Heating/Air Conditioning Routine Maintenance Recommendations? (Faith: rental, house, buying) - Charlotte - North Carolina (NC) - City-Data Forum

Gumbo · 12-30-2009, 08:08 AM

My wife and I have our heating/air conditioning serviced twice a year. This consists of a technician checking the equipment to make sure everything is running correctly and changing the air flow in the house if a particular floor/room is hotter/colder than we like it.

We are happy with the service, but wanted to check on here to see what kind of price people are paying for this service and how often others are having routine checks done on their heating/air eqpt. If you are happy with your current service, please give an estimate of what you pay for this service and the provider.

We currently pay $290 for 2 visits per year (fall/spring). We can drop down to 1 visit but would only save $50 (comes out to $240).

Our warranty has expired, so having them come out does not give us any warranty benefit.

Jake Ryan · 12-30-2009, 08:38 AM

The way it was explained to me was like this. You get your car serviced every 3 - 5000 miles and you aren't driving your car 24hrs a day right? But your HVAC unit is pretty much on or working the majority of the day and night so it behooves you to have it kept up. You're right, it doesn't give you a "warranty" benefit to have it serviced and I'm in the same situation, but my contract gives me a priority over people that don't have a contract and a discount on the labor when/if they do have to come out.

I use Anderson htg and Air and they charge me in the $200 range for my contract which includes 2 maintenance visits. I have been very satisfied with them.

lumbollo · 12-30-2009, 10:25 AM

So in a decade you will have spent $3000 for someone to basically come out to see if it is working and to adjust the vents for you. This seems like a bit of false economy to me. I would suggest the $0/year plan.

There is no requirement to have these checks done to maintain a warranty.

CharlotteCharlotte · 12-30-2009, 11:02 AM

This is just my opinion but I would not spend a penny on getting my heating/air conditioning serviced. I would just run it till it breaks but you should keep a portable space heater on hand just incase your heat gives out on you on a very cold night. I have two mini space heaters that I got at Walmart for 9 bucks a piece a few months ago.

Jake Ryan · 12-30-2009, 01:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lumbollo

So in a decade you will have spent $3000 for someone to basically come out to see if it is working and to adjust the vents for you. This seems like a bit of false economy to me. I would suggest the $0/year plan.

There is no requirement to have these checks done to maintain a warranty.

I don't look at it that way, so it's just a difference of opinion I suppose. To me it's a small price to pay for preventative maintenance. They do more than just adjust vents...For something that most people take for granted that can cost a lot of money in the long term if it breaks I'll spend $200/year it's not that big of a deal to me and I just budget for it.

Gumbo · 12-30-2009, 02:00 PM

I'd like to get it looked at once a year, just feel that $240 is steep for all labor no parts and an hour of work. I've learned how to adjust the vents from the attic, so I could do it myself. I replace the filters myself as well.

At the last check, we were told we have a part that is probably good for another year or two before it breaks and will need replacing. The only thing preventative maintenance did was point out the problem, but we're still going to be stuck with the service/part when it breaks (we could have just found this out when it broke).

I'm happy with our current provider, just wanted to get some feedback on pricing. Seemed high to me.

I'm kind of in the middle on this issue. Agree with Jack that its probably good to have it looked at and maintained (I'm sure they service it/clean it so a breakdown is less likely). Also agree with Lumbollo, that it might be better to reserve the money we pay in Preventative Maintenance and save it for when something does happen.

CharlotteCharlotte · 12-30-2009, 04:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gumbo

At the last check, we were told we have a part that is probably good for another year or two before it breaks and will need replacing. The only thing preventative maintenance did was point out the problem, but we're still going to be stuck with the service/part when it breaks (we could have just found this out when it broke).

You need to ask specifics about it, you need to find out exactly what needs replaced and replace it yourself. You would be amazed at how easy it is to work on a heating/air conditioning system!!!

lumbollo · 12-30-2009, 06:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jake Ryan

I don't look at it that way, so it's just a difference of opinion I suppose. To me it's a small price to pay for preventative maintenance. They do more than just adjust vents...For something that most people take for granted that can cost a lot of money in the long term if it breaks I'll spend $200/year it's not that big of a deal to me and I just budget for it.

Since you were asking an economic question then I wanted to point out that $3000 for this would pay for a lot of repairs or would pay a substantial portion of a new system. These devices rarely break and if you have had it checked a couple of times and there are no issues, I would bet money you won't see any trouble for a very long time. Failures rates on HVAC units are bathtub shaped. If it doesn't go in the 1st couple of years, it's liable to go 10-15 years without trouble. Then you will see a lot of problems at once. Keep the filters changed each month, and you will be fine. (the 4 for $1.99 fiters are fine).

BTW, there is no maintenance that you can do that will change that.

It's your money of course and I was only pointing this out in economic terms.

FMYankee · 12-30-2009, 08:47 PM

I never have my HVAC units checked out unless there's something wrong, or I'm buying another rental house, and I want to see what sort of shape the HVAC unit is in before I stick tenants in there. With multiple rental properties, it's cost prohibitive to pay $200+ per year per house. I have rarely had a problem with an HVAC system, and when one has broken, it has never been something that could have been avoided with maintenance.

However, it certainly can't hurt to have your unit serviced. I do think twice yearly is completely unnecessary. At the most, I'd have it done yearly. And I certainly think you're paying waaaay to much. Lumbollo is right--at the price you're paying, you could easily replace your unit in no time.

The A#1 preventative thing you can do for your HVAC system is to FAITHFULLY replace the intake filters every month, without fail. And DO NOT use the cheap-o ones (they're usually blue). If you can see light through it, it will not work. Spend the money on the higher quality filters, and you will save yourself major headaches down the road. I forbid my tenants to use the cheap filters, and I will penalize them if I find they do not change them out regularly.

The other thing you can do is be sure your condensation line is cleaned out twice yearly. This is the clear plastic tube that you see dripping water during the summertime. If this backs up, it will at the least leak (and if you're unit is inside the house, either in the attic or crawlspace, this is a problem), and it can cause mold to form. I've had it happen--very stinky and rather expensive ordeal.

Hope this helps.