And again - HVAC Recommendations, please

[Lemming95]

I really dislike Michael and Sons. They were way overpriced on a pipe repair. I paid them $655 for a simple pipe repair-a section about 5 ft long. I later used a local plumbing company who actually gave an estimate and did four times the work and did much better cleanup. That was Bakers in Woodbridge-too far from Vienna.

[RusUs]

All,
Thanks again for your replies and recommendations. We have done a lot of research and are in the process of scheduling a few appointments for estimates. Hope to find the right company soon.

[SunnyDaz]

I've been using Richards Heating and Air for 10 years. They are very professional and do honest work. I had a Carrier Infinity System installed several years ago and I have been very happy with it.

[mrrame]

I used Able Appliances based on Bristow, VA for my recent A/C repair.

To give them credit, they showed up on the same day I called, so that's good. But, they overcharged me for a simple capacitor change.

[johnsonkk]

Are you positive you need (or want) a full replacement? The blower unit, heat, and ac combined will be expensive but do all the components need replacing? If you are up front on the request for an estimate, many companies will provide this free of charge. I recently went thru five companies that quoted new units with only two that provided a repair cost too. We ended up spending $1000 to full clean, repair, and replace a couple pieces vs full replacement. Most companies will tell you that any system over ten years needs replacing vs repair. However, fifteen years ago, the quality on most systems was better and of course less complicated than today's systems.

Prices are all over the map depending on quality. Once you know what system you need (say 80 btu furnace and a 2.5 Ton AC, then each company will have a economy solution,middle one, and premium. Factors include efficiency, decibels, and cost. Comparing middle solutions between companies allows some practical comparison vs guessing. Also some companies wait to add their install cost, pipe fittings, etc until after the estimated price. For a middle sized system, estimates from various manufactures went from $5k to $11k. It's not easy.

[SunnyDaz]

One more thing about Michael & Son....they came to my house to do some plumbing work and left permanent stickers for Michael & Son all over the appliances in my basement. They are large and ugly and I can't remove them without making them worse.

[RusUs]

johnsonkk, thank you for your valid thoughts and we did consider them, too. Our current HVAC system is original (~1994) and old. We were fortunate that it lasted this long, with some repairs. Also freon has been leaking and we had to re-fill it a few times, when we were not ready yet to make a decision. But after ~5 years of dealing with the current unit, it is time to say good-bye…

SunnyDaz, we have heard a lot of so-so feedback about M&S. While we used them a few times in the past, most likely this time we’ll select a different company.

Again, many thanks to all!

[lovnova]

We used Neighborhood Specialists HVAC in Sterling, VA 703 628-5205 for many years before we left nova. They were honest and did not overcharge. Stefon the owner, usually did the work himself.

[RusUs]

I just wanted to post an update to my original post.

About a week ago we had our HVAC unit replaced (yes! and hopefully no problems for the next 15 years! :-) . After thorough (and tiring) research we went with Air One Tech. We were happy with their service, response and attention to our questions/concerns.

http://www.yelp.com/biz/air-one-tech...t_by=date_desc

Again, thanks to all of you for your feedback!

[exbubba]

Garneski sales and service are excellent. Sterling area.