Am I being screwed by a/c company? (sales, house)

[Flavia84]

Inherited a Lennox (expensive) a/c unit when I purchased my house just over a year ago.
Been using the same a/c company to do preventative maintenance. Seems like every time they come for a checkup (spring and fall), there is something that needed to be fixed. I was shelling out to them 250$ here and there. I could live with that.

So three days ago I woke up to my a/c not working. Called the a/c people. They discovered that the refrigerant leaked out. Charged me $550 for 7 gallons of refill plus black dye to determine where the leak is. The next day it's not working again. Turns out, the coils have rusted and were leaking freon. First question is, why couldn't they see the rusted coils in April when they came for the checkup?? And, of course, they will tell me that it was not obvious back then.

So the coils replacement with labor and ANOTHER fill of refrigerant cost me another 1200$ and a full day that I had to spend at home in a hot house while they were working on it (took them 7 hours to replace it instead of 3 like initially promised).

Woke up today again and it's not cooling to the set temperature again... Sigh. They will be coming in again to look at it.

I'm frustrated and understand that sometimes things break, but I want to be sure that I'm being charged an adequate amount and dealing with knowledgeable technicians. Hopefully someone on this board well versed in air conditioning can chime in.

[KurtAZ]

2 words...Home Warranty.

[Potential_Landlord]

Originally Posted by Flavia84

Inherited a Lennox (expensive) a/c unit when I purchased my house just over a year ago.
Been using the same a/c company to do preventative maintenance. Seems like every time they come for a checkup (spring and fall), there is something that needed to be fixed. I was shelling out to them 250$ here and there. I could live with that.

So three days ago I woke up to my a/c not working. Called the a/c people. They discovered that the refrigerant leaked out. Charged me $550 for 7 gallons of refill plus black dye to determine where the leak is. The next day it's not working again. Turns out, the coils have rusted and were leaking freon. First question is, why couldn't they see the rusted coils in April when they came for the checkup?? And, of course, they will tell me that it was not obvious back then.

So the coils replacement with labor and ANOTHER fill of refrigerant cost me another 1200$ and a full day that I had to spend at home in a hot house while they were working on it (took them 7 hours to replace it instead of 3 like initially promised).

Woke up today again and it's not cooling to the set temperature again... Sigh. They will be coming in again to look at it.

I'm frustrated and understand that sometimes things break, but I want to be sure that I'm being charged an adequate amount and dealing with knowledgeable technicians. Hopefully someone on this board well versed in air conditioning can chime in.

Flavia,

I'm sorry to hear this. A real horror story. I wouldn't trust this company at all after this history. I would complain and even threaten a major social media and BBB uproar after such a letdown. They have to fix for free whatever remaining problem there is and IMO should reimburse for some of the expenses. Too stupid to see corroded coil? Another question is why did the coil corrode? Is there something wrong with the install? - Another AC company let down in Arizona... unfortunately all too common. I taught myself how to fix issues and will never let a company touch mine. For good reasons.

[wase4711]

I've had great luck with these guys, and so has anyone I referred to them; no BS, no overcharges, no making up bs to get you to buy anything..give them a call..

https://hayscoolingandheating.com/contact/

[Flavia84]

Thanks everyone.

They are telling me that I should not be setting my a/c to 69 degrees. Is it true? I used to do that at nighttime as I like my house cool for sleep, and it was never an issue. Figured since this is a $17K a/c unit, it can easily handle it.

I keep it at 71 now at night and 77 during the day. The company rep told me I'm "lucky that it gets this low" and that she wished hers went down that much. Really?!

[Potential_Landlord]

Originally Posted by Flavia84

Thanks everyone.

They are telling me that I should not be setting my a/c to 69 degrees. Is it true? I used to do that at nighttime as I like my house cool for sleep, and it was never an issue. Figured since this is a $17K a/c unit, it can easily handle it.

I keep it at 71 now at night and 77 during the day. The company rep told me I'm "lucky that it gets this low" and that she wished hers went down that much. Really?!

What the heck. That's why we size AC units to the home, so that it cools sufficiently. It appears they have no idea what they're talking about. Get a second opinion. BTW size > price. It's the size of the unit and the quality of the install that matter most. It appears to get a good quality install you have to be lucky. That's not how it's supposed to be.

[DougStark]

Also, those ads for an annual AC/heat pump "tune-up" are a con. AC units don't need to be tuned-up.

The company that installed mine gave me that sales pitch one year after install. I said, No thanks; It's working fine.

[jnojr]

Originally Posted by KurtAZ

2 words...Home Warranty.

...are usually a rip-off.

When things keep breaking with some device, whether it's an AC unit or a car or a computer, the right answer is GET RID OF IT and replace it with a new one. These things do age. Just because the 30 year old AC in my house is still plugging along doesn't mean it's special... it just means it hasn't broken yet, and if it does, the answer is to replace it with a new, better-engineered, more energy-efficient solution that's installed properly from Day One. That's how you get another couple of decades of service, not by going into firefighting mode!

[jnojr]

Originally Posted by DougStark

Also, those ads for an annual AC/heat pump "tune-up" are a con. AC units don't need to be tuned-up.

The company that installed mine gave me that sales pitch one year after install. I said, No thanks; It's working fine.

It'll work fine until it doesn't. Coils get dirty. Fans age. Coolant slowly leaks out, making the system work harder and harder. An occasional tune-up by someone who knows what they're doing will make it last longer, and turn up problems sooner, before they're a nightmare.

[Flavia84]

Called Lennox. They said I should be able to run it at 69 degrees in the summer no problem.