motor" unless there are complications, like rust, which normally causes disassembly difficult (Frozen bolts etc)

I maintained my unit for about 8 years, helped my son in law for about 5 years till he got good at it, we both use to do maintenance for some neighbors.

Replacing the "Blower Motor" should take 30 minutes, but it takes time to get on site. The motor, well Lowes and Home Depot have them. 3/4 hp tends to be more, and I do not remember what I paid for mine about 8 years ago.

Water Pumps are cheap (~ 15- $20)

I replaced my cooler one and guided my son in law through replacing his. The hardest part is getting it on the roof. (And killing the power and re-wiring for those who do pay attention during dissassembly)

The point, you could have gotten by cheaper, if you got someone out in 3 hours, then I would not be overly concerned. I could have come out, probably next week and I would have moaned and groaned how I hate doing it...

There should be reputable people nearby who can do a good job.


Rich